Customer Reviews

Sunnyvale: The Rise and Fall of a Silicon Valley Family

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Silicon Valley provides an eerie backdrop for this book, which is about family, and the disappointments, tragedies and shattered expectations that are so much a part of family life. Goodell takes the wood to the media hype about Silicon Valley as a place of unbounded wealth and joy, but that isn't the point of this book, which reviewers are correctly calling harrowing and beautiful. The target is family life, and our universal search to come to terms with the things that happen to our families. In Goodell's case, his family fell apart after his parents were divorced, and his brother brought a painful tragedy to what was a sad and difficult situation. This book reads like a terrific mystery, which is what it is. Why does tragedy strike our loved ones, how should we respond, and how can we move on? Goodell deals with these questions in wonderfully frank and beautifully written ways. This transcends memoir and speaks very powerfully to anybody who wrestles with the question of family. Personally, I found the juxtaposition of the Goodell family tragedy against the explosion of wealth and greed in Silicon Valley to be a very powerful combination. I felt I was reading the "Perfect Storm" set in the hopelessly naive expectations of an oblivious, helpless California family on the eve of one of the greatest explosions of wealth and cultural change in history. Great book for any parent and any kid.

Loved this book. The author has an unnerving talent to wrap you completely into his family. I couldn't put this book down and hated for it to end. This is one book that will stick with me for a while.

The Silicon Valley aspect is secondary. This is the true tale of what all too commonly happens to children of divorce. Jeff's mother decides she no longer wants to be married. It's time for HER to have fun--she immerses herself in her career (which she has started before her divorce) and loves the dating scene. No longer putting her children first, they drift. Drugs, sex, no real place to call home, and no one to truly parent them. Jeff is the least impacted--already out of high school, he flees Silicon Valley and later enrolls in Berkeley. Jeff brother Jerry doesn't come out so lucky. Jeff's young sister Jill lives her life as she pleases--stays out all night, drops out of school. Mom continues to be more concerned about her own fun. Dad is still around, lost on his own, and seemingly unable to provide much emotional support for his kids.

Maybe part of my attraction to this book lies in the similarities to my own life. I suppose many would find this book a depressing read. I found it encouraging to see Jeff and Jill land on their feet and lead their own productive lives.

This story could be centered just about anywhere. The reviewer from Sunnyvale aside (why so defensive?), this is a treatise on falling outside the clique in today's America. Whether the setting is Silicon Valley, Orange County, Fairfax County, Cambridge, etc... this writing hits home with more of us than we might like to admit. Whether it be computers, day trading, e-tailing, whatever the fast moving hot thing is, this book illustrates how easily such "progress" can wrench a family apart and leave behind wreckage and despair. Dear old Dad loves his time honored trade, dotes on his family and basically is a good but rather boring guy. Mom comes alive when she discovers an exciting place to work and this is the death knell for the traditional family. Sound familiar? Reverse the roles and it still applies. The beauty of this book is the relevance and honesty of it. Goodell doesn't need to exaggerate anything... many of us have lived through or are living through similar things. Personally, I like Michele and Leonard... even though Leonard reminds me a little too much of my own mentors. This book might make you think, but most likely it will make you nod your head thinking "I can relate". Should you, dear reader, be one of the decreasing numbers of people in a stable, well orderd family, this will be a somewhat voyeuristic read but very informative. Definitely worth the time.

Jeff Goodell's memoir about the discintigration of an American family (his own) in small-town Sunnyvale --set against the backdrop of California's surging growth of computer technology as well as the internet explosion into modern day America in nearby Silicon Valley-- shows us that behind the sterility of corporate computer America, looking further into the microchip mentality, there are actual people and their very human lives behind the mechanical scenes. The author paints a very human picture of family life when everything doesn't go perfect. There is no 'netguide' to find a handy solution, no 'Dysfunctional Families for Dummies' reference book for a quick fix. The book begins as his parents divorce when he is 19, and carries us through the next twenty years of emotional struggle as Goodell has experienced it. He deals with anger, resentment, heartache, disappointment, guilt, loss, and then assumes the responsibility for trying to fix everything that broke. I'ts not as easy as putting a new hard drive into a computer. Goodell matures as the book progresses from the cocky and condescending teen he was into the reflective and forgiving man he has become. The book is beautifully written and the reader easily drawn into the lives of the writer and his family members. Anyone who has dealt with their own family struggles (who hasn't?) can relate to this book and will find comfort from the fact that we are not alone ---everyone has a story and Goodell has poingiently given us his.

Anyone who grew up in the Valley and watched friends move away, or watched their parents get divorced amidst the whirlwind of change over the last 20+ years, must read this account. The story especially resonated with me, because I grew up and still live in Sunnyvale. I have frequented many of the same haunts that served as a vivid, if somewhat plastic, backdrop. There are many who have pointed out that the story is more about a dysfunctional family than a transforming city per se, which is true, but for those of us who grew up here, it is a reminder of how change has come so quickly. Many of us here haven't had much time to stop and witness the change, and we also know of many who were pushed out of the area for one reason or another. True, opportunity is bountiful here, but it certainly is much more selective than most would think. I didn't like how the author at first had a tendency to pass judgment on others extremely quickly, but it certainly foreshadows redemptive events that would follow. In the end, the message seems to be that change may strain family ties, but it will never break them. Among the despair and depression in the story, it is a silver lining that should never be forgotten or taken for granted.

A masterpiece about the disintegration of a family, this book transcends the trendy topic of Silicon Valley as it details the tragedy of Jeff Goodell's family. But this tragedy is also Goodell's triumph, because he emerges from this book as a sparkling, strong, and memorable voice for our times. I would recommend Sunnyvale to anyone who enjoys a writer who understands character, narrative, and language. Goodell is a master of all three.

Goodell has written a wonderful, very touching saga about his family. Anyone with a dysfunctional family background will be able to empathize with him.

But I also see it as a lost chance.

It could have been a classic (or at least a local classic). But it only remains a good read. The difference is lack of vivid imagery. Steinbeck's "Cannery Row" comes alive because of the vivid imagery he conjures of the people, and the area.

Goodell fails dismally at describing the beautiful Santa Clara Valley area (or maybe he didnt even try). There is absolutely no local color.

But still, I would highly recommend this book, just for its rich & touching story.

Jeff Goodell has written a revealing portrait of his family, centered around the divorce of his parents when he was 19. Although it seemed like no big event to him at the time, he, his slightly younger brother, and his much younger sister struggled for years for identity following this event. In the process, they found it difficult to establish their own goals and to define appropriate relationships with each other in the family. This difficulty extended into troubled personal relations with the opposite sex.

Sunnyvale is a small town located in the middle of Silicon Valley in California. Interwoven with the story is the family's sometimes connection and usual lack of connection to the technological revolution being created there. The author worked at Apple Computer, as did his mother, in the heady days just before the IPO and the development of the Mac. To Mr. Goodell at the time, Apple was just a paycheck, a place where his Mom could get him a job. Soon bored, he left and worked in casinos at Lake Tahoe. Only years later did he discover a love for computers when his parents sent him a Mac to help him with his writing. His mother, on the other hand, moved towards technology. First, getting more training, she went on to become a component designer of printed circuit boards. His father was never able to connect with the technology revolution, nor was his brother. After false starts and delays, his sister did. Mr. Goodell eventually becomes better acquainted with his father's father, and finds that he has always been involved with technology.

The story has two appealing qualities. Despite the fact that members of the family drove each other crazy, they did a great deal to help one another. In a sense, they became a stronger family after the divorce by calling on and doing more to be there for each other. This was quite a challenge, as the younger brother, Jerry, went through horrible ups and downs. The father also develops health problems and needs emotional and physical support from his children, since he did not remarry. His remarried ex-wife cannot fill in as she would have if they had remained married.

The second appeal is in what the author discovered about relationships in the prior three generations of his family. Many of the problems that he, his parents, and siblings experienced had played themselves out in these earlier families. From this, he learned a much greater appreciation for his father because his father had never distanced himself from the family, even though there had been a divorce.

The metaphor of recovering from an earthquake kept coming to mind as I read this book. At the moment it occurs, fear reigns. Afterwards, you find yourself worried by vague uneasiness and cannot have the same carefree feeling. Long after the physical damage is gone, the psychological strains are still there. My mother can still become quite distraught recounting a story of a large earthquake when she was a little girl. That's what seems to have happened to these people.

I was also struck that many of the problems here related to poor communications. The mother had decided she did not want to marry the father originally, but her mother made her go through with the wedding so the family would not be talked about by the neighbors. How much different would their lives have been if the marriage had not occurred or if the mother and father had talked it through. As it was, the father never knew of his wife's discomfort in the marriage until it was too late. The relationships between the parents and their children, the children with each other, the children with others, and those in earlier generations with each other were all flawed by extreme reticence about important feelings and subjects. As a writer, the author seems to have overcome this reticence is a way that should serve him and his family well in the future. I admire the Goodells for being willing to share their pain and experiences with us so that we can learn to avoid some of these problems in our lives.

After you finish this book, I suggest that you think about 3 important things that you never discuss with your family. Then make it a point to do so. And encourage the other family members to do the same with you. Some fresh air on these subjects can create a much stronger and healthier bond among all of you.

You won't learn anything about technology from this book, but you will get important insights into what a family can be, even after divorce.

I am Mr. Goodell's contemporary in time and space: I am two years his senior, and grew up about 2 miles from him in Sunnyvale. While Mr. Goodell left the Valley at 20, I stayed for 40 years. While his family scattered, my mother is still in the home that I was raised in. While he is an author, both my husband and I spent our careers in high-tech. His father was a landscaper, mine worked at Lockheed. His family history was atypical for Sunnyvale in the 60s and early 70s. I know where his school is (it is the Mother School of my own), where the house he grew up in is, and the locales where his story plays out. However, Mr. Goodell misses many major opportunities with this book: he starts his story when he reaches adulthood (19) and his family has "fallen". He doesn't talk about growing up in an enviornment that takes on the characteristics of the changes that swirl around him: from agricultural economy to high-tech; he doesn't comment on the conflict between the defense contractors and the anti-war high-tech utopians; and he doesn't relate the growth, the passion, the intensity, the joy of people creating an industry. He leaves Sunnyvale, and 90% of his tale is from a distance. He speaks with the voice of an outsider, a person who had no connection to the passions of the community.

This is a terrific human interest story, a roadmap of children coming to grips with divorce, a man coming into his own. It is NOT, however, the story of Sunnyvale, nor is it the story of a Silicon Valley Family. While it was good on it's own merits, it was a total disappointment based on it's title and hype.

This book was recommended by a friend who has lived in California all her life. She said it captured the human side of the Silicon Valley story better than anything she had ever read, and I agree. This is a family story above all else, however. A family trying to survive in a world that is moving very quickly, that can't quite keep up with the computer revolution that is unfolding around them. A powerful story, reads like a morality tale for our times.