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 enlarge | Author: David A. Kaplan
Publisher: Harper Paperbacks
Category: Book
List Price: $15.95
Buy New: $7.49
You Save: $8.46 (53%)
New (42) Used (15) from $6.75
Avg. Customer Rating:  9 reviews
Sales Rank: 37766
Media: Paperback
Edition: Reprint
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.9
ISBN: 0061374024
Dewey Decimal Number: 797
EAN: 9780061374029
ASIN: 0061374024
Publication Date: July 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 6-9 of 9 | | « PREV | | |
Mine's Bigger July 31, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The book is both a history of Tom Perkins' quest for the ultimate sailing machine and a very insightful biography of the brilliant venture capitalist and sailor. I met Tom over 25 years ago in a major deal and came to appreciate his talents in business and in the finer things in life then. The book describes the continuation of his success in both. Highly recommended !!!
 A Sailor's Delight July 28, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Anyone who sails will love this book. It tells the story of the construction of the largest sailing yacht ever built and the fascinating man who built it. Kaplan writes knowledgeably and clearly. An ideal summer vacation read.
The Falcon Flies High July 9, 2007
12 out of 13 found this review helpful
David A. Kaplan has skillfully interwoven the stories of the world's greatest private yacht, its owner Tom Perkins, and of Perkins's Silicon Valley milieu, a subject Kaplan explored well in The Silicon Boys.
As a nonsailor I learned quite a bit about naval architecture, which Kaplan explained well in layman's terms. Perkins's story is remarkable, from his rise at HP to the top of the venture capital food chain, to his dedication to the creation of this new vessel. The ship is described in beautiful detail, and while it could certainly be labeled an object of excess and vanity, we see what a technical marvel it is and how Perkins drove to create something very special, using his own engineering skills and not just his bank account.
Beyond Perkins's drive we also see his devotion to his first wife and his deep sorrow at her passing, his love of sailing for its own sake and his democratic association with his crews. In short, this isn't just a very rich guy with nothing to do but impress his fellow plutocrats.
Kaplan writes with wit and economy. I highly recommend the book.
 A Landlubber Writes About The Man Who Built A Very Big Boat. July 8, 2007
8 out of 20 found this review helpful
The write-up for the book leads you to think it's about a wonderful yacht. It's mostly a biography of the builder, Tom Perkins. Kaplan doesn't really like Perkins. And sailboat lovers will be disappointed that there isn't more about the vessel; though there is some tittle-tattle about the youthful crew.
Seasickness plagues Kaplan on the one voyage that he finally gets around to describing and during it he nearly breaks his neck on a slippery bathroom floor. There is no description of the places visited, the food, the conversations, any problems, or of any interesting details, just a lot of complaining that the boat heels over in strong wind (isn't that what sailboats are born to do?) You end up wondering why, when he finds so little repect about the man and also about the boat, he bothered to write the book at all. Oh, the title is about comparing the yacht to a couple of other yachts, not Perkins's you know what.
T. Harrelson
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