Happy at Any Cost: The Revolutionary Vision and Fatal Quest of Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh

Wall Street Journal reporters Grind (The Lost Bank) and Sayre cover the meteoric rise and tragic death of Tony Hsieh (1973–2020), CEO of Zappos, in this gripping cautionary tale of the dangers of “putting so much blind faith in our leaders, no matter how inspiring they may be.” Hsieh founded Zappos in 1999, and the company quickly became a success. But around 2019, the authors write, the “standard silliness” that was a part of Zappos’s culture became “downright puzzling” as Hsieh’s drinking and drug use increased. This led to a stint in rehab that seemed successful, but afterward Hsieh became intensely committed to exercise to the point, the authors posit, where it was a function of his mania, which quickly grew into paranoia. Hsieh moved into a shed on the grounds of his Connecticut home, where a propane space heater is believed to have caused the fire that killed him. The authors expand their discussion of Hsieh’s mental health issues to consider them in a wider context: one researcher, for instance, found that “entrepreneurs were twice as likely to have depression, three times more likely to have a substance use disorder, six times as likely to have ADHD, and eleven times as likely to have bipolar disorder” as nonentrepreneurs. This makes for an eye-opening look at the dark side of success. Agent: Todd Shuster, Aevitas Creative Management. (Mar.)