800-CEO-READ: The Book Project

Jack and I have been working on a project for the last few months and we thought it was time to unveil it to the public.

We are excited to announce that we are writing a book. The topic will not surprise you--the 100 business titles everyone should read.

800-CEO-READ is an expert in the business book category. Jack has written over 300 reviews of business books since 2001 and, in 2004, we really stepped it up with our Daily Blog. We now feature audio, excerpts, and essays from authors we think have compelling things to say.

We felt it was the time to go back and create the 800-CEO-READ Best-Of-All-Time list. There are so many books that have been published in the last 100 years (and a few before that) which people have probably heard of, but have never taken the time to go read. Our book is meant to be that little nudge.

We are very excited that Portfolio, the business imprint at Penguin, has agreed to publish the book. They have published a variety of authors and titles you are familiar with, Seth Godin, Guy Kawasaki, and Smartest Guys In The Room to name a few. The book is slated for publication in late 2008 or more likely early 2009.

Since this is a long process, we thought we would document our experiences as we go. We are going to talk about everything having to do with the project: the deal, the writing, what we plan to do when we launch the book, what we plan to do in addition to the book, etc. We will mention some of those things here from time to time, but if you want to follow along with the whole story, check back here from time to time or subscribe to the RSS feed.

For my part in this adventure, the genesis of this book began about six or seven years ago when David Schwartz (owner of Milwaukee's independent Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops...and the guy who gave me my first job in books) and I were at one of our bi-yearly "where we are at" dinners. He suggested that I probably knew more about business books than most people and I should write book reviews. I scoffed at him, saying I can do some things, but writing isn't one of them. He pushed back, and so I wrote my first Jack Covert Selects review. Since then, my reviews have appeared in newspapers around the country. Much to my surprise, I found that I liked writing them, and maybe even more shocking to me, is that I enjoyed delving into the business books and ideas that I was reviewing.

This all happened before Todd joined me here at 800-CEO-READ, but when he arrived, he and Tom Ehrenfeld started discussing the possibility of putting together a book that would showcase our experience with business books. As the discussions moved forward, I was excited by the idea of taking a fleshed-out version of our JCS reviews, adding some cool graphics, and tying it all together to give the reader a pathway or travel guide to this world of business books...and, by conjunction, the world of business.

One of the books we are looking to include in the book is Robert Townsend's classic, Up the Organization. Included in the PR for the 2007 reissue was this quote.

If you reread Robert Townsend's 1970 book "Up the Organization," you'll see some of the language used--and ideas shared by--Fast Company since our launch. The same goes for Fortune during some of its livelier years. And I like to think of the similarities less as rehashing--and more as reminding.

Fast Company, 2003

Because they still matter and they produce a different result.

There are a number of routes we could have gone with this project. A simple email with the 100 books could have gotten readers talking. People love lists.

We could have blogged our favorite books and created a couple of ChangeThis manifestos with some clever category slices. My top five books for executives post got a lot of traction and generated some great comments. Josh Kaufman's Personal MBA manifesto has been hugely popular.

Writing a book requires a different level of concentration, both internally and externally. It is not good enough to challenge your co-worker with the five books she'd bring with her to a desert island. Choosing and describing in the right terms 100 titles is a different task. Writing a book gives you the motivation and the impetus to do that work. I am not saying we couldn't do this without a publisher's deadline, just that it helps.

It is the same way a publisher signing the project helps. They sign projects that are going can be commercially successful. That eye can help a book find a larger audience. You also get the sales, distribution, and production capabilities. Those still matter too.

Don't think we aren't going to write the email and manifestos I described at the start as well as a dozen other things. We just think writing a book makes the end result better.

When Genius Failed is about the collapse of Long-Term Capital Management. I found this quote particularly insightful.

"Their hunger to turn millions into billions knew no bounds, nor did it recognize any risks. For men who prided themselves on being disciples of reason, their drive to live on the edge seemed inexplicable, unless they believed that becoming the richest would certify them as also being the smartest."

My prior "Why A Book?" post describes why we are writing a book versus doing something else. This post is more about who will benefit from this project.

Writing a book is not a small undertaking. Jack and I are spending between 10 and 15 hours a week writing this book. The challenge with this particular book is we have to go back and read all the others books before we even start writing. To meet our April 1st deadline, both of us each week need to read a book and write a review. As Fool's Day approaches, I am certain a majority of our time will be spent completing the manuscript.

My statement about the workload is not a complaint. It is a statement of fact and one that we knowingly took on. The commitment though makes a strong statement about the value of the project.

For our company, this is a stake in the ground with 800-CEO-READ solidifying its position as an expert in business books. With our strong ties in the author community, we will be able to speak more easily to them as peers. The book gives our fans and supporters a rally point. The broader business community gets an unparalleled resource for facing the challenges in the marketplace.

We felt we needed to write this book. Certainly, there is the challenge of individual achievement for Jack and I, as one might choose to run a marathon, but what we spend most of our time talking about are things like "Who is going to be reading this?", "Is this book worthy?", and "How can we make this review better?" The answers to those questions make a better book for all of you.

I realize both of these post may sound high-minded, but we both believe the best journeys start with a noble purpose. Built into the DNA of our company is the primary idea that we need to help people and that is why we are writing this book.

For the past six months, since getting fully involved in this book project, I have been reading nothing but business books. Previously, I would read a fiction or general non-fiction book a week, usually written by an author I'd previously enjoyed, so I knew it would be an entertaining read. Instead of giving up my non-business book reading entirely, I have started a pile of books at home for after I finish this marathon; James Lee Burke, Walter Mosley and Michael Connelly are all waiting for me next to my reading chair.

All right, confession time: I have actually read one non-business book during these six months. It is a ten-year-old book about baseball called Memories of Summer by Roger Kahn. I read it at night before I fall asleep. Not everyone may be interested to learn that the 1954 Cleveland Indians pitchers had a team ERA of 2.78 with 77 complete games, but I am. I can't dream about business books, but I can dream about Duke Snyder and Willie Mays.

This week the blog's been quiet. Our dear authors, Jack and Todd are off in NYC dining at fine restaurants, reviewing the book's progress, meeting publishers and chatting up our new project.

I'm Kate, by the way. One of my various hats is directing (or attempting to) Jack and Todd as the book's project manager; you'll see me chip in from time-to-time here. I'll try and give you a bit more background about these two modest guys.

Here's the first bit: welcome to Jack's desk (at his house).

Honestly, I think he cleaned it up a bit before taking this picture. Here you'll see Jack's coffee -- Diet Coke. Books marked by sticky notes in typical Jack style. And, if you look really closely, you'll see a sunflower seed shell scattered on the floor from whenever Jack misses the trash. And that, is where half of his writing is completed.