The typical computer at one time had to be housed in large rooms and contained the competing power of your average calculator. Now the personal computer has gone from hobby to utility and can be carried in the palm of your hand. This transition has been achieved at breakneck speed, but this improbable journey has largely gone unrecorded. Happily, this book provides a much-needed introduction to this not so distant history when outside forces were slowly transforming industrial powerhouses.

Stockdell's intriguing story is about the decline of the first great giant of the telecommunication industry, IBM, and one man's vision to reimagine the industry's antiquated practices. The first great tech bubble of the eighties and nineties was about to burst, and the author saw an opening to change the trajectory of his career. His book is an insightful and nuanced biography that manages to avoid all the typical pitfalls of such an enterprise. The author doesn't omit mistakes. And, most importantly, his work never feels self-serving.

Any expert on this subject and period of global telecommunications will admire the breadth of the author's knowledge as he navigates the reader along this period of complex industry transitions. However, the real triumph of this book is its ability in the face of such transformative changes to personalize the narrative through the eyes of a single spectator. It is a fearlessly open and earnest presentation of one man, his missteps, and his unique instincts. Overall, it is a worthwhile read for any fan of the business biography genre.

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