Micheal Caine is an undeniably successful man. His acting career has spanned 6 decades, he's earnt himself a knighthood, and won 2 oscars. In Blowing he had decided to pass on what he's learnt, and gift us mere mortals with all the wisdom he's gathered.
Some of the advice Sir Michael has on offer is useful. Take opportunities, believe in yourself, embrace challenges...these are all good pieces of advice. I think it's a great thing to take as many opportunities as possible, and challenges should never be shied away from. The down to earth advice here is good, and not as cliche as I might be making it sound. It's peppered with a few hollywood stories, so fans of the movies will probably enjoy this.
The issue I had with this book is the amount of "follow your dreams" malarkey. If I were an optimistic youngster I might have eaten that up, but as a miserable disillusioned man I think it just sounds too romantic and sappy. It worked for Michael, but it surely does not work for thousands of others. Which leads me to a thought I had while reading this - who is qualified to give advice like this? Is it the super successful person like Sir Michael Caine? I'm sure he made some good decisions to get to where he is, but I'm also sure there was a lot of luck involved. Or would this advice be better given from someone who failed? Would advice be better given from someone who went wrong, and knew where they went wrong? Would it better to be told to give up on your dreams and live an average life? It's not as glamorous but far more realistic. The advice given from the mega successful seems a bit pie in the sky and unrealistic. I've got bills and kids, I'm not going to start auditioning for my Hollywood career.
So all told, this book is ok. I'd take the life lessons with a pinch of salt though.
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