For those looking for a critical analysis of the fire-sale acquisitions J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon pulled off last year, "The House of Dimon" is not the place to find it. Author Patricia Crisafulli instead delivers what she calls a "leadership profile" that chronicles Dimon's career successes. "The message of the book is that this is a man who has proven his ability throughout his career," says Crisafulli, a former journalist for Reuters America. "I wanted to know how he does what he does, and how he managed to get himself into the position of the strongest banker on Wall Street, as some people would say."

For answers, Crisafulli drew heavily on Dimon's interviews and speeches. She also spoke to about two dozen executives who worked with Dimon over the years, including former Citigroup Inc. CEO Sanford "Sandy" Weill. Finally, Crisafulli spent about 90 minutes with Dimon himself.

That interview took place in early October on a day the stock market dropped 700 points. "If it were me, I would have been distracted," says Crisafulli, "but he was completely focused on the interview. We sat at a conference table, and he had two pieces of paper. One was my memo on topics I'd hoped to discuss. The other was the 8-1/2 x 11 sheet of paper on which he writes notes about what people owe him and what he owes others. I didn't see a cell phone. I didn't hear a BlackBerry go 'ping.' No one ran in and said the sky was falling."

So what did Dimon have to say about his $1.2 billion deal to buy Bear Stearns Cos.? "The first thing he said when I asked about it was 'Let me tell you right now, we never wanted to buy it. We were asked to take it over, and it had some potential for shareholders long term. But Bear Stearns was never on our radar.' "

It's a detail Dimon has shared before, and, for anyone who follows finance closely, "The House of Dimon" will confirm much of what they've read elsewhere. But for those interested in learning more about Dimon's management style, as drawn from his public comments and those who know him, there's plenty of it here.