I love that this book is both memoir and self help. I enjoyed reading the authors personal antidotes and how he relates them to improving our lives. I think anyone who enjoys memoirs or self help will enjoy this book.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

This was a rare self-help book which is aimed at the older reader, and is written by a man in his 80s who has led an active, varied and interesting life.

There is everything in this book that you would expect: how to change your mindset, daily affirmations, positive thinking, SMART goals, visualiation and paying it forward. What is missing is self-care and mindfullness (other than brief mention of medication). The author approaches everything as a goal - even hobbies in retirement, which may be a little targeted and stressful for the average person.

He draws heavily on Napoleon HIll's Think and Grow Rich and this seems to have been successful for him. It would have been really interesting to have learned more about his own life and the challenges he faced and how he overcame them.

One thing that jarred a little with me, was the assertion that you CAN achieve everything - if you throw enough money at it. He talks about learning to play the piano and learning to dance which he insists everyone can do if they are dedicated but he talks about booking numerous classes (five a week) with internationally acclaimed teachers - something not within most people's budget. I'm sure we could all achieve more if money was no object.

It was a quick read, and it was well written, but personally I didn't get much from it by way of self-help. I was interested to find out about his varied life and I liked the dance metaphors. It is upbeat and positive which is always good.

One of the loveliest books I've ever read. The author is the kind of person we should all aspire to be more like: kind, brave, set on becoming the best version of himself and willing to put in the work.

Dancing Through Life: Indulge your Dreamland Pursue Life's Possibilities by Allen T. Brown is one part memoir and three parts self improvement, all dressed in the coat and tails of dance references, analogies and stories. The author does a good job of mixing things up, and prefaces each bit of advice with just enough personal backstory to keep things entertaining.

Beyond the personal bits, however, there is nothing new in this book. The author relies heavily on Napolean Hill's classic, Think and Grow Rich, as well as other, more modern iterations of the same information. His sound bytes - being around greatness makes you great, find your teachers, post your goals where you can see them every day, make a gratitude list - have been heard many times before.

That said, all the advice and suggestions in this book are spot on, and, if acted on, can be powerful. I first read Hill three decades ago at a time in my life when I needed motivation to change, and it absolutely changed my life. So, for someone new to the self improvement circuit, Dancing Through Life: Indulge your Dreamland Pursue Life's Possibilities might be a wonderful place to start. The writing is clear and unintimidating, the stories are engaging, and each chapter ends with a series of exercises and questions that help turn the theory of self improvement into concrete actions and habits. I can see a much younger me making ample use of a highlighter and coming back time and time again for much-needed inspiration. To me thats' the mark of a good self improvement book.

This review is based on an advanced copy reading.

This book is a memoir and also a self-help book, i cherished both sides and enjoyed it. Although the matters brought up in the book are repeated in almost every self-help book, every author's perspective and reflection on them are pretty unique, as was the case for this one. This book resonated with my own fears and worries and reassured me it was ok to have multiple interests and go after them even if you think you are older than that to do it. I specifically enjoyed the questions at the end of each chapter. I'd recommend this book to people (just like myself) who look for reassurance and motivation.

I love the tone of this book. Though the author explores matters that are not new to the reader, his approach towards trusting your intuition, broadening your horizons and simply cultivating and sustaining a growth mindset- is quite interesting as it correlates to dance and music.
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC.

I know readers would love the questions to reflect upon at the end of every chapter. I did.