This is a quick, easy read about how Starbucks works and how a guy down on his luck found his calling when he started working for the company as a barista. However, Gill doesn't know when to stop name-dropping. I don't really care to see every famous person he's ever met mentioned in a single book, especially when they have little to do with the story. It's almost like Gill thought to himself, "Hey, Frank Sinatra is on the playlist at my Starbucks! I'll mention the time I met him!. And we serve scones! I'll talk about the time I had bad manners and bumped into the Queen of England!" I kept wanting to punch him.

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I really enjoyed this book. Michael Gill is brutally honest about his reduced circumstances and the subsequent trials and tribulations he suffers as he searches for work and learns to cope in a job he is over qualified and unprepared for. His candid evaluations of himself as well as others was very interesting. The story has a happy ending even though we can't predict his future. You come away knowing that his attitude is what makes him successful.

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What might have been an interesting magazine article becomes a repetitive, over-long walk through a fairly uninteresting year in this man's life. The audio CD especially becomes a "know-what's-gonna-happen" snoozefest long before it's over. Do yourself a favor and skip it.

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A wonderful book that makes you wonder, would my life be better if I did a job I thought was under me? Would it make a difference. I amazed to find out the benefits that Starbucks gives (it's even better than my current job!!!) and how they really care about their "guests" and their "partners". It shows that people really do matter and care to Starbucks. Just a really great book that gives you insight to how Starbucks changes not only those that come in, but those that work there as well.

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I worked at Starbucks for a while, and heard many different stories from the diverse people working there about how they'd ended up in their job (for me it was the benefits and the ability to get extra hours pretty easily even at other stores - a perfect college job), but I didn't work with someone quite like Michael Gates. This was a very easy read, and fairly repetitive, but a very interesting story.

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I really enjoyed this quick read and recommended it to others looking for a job. It certainly makes you realize that some of your own perceptions might be a little 'off'. Don't expect this to be the best book you ever read - but it's definitely worth your time.

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I thought the book was a good and interesting read. It showed that a person can start over at any age and it can be very humbling.

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I really enjoyed this book. It is a light read, but I thought it was full of wisdom. It basically was a book about learning about different types of people and how to get along with them, how to take joy in the small experiences and victories in life, how to receive and show kindness. In it, a corporate exec type,someone born into money and society, loses his job, his health, his family and has to learn to live on a much lower income and learn new job skills, and rebuild his life.

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Quick easy read with powerful life lessons.

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This was a quick, easy read with a positive story that any reader, young or old, could learn from. The author has a casual, easy writing style that makes it a feel like a conversation with a friend. The author does often go off on what I felt to be tangents with little relevance to the story itself, but those did not take too much away from the message of the book. I walked away feeling happy for him and with a refreshed perspective on life's challenges and struggles.

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