Rating: 
Summary: Very interesting
Review: This book is quite well written and as I read through it I really felt like I was almost following along in the progression of eBay from a tiny site in the middle of nowhere to the huge worldwide presence it is today.It's not too long and not too short and will keep your interest for the whole great read.
Rating:
Summary: Extraordinary View Inside the Greatest Site of the .Com Era
Review: Cohen's book really hits the mark. I'm not usually a big fan of business books, but this one flows and rolls along. It reads easily and with an honest eye (something those folks at the NY Times, Cohen's paper, sometimes have trouble with). Anyway, I enjoyed the story of the company and the smaller stories about sellers. These people are a little nuts, but fascinating. Who knew people collected irons? Anyway, I'm an avid Ebayer and this book got me more interested. If only I had the money to buy the stock...Overall, fair and balanced protrait of a site that has quickly become a part of American history.
Rating: 
Summary: Add it to my personal history
Review: Being an eBayer myself, if I ever write a book about my life I think I would have to include this book in one section. It was so interesting to read how eBay started, and how so much of that early background (even though now run by many who aren't quite as Ebaysian as Omidyar) is still so important and really very prevalent around eBay today. I had never been to the 'community' area of eBay until reading this book, and it was thrilling to wander around and notice features specifically discussed in the book. Easy to read and very enjoyable, I've recommended it to several eBay friends since I read it.
Rating:
Summary: Overall Very Good; NOT eBay Propaganda
Review: Overall I'm pretty happy with this book. The biggest complaints people have about it are Cohen's apparent lack objectivity and that the book doesn't have a consistent, chronological flow in its subject matter. Regarding the apparent lack of objectivity. I think most of these critics think if an author is enthusiastic about their subject then their objectivity is proportionally tainted. While I think that's generally true, I'm not convinced this is very true of Cohen. He gives interesting information about where eBay doesn't work and why. For instance, eBay tried venturing into the high-end antiques/collectibles market where companies like Sotheby's cater to high society at traditional auctions people attend in person. EBay, like the elite auction houses, failed to create a revolution in this market with their online approach to auctions as eBay did in the low-end collectibles market. Why? Cohen speculates that it's because personal attendance at these auctions is so much a part of the experience, and so fulfilling, almost all of which is lost in making an online bid for an item. Perhaps the rich also see eBay as a 'riff raff' way to auction. Speaking of riff-raff, I don't think Cohen gives short shrift to eBay's most vocal detractor either, a leftist moron eBay seller whose rabble rousing attempted to inspire the laughable Million Auction March, a flight of eBay auctions to competitors The seller felt, with the usual paranoid leftist panache, that eBay had 'sold out' by allowing a toaster company to have a banner ad. And what about the chapter on the thrift store junkie who hates eBay and has plenty of valid reasons why? Though I think Cohen could have given more depth and range to his business analysis, I think it was his lack of intelligence and/or education in these matters that makes him come up short here. After all, he's a technology writer by trade, not a Wall Street broker. Regarding the choppy flow complaint of the book. I think this benefits more than detracts from the book. Some have remarked that this makes the company history chronology difficult to follow because it is often interrupted by a lengthy digression into a seller biography or otherwise. I can't argue with that. Moreover, the further you get into the book, the more chronology seems to break down into random events, which speaks to the writer's laziness. The last few chapters of the book are strictly a hodge podge of anecdotes about the eBay community. It certainly seems that Cohen simply tacked onto the end a bunch of notes hastily expanded into 1-2 page pieces when he ran out of company narrative material. But I welcomed the variety and inconsistency in the book's chronological flow. While I don't feel this latter strictly anecdotal material is filler, I found myself getting bored by its consistency. It was nice to have a seller anecdote appear out of nowhere amidst an IPO story or company politics. I feel Cohen has an engaging style of introducing incongruous subject matter into the narrative, making the topics both more compelling in themselves and making the transition to another subject pretty seamless. It would have been interesting if Cohen had given more of a history on auctions. I read a fascinating article recently on thoroughbred horse auctions. Often attended by wealthy Arabians and Americans, one of the interesting aspects about these auctions is that there is so much money at stake that buyers prefer anonymity to avoid price fixing. If they personally attend their bidding method is very discreet. Auction employees constantly scan the crowd, looking for a subtle gesture, whether it be a nod, pen click, or otherwise, indicating a bid. But I enjoyed Cohen's occasional classical references, such as likening the eBay community to the chorus in ancient Greek tragedy. But Cohen's writing style is very bland; it isn't exactly on par with The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire! I laughed out loud at the hall of fame auctions, such as the guy trying to sell his soul or the auction for "pure, uncut cocaine" and appreciated the URLs for websites specializing in notable past auctions were included in the book. I think the book's biggest flaws are 1) it's central, unquestioned thesis that it's community that built eBay and 2) it doesn't get into nearly enough depth about the company principals for my tastes. Cohen claims that it's the community that eBay fostered from the beginning that made eBay the powerhouse it is today. Though the community concept of business is compelling, I'm not sure how true this is with eBay. I'm an eBay seller. I occasionally chat with my clients, but it's nothing that keeps me coming back to the site vs. other auction sites. Other reviewers here have mentioned that they have never visited the eBay message boards, and I haven't either. I've visited off-site boards, and never felt like contributing or coming back. The message boards hold far less (if any) appeal for buyers. I think what made eBay successful was that it was the first site where you could easily look for anything you wanted to buy, probably find it, and maybe even find it really cheap. I think that is far more responsible for the site's allure than any sense of community. But, then, the thing that keeps me coming back to Amazon (and wanting to write these reviews) is not price but its community aspect: reading what other people think about books I'm interested in! Only chatty sorts of biographies are offered for eBay's principals, and the occasional quote, mostly from Meg Whitman, eBay's CEO. I would have welcomed even a brief interview with any of the three key players at eBay. There is often more biographical space given to quirky sellers than them! Perhaps they weren't interesting enough to sustain more biographical information ... perhaps Cohen didn't want to burn his bridges with three people who are billionaires! This book is a must for eBay sellers.
Rating:
Summary: The Perfect Story
Review: I found Adam Cohen's book a very enjoyable read. The way he wrote this book captured well the idea of community at eBay. He did this through the stories of people who are a part of the eBay community. I found the book hard to put down.
Rating:
Summary: Brings a lot of information together in one book
Review: If you are an avid Ebayer, you will probably find yourself in this book and have a good chuckle; even if you have never experienced the Ebay thrill of winning (or the agony of defeat), you will probably find this entertaining and informative reading. In "The Perfect Store," Adam Cohen traces Ebay's development from a one-man shop to the multi-million dollar operation it is today. Along the way, he introduces a cast of interesting characters, many of whom do not fit the typical dot-com profile as the media has hitherto fore presented it. And, he debunks some myths, such as the "Pez container" inspiration for the original Ebay. Granted, quite a bit of this information has appeared in print before, but Cohen brings it together for the reader who has 1) not been following the story, 2) does not have time or resources to research Ebay in the media or 3) found Ebay after it was already a national phenomenon. I'm number 3. Although I have been an avid Ebayer, myself, for almost five years, I have mainly bought and sold, staying on the fringes and not participating in the chat-rooms or discussion boards. I was very surprised to learn that these venues were part of the original Ebay plan and have been the impetus for some of the changes that I have seen take place over the last few years. From the onset, Ebay has been a consumer-driven buyer-seller platform. Like all organizations, it has had its share of growing pains. Without taking sides, Cohen examines these, illuminating the multiple and various personalities that make up this global market place. Cohen's writing style is very readable and he paces the book nicely, interspersing just enough anecdote among the business facts to keep the book from becoming a dry tome. (Bonus: The clever Ebayer may also pick up a tip or two for buying and selling.)
Rating: 
Summary: Can this author kiss anymore a**?
Review: OK... I like ebay- I've actually know quite a few people that work there, and I've been lucky enough to see the organization from some pretty unqiue perspectives. But of all the go-Ebay fans I've met, I don't think any of them match the uncensored bliss that Adam Cohen seems to hold for this marketplace. If I wanted a puff piece that blew sunshine up Meg WHitman's "dressed-down Ebayasian khakis", I would turn to USAtoday or some other weak-kneed publication. Cohen defintely adds some unique tidbits of history, but the endless anqecdotes of ebay lust become sickening. After reading Cohen's text, one would wonder if ebay has found the cure for cancer yet...
Rating:
Summary: Zen and the Art of eBay
Review: The subtitle of this book is "Inside eBay" and indeed it is. Author Adam Cohen was given access to people and records and the result is not your Mother's dry old Econ text. There are a few pages of droning treatises and drivel about business models, but they are nicely interspersed with "real life" histories of eBay. This eminently readable book includes anecdotes of those inside eBay as well as Buyers, Sellers, and Detractors. Everybody has his/her say about eBay. Along the way, other Internet enterprises are compared - Darn! I miss that sock puppet dog! And who knew that the "down home in the holler" sounding company is an acronym for Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle? Cohen considers eBay founder Pierre Omidyar's libertarian attitudes embedded in its foundation - with the attention to community, and a free and level marketplace field. It hath spawned many (literal) cottage industries whose owners Cohen also interviews and includes. This reader is reminded of George Carlin's observations about people and their STUFF - getting it and getting rid of it. On eBay, in addition to buying and selling STUFF, one can also purchase STUFF in which to store one's STUFF (including real estate in Land O Lakes, FLA which is inadvertently encountered while searching for collectibillia featuring the lovely Native Dairy spokesMaiden) or in which to ship one's STUFF to its next owner. Adam Cohen is not Adam Smith or John Meynard Keynes, but I learned a little was entertained a lot. Reviewed by TundraVision
Rating:
Summary: If you are "pro-ebay" you will enjoy, otherwise ???
Review: Being a regular ebayer, I was curious to read about the founding and early days of the company. Of particular interest are the sections that deal with how ideas about economics and community fed the company's growth. Equally, ebay achieved something amazing in managing to grow tremendously while staying "under the radar" of potential competitors, until it was basically too big to be stopped. The problems with the book are numerous, however. The writing style is very bland, thus one gets the feeling of reading a really, really long Times article. The author also seems to have been somewhat co-opted by the company. They gave him an office and an ID, and the result was that Meg Whitman always gets the last word to counter any of ebay's critics. Even though he does interview lots of people who have run into problems with ebay (or just plain hate it), he manages to make them all sound slightly suspect -- it's as if you can see him behind the person's back, making "screwball" signals. And finally, I found the focus primarily on ebay's relationship to the community overextended and a bit tedious. The author doesn't seem to be that well versed in how ebay relates to the larger trends in internet commerce, nor in breaking down financials, failing to noticethat while the company's revenues have indeed grown rapidly, in some years its spending has grown still faster.
Rating:
Summary: Make you want to sell now!
Review: Virtual community, buyers and sellers at one place, 50% growth a year for five years, conservative management, building a company that lasts.... you cannot get a better business than this. Ebay beats Yahoo, Amazon, ..... all other auction websites and becomes the Number one dot.com company for a good reason. The book provides significant details, but lacks coherence. Many antecdos and stories do not connect. The flow of the book is bad. It does not have the international focus. If Ebay is truly a global marketplace, the book should mention a guy in Sweden selling products to buyers in India, etc. The last chapter starts with Guatemala with some gifts that may be sold on Ebay. This is the beginning! It will be a wonderful experiment for everyone selling to everyone else, not just to Americans, in the world.
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