Mark Miller

One of my favourite business books of the past few years.

The stories and examples are both informative and entertaining; so many business books are strong starters and then get progressively weaker as the chapters progress. Not this book, I was held all the way to the end.

Fun to listen to and helpful if you are struggling with bad habits.

I wanted hard to really like this book but in the end was disappointed - I ended up not really liking Marcus (especially after I watched him on MasterChef) and I felt that the book could have been 25% shorter. That said I thought the book was fine, but nothing special.

To be fair his tale is quite cool starting with his adoption, his incredible Swedish parents and his drive to succeed especially having to battle against stereotyping. I guess all chefs that are successful have to be a little bit crazy and egotistical to make it up through the ranks of that profession. If the book is to be believed (which I think it can) then good old Gordon Ramsay is ever so slightly racist and should perhaps swap his current Kitchen whites for Klan whites. Shame on him, I grew up in Scotland and know what it was like - but Gordon like many, should know better now.

I was hoping that the rags to riches/underdog tale would have left me feeling better about Marcus's rise to fame, though I do have to admire and respect him for his focus, determination and culinary skills.

I stumbled on to this author (and the book) via the Planet Money podcast, I really enjoyed the podcast so followed up with the book.

Loved the book, insightful, rational and very listenable. Take a listen to the podcast on NPR Planet Money if you are unsure.

I started off loving this book. The style is unique, the stories funny and the first few chapters whizz by with occasional LOL moments. Then you start to note the repetition ; the jokes become predictable and a little formulaic. Throw in some melodrama, a few F-bombs, a misunderstanding and bang you have another chapter.

Not for me, I switched off half way through the book. I do love the blog - for some reason it's easier to drop in periodically and read the posts versus sitting down and consuming it in story form all at once. Maybe too much of a good thing......

For me the book is a long winded pitch for the DVD and/or consulting.

It's a solid premise and yes its based on the latest research but it doesn't offer the concrete "how to" I would have liked. I had watched the TED talk and loved it, purchased the book and didn't really feel any better equipped on how to put it all into practice. Cue a lucrative consulting arrangement or DVD sale for Shawn.