I always recommend Founders at Work to all my friends who are contemplating a start-up. Incredibly motivating stories!
Alternative : Try Venture capitalist at work by Tarang Shah
http://www.amazon.com/Venture-Capitalists-Work-Billion-Dolla...
- Startups fail because they run out of money
- VC's like to invest in smart passionate entrepreneurs who are solving a personal problem who are not in it for the money.
- VC's like either big markets or great teams or both
- etc etc
Some of the interviews were great (Howard Morgan) but the problem with interviewing active vcs is that they can't talk about the stuff behind the scenes. Often founder's who have had successful exits have no such qualms.