I was pleasantly surprised with Arnold's autobiography. He's led a very active, interesting life filled with lots of successes in various industries--bodybuilding, movies, charity, business and real estate, and government. I found his mindset and mine are similar in terms of thinking outside-the-box, going big, and welcoming mistakes and failures to teach and further motivate. The last chapter is a short self-help guide from his own perspective and experiences, so he can and does back up all the advice he gives.

This was a long read but an easy one in terms of language, pointedness, and organization. And, of course, entertaining.

I only took off one star because, even though Arnold is quite transparent on many things, he seemed to be holding back quite a bit. I can understand that being the case, especially with family matters wanting to be kept private, and he does mention throughout how he keeps things to himself instinctively, but it would have been nice to read about more specifics and details instead of glossing over various times and activities.

After reading this book, I have more respect for the man. He's accomplished much more than I was aware of; he's always stood on his principles--whether disagreeable or not; his personal philosophies are admirable and something to reproduce in our own lives; and, he owns up to his own faults and shortcomings--things we all have.

For all these points, I highly recommend this book for a place on your own bookshelves. Happy reading!