There are at least two ways to take measure of a book: by the critical response and by how it’s faring commercially.
To the content itself, we’ve been happy with the early reactions / reviews to The Start-Up of You. A few quick highlights:
- Barnes & Noble says, “This unconventional, refreshing approach enables workers to take charge of their own futures in rational ways.”
- Wade Roush at Xconomy says that the discussion of first, second, and third degree connections makes it “guaranteed you’ll come out with some new ideas for using LinkedIn.”
- The economist Arnold Kling says, “The book is not a commercial for Linked-in. Nowhere does it say, ‘Join Linked-in, and get connected to as many people as possible.’ On the contrary, they suggest only carefully circumscribed uses for weak ties. They make a stronger case for deeper relationships.” Arnold also comments on ABZ Planning.
- Los Angeles Times / Financial Times review: “…Ultimately it is the optimism of Silicon Valley that infuses this book: There is still hope for those striving to break into the charmed circle.”
- Kirkus says the “largely referential text overflows with relevant source material, guided ‘invest-in-yourself’ encouragement and sage industry-insider smarts.”
- NPR excerpts a good part of Chapter 1 about the new world of work.
- At Forbes.com, Seven Ways and Why To Treat Your Career Like a Startup. A good summation.
Folks like Mark Cuban, Sanjay Gupta, Arianna Huffington, Kevin Rose, and others have all been tweeting nice things about the book, too.
Commercially, we were thrilled that the book debuted at #1 on the New York Times bestseller list, and stood atop the Wall Street Journal non-fiction list in its first week as well. It’s nice to have brisk sales out of the gate; it’s in part a testament to the urgency of the moment for a book on this topic.
But there’s still plenty to do to get the book in front of all of those who could benefit from it. Thanks in advance for spreading the word, giving it as a gift to others, etc. And feel free to email me if you want to do a bulk order, set up an event, or explore other ideas.