As a leading figure in the skateboarding subculture with a long-standing interest in technology, Tony Hawk was already blogging and circulating video clips before the term social media was born. But the chapter here on his use of Twitter—where he quickly collected millions of followers—is an excellent example of using it as a network-building tool.

It's one example of Hawk's struggle to keep close to his young customers as he drifts closer towards becoming a middle-aged businessman. His attempts to keep in touch with "the kids" rather than turning into a brand or merchandising man is central to Hawk's story. He may value his cool and skateboard credentials above all, but having grown an array of successful skateboard-related enterprises over the past 20 years, he has plenty of business credentials, too.

This is no sham celebrity business book. Early chapters discuss bootstrapping and struggling to raise finance in the same way as other start-up stories. This may try hard to be the coolest business book of the year, but it's also packed with lessons for entrepreneurs.