Books by Frank Rose

 

In a series of nonfiction books on a range of topics, Frank Rose shows how our view of ourselves as individuals is changing in response to the shifting rules, expectations and power structures. While his early books focus on specific subcultures and rivalries — in academia, in Silicon Valley, in Hollywood — in his later work he shows how cultural and  technological forces are rewiring our sense of self and our perception of reality.

The Sea We Swim In

How Stories Work in a Data-Driven World
The Sea We Swim In

“Frank Rose’s fascinating new book is an essential companion for our age — when narratives, no matter how incredible, produce real-world outcomes that defy all reason. ‘The Sea We Swim In’ takes us systematically through the elements that create compelling stories and offers a practical guide both to crafting powerful tales and to resisting the pull of the most dangerous.”

— Rita McGrath, Columbia Business School professor and author of “Seeing Around Corners”

WE SWIM IN A SEA OF STORIES — stories that determine how we comprehend the world, that define our personal lives, our professional lives, our goals and ambitions and ideals. They can control us, or we can control them — if we know how they work. LEARN MORE…

The Art of Immersion

How the Digital Generation Is Changing Hollywood, Madison Avenue, and the Way We Tell Stories
The Art of Immersion

“Himself a master of good old-fashioned narrative, Frank Rose has given us the definitive guide to the complex, exciting, and sometimes scary future of storytelling.”

— Steven Levy, author of “Hackers” and “In the Plex”

NOT LONG AGO WE WERE passive consumers of mass media. Now we approach television, movies, even advertising as invitations to participate. We are witnessing the emergence of a new form of narrative that is native to the In­ternet. LEARN MORE…

The Agency

William Morris and The Hidden History of Show Business
The Agency

“A fascinating history of William Morris. It’s not about the stars as much as the men (and women) who helped make the stars — the ‘star-making machinery’ as Joni Mitchell sang in ‘Free Man in Paris,’ her ode to David Geffen, himself one of the William Morris men. . . . Classic stuff, this book.”

— David Rensin, author of “The Mailroom”

FOR DECADES, the Morris agency made deals that determined the fate of stars, studios, and television networks alike. But everything changed after the agency’s president dismissed his own best friend, the man who’d brought Barry Diller and Michael Ovitz out of the mailroom. A multi-generational saga of loyalty and betrayal in Hollywood. LEARN MORE…

West of Eden

The End of Innocence at Apple Computer
West of Eden

“Readers don’t need to worry that Mr. Rose was chewed up by Apple’s public relations machine. . . . He provides convincing proof that life at young California companies was anything but laid back.”

— Michael Moritz, The Wall Street Journal

IT SEEMS UNTHINKABLE TODAY—but forty years ago, when personal com­puters were still new and the World Wide Web had yet to be invented, Steve Jobs was cast out of Apple. And it wasn’t just Wall Street that applauded—it was most of Silicon Valley. LEARN MORE…

Into the Heart of the Mind

An American Quest For Artificial Intelligence
Into the Heart of the Mind

“A good, acces­sible re­port for the gen­eral reader on one of the most bizarre fas­cina­tions of mod­ern sci­ence.”

— Theo­dore Roszak, San Fran­cis­co Chron­icle

IN A CRAMPED LABORATORY at Berkeley, scientists are trying to teach a computer to think — to reason, remember and exhibit common sense. To make it work, they need to codify the entirety of human thought. But first they have to get their machine to put on a raincoat before going out in the rain. LEARN MORE…

Real Men

Sex and Style In An Uncertain Age
Real Men

“As long as a man is something you become . . . then it is something external, a mask and an illusion. . . . ‘Real Men’ brings us close enough to see the mask slip.”

— The Real Paper (Boston)

THIS IS A BOOK ABOUT BEING MALE. About power and discipline, sex and violence, and the roles they play in the lives of American men. Think of it as a personal and idiosyncratic survey designed to produce not statistical data but individual answers to the question of what it means to be a man. LEARN MORE…