By Randall E. Stross - Crown Publishers
It's called the first inside account to the world of venture capital, but after reading this book three years ago and picking it up again, it is the inside world of making a business happen - fast.
eBoys is now a somewhat legendary tale of venture capital firm Benchmark and some of the most amazing bubble tales. The rise of eBAY is documented as well as the misfortunes of .com darling Webvan. This looks inside to reveal more than just dollars and cents, but covers the dreams of entrepreneurs and the fragile relationships that can come between investors and founders.
Randall Stross does a magnificent job of not translating board room discussions into dull digestible reading. Stross lays it on the line recounting intense meetings between the Benchmark partners on which companies to fund and which to throw away. eBoys personifies the bubble era and unfortunately the book ends much like the time it covers - quickly.
If you have yet to read this legendary tale of Silicon Valley dreams and hard work, go find a copy. It is a chronicle of the time and more importantly an innate look inside venture capital.
