It hasn’t been long since the time I read a self-help book. However, it has certainly been long since I last read a book by an author who has been to so many countries and who has experienced a variety of things and explored numerous perspectives on success, achievements, talent and many other abstract as well as practical things which relate directly to our lives. I got to know about this book by Uma Vanka, I AM A ROCKSTAR: An expert guide to Success, and I took the opportunity to review this book without any delay. The undertone (or the subtitle, in proper words, ‘An expert guide to success’) attracted me. So, guys, and the readers of Indian Book Critics, here is my review for Uma Vanka’s debut non-fiction book.

“However, success and leadership are a continuous process. You cannot just pick up on one technique and hope that it will carry you through life. Your skills and process need to consistently evolve in order to stay stable in an ever-changing environment.”

Uma has rightly pointed this thing out. Nothing can make SURE you get success in your life. You only have the power to make it happen. And therefore, even Uma Vanka hasn’t assured you of success as such. He has just declared that he is someone who is giving you opinions about certain things in life on the basis of his expertise. A global partner in TCS, US, Uma has explored a decorated career in his over twenty-years professional life and he has certainly evolved himself into someone who can understand what’s the importance of different things in a newcomer’s career. And therefore, in this book, all that Uma is doing is simply that he is helping you unlock your potential, understand your goals and strengths along with your weaknesses and subsequently understand the best way, tailored for you by yourself, to achieve your goals.

Chapters & Content: The book has 13 chapters. It has about 200 pages. Chapters are very suggestive except a few which are cryptic and you will understand which ones I am talking about as you begin reading the book. Take it as it stands; the book is written with an aim to be read by the readers who are either into corporates, business or working professionals. However, the readers from general backgrounds can also read, enjoy and learn a lot of things by reading it. The very first chapter gives out the message that life is fairly simple and we tend to make it complicated by our own actions. Uma tries to unravel this for us and tell his readers the ways by which we can actually make our lives simple. However, after the first chapter and somewhat after the second, the book tilts towards the business professionals and we see the content of the book changing into the professional tips and tricks to make things better.  Chapters on communication as the key to deal-making, leadership, evolving through criticism and what is your brand are out and out professional, way more than any other. The book, even on that perspective, is fairly well-balanced and it certainly does what it tends to do – make the lives of professionals easier. This happens mainly because the language that the author has used in his book is way simpler than the supposedly ‘intellectual’ authors use in their books. I AM A ROCKSTAR can connect with the readers from various backgrounds far more easily than any other book may connect, in this genre, because it has a humanised tone and a simple narrative balanced with a clear vision. Yes, the focus on corporate affairs does take out a certain portion from the book that could be there for the general readers but the book intends to do the same – it does not happen spontaneously.

Final Verdict: I would certainly suggest that this is a book designed for professionals who think they are struggling in their jobs. Or, this book is also for those who are not yet working and are planning to find their jobs after academic life is over. Moreover, the book is also for those who are sitting home because of the ongoing lockdown due to coronavirus and are unable to do anything else – they can read the book and understand their potentials and their needs and the best possible ways to overcome what they lack. In short, if you can relate yourself to business or career, in any way, the book awaits you! You should grab a copy right now and begin reading it. You can get a copy for yourself by clicking the link to Amazon India below:

Buy the book now: Amazon India – click here

Review by Nidhi for Indian Book Critics