Living on the Volcano: The Secrets of Surviving as a Football Manager

Great to read these insights. Many 'words of wisdom' from current and recent managers, who really do face constant threats to their positions. It's actually quite interesting to read interviews with guys like (Sack) Alan Pardew when he was still optimistic about Newcastle, then Brendan Rogers when he was at Liverpool. Their viewpoints may be wide-ranging, but the decisions on whether they stay or go are actually quite blunt.

Living on the Volcano is basically a series of profiles on coaching in the English professional realm. They run the gamut from the Premier League all the way down, but are mainly in the middling ranks. Many of the coaches have worked across multiple levels, either because of the performance of their teams or through moving clubs. It's a really interesting set of perspectives. These managers come at things from all different angles. Their backgrounds are diverse. As a result, the way they think about the elements of coaching vary considerably.I will admit, the structure of the book did present some challenges. There are a lot of names, and they overlap quite a bit. Moreover, there were different threads of managers mentioned in the same chapter. That made it hard to follow threads at times.Those issues aside, I think Living on the Volcano is an interesting book and worth a read for coaches and managers of any sport. The variety of managers is such that you're likely to find someone in the mix who has a similar point of view as yourself. At the same time, though, you also get to see how others think about things.Beyond that, the internal view of what it's like to be a coach under constant performance pressure (in most cases) is really insightful. The volcano idea is definitely appropriate as even successful managers seem to constantly be on the hot seat because of everything that can happen with a club.

Really enjoyable read. stands alongside fever pitch, inverting the pyramid and the damned united in the pantheon of great football books. as a fan and student of the game for the last four decades, I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

Each chapter is basically an interview with a football manager. Some managers gave good insights, some were just senseless emotional rants. I suppose one can say its a good insight into how they think and behave. Disappointed that there were no chapters on the leading club managers in the EPL although Arsene Wenger wrote a foreward. On the other hand, a lot of material on the struggles of the lower ranked team managers.

This is a good look at the people behind the job from a personal and psychological point of view. Liked the way it works its way through the leagues, styles and personalities. Also gave me some management insights. It still however didn't quite lift the lid completely, maybe because there is no perfect manager just a question of being the right person in the right place at the right time. A bit like us then.

I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to any football fan. It shows the pressure managers work under. Very comprehensive.

Good read on coaching soccer in England. The author profiteers variety of coaches in England and how they deal with the job and its difficulties. Some of the chapters seem repetitive and needed more premier league coaches profiled

Excellent insight, very interesting especially the way the season ahead worked out for those involved.

A book which gives an insight on how the life of a top class manager is! Great read and amazing service.

Mike Calvin has a lot to live up to. As author of “Family” and “The Nowhere Men”, two of the best football books of recent years, expectations are naturally high about his next project. Here he delivers in his faultless fashion.What marked out those two outstanding books was Calvin’s remarkable ability to observe people and understand what makes them tick. His descriptions of people and places are uncanny, creating a vivid mental picture of his surroundings and summing up the diverse nature of football from the sublime facilities of the Premier League to the drudgery and reality of League Two.Here again he has spoken to a remarkable array of people and captured the essence of football away from the glare of the cameras and the millionaire salaries. He has a disarming ability to get complex characters to open up, telling their stories and exposing their souls, despite the desperate tales of adversity that some have lived through. He brings the human element to a group of men more commonly used to being barracked by their own supporters or the internet forum experts calling for their heads. Given the guarded way in which so many players and managers speak to the media in the modern game, producing a series of anodyne and insignificant soundbites, this candour shines through.While we often get to hear directly from managers and players, their autobiographies are all too often promotional tools trying to present their side of the story, attempting to dictate history and settle scores. While the recent books “Pep Confidential” and “The Special One” have offered a more circumspect view, this is one that looks away from the rarefied world of Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.Ultimately it’s Calvin’s way of storytelling and characterisation that sets this apart and makes it not just an excellent football book but one that anyone interested in the human condition should treasure. Although it is primarily the managers’ story, told mainly through their recollections and observations, it is Calvin who makes the book sing. His skill in weaving their stories together, observing the context in which they work and then getting them to offload has produced probably the most insightful take on the world of the football manager.

Good book. Nice observations

A fascinating insight into football management through interviews done last season with managers from League Two upwards. The journey from one manager to another is cleverly linked and contributes to the feeling that you don't want to put the book down. Each manager has his own philosophy although there are many things in common. Michael Calvin writes well but my only criticism is that some of the verbatim quotes are overlong and a little repetitive. The book would have been 5 stars with more editing by the publisher.It is particularly fascinating if your club manager is featured. It is an excellent book not just for supporters but for managers and chairmen too !

A fantastic, gripping insight into the working lives of football managers. If you think that Brendan Rogers is an overpaid windbag or that David Moyes is seven kinds of incompetent, or even if you look at lower league managers and think 'I could do that - they just stand on the sidelines and shout a lot', read this book and think again.I highly recommend you read this in conjunction with Calvin's other superb work, 'The Nowhere Men', which provides a great deal of context and deepens your understanding of the way clubs are run (or, in some cases, not run at all). Both of these books are an antidote to the beer-drinking, chanting, loutish stereotype of football fans and prove that there is a more intellectual side to the beautiful game, but one that is underpinned by a huge amount of hard work.One of the best sports books I have read - buy it now.