Steve Jobs Dead: Biography Sales Soar Overnight

By Peggy Truong | October 06 2011 9:32 AM

As news of Steve Jobs' passing traveled around the world by way of his inventions and gadgets, sales of his upcoming biography soared just as fast.

Reuters

Thanks for the iPhone," is written along side a picture of an iPhone on the sidewalk outside the the home of Steve Jobs in Palo Alto, California, October 5, 2011.
Simon & Schuster

Sony Pictures is reportedly securing the rights to an upcoming biography of the late Apple co-founder and icon Steve Jobs. With such a high-profile project who do you think can play Steve Jobs in his biopic?

As of Thursday morning, Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson experienced an increase of 37,400 percent in overnight sales, jumping from 375th place to 1st place on Amazon.

Three other books about Jobs is on Amazon's top 10, including I, Steve: Steve Jobs in His Own Words by George Beahm, a book based on more than 200 quotations from the former Apple CEO.

Jobs died at the age of 56 on Wednesday evening in Palo Alto, Calif., following a long battle with cancer.

We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today, Apple also said in a statement.

Steve's brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve, the company added.

The Isaacson book, spanning 656 pages long, is the first authorized biography of Jobs, who founded Apple in 1976 with childhood friend Steve Wozniak.

In 2005, John Wiley & Sons released an unauthorized biography of Jobs, titled iCon: Steve Jobs, The Greatest Second Act in the History of Business. In response, Jobs banned the book, along with all Wiley & Sons publications, from Apple retail stores.

Steve Jobs is based on more than 40 interviews with Jobs, as well as interviews with family members, friends, competitors and colleagues, according to publisher Simon & Schuster. On Thursday, the publishing company bumped the release date from Nov. 21 to Oct. 24, in the wake of Jobs' death.

Driven by demons, Jobs could drive those around him to fury and despair. But his personality and products were interrelated, just as Apple's hardware and software tended to be, as if part of an integrated system, the preview reads.

Isaacson is the same writer responsible for the bestselling biographies on Albert Einstein, Benjamin Franklin and Henry Kissinger.

Jobs is survived by his wife Laurene and their four children.