This is one of the original self help books, and has influenced the lives of hundreds of thousands of people directly and no doubt many more by association, including the founder of the famous Japanese manufacturer Toyota whose copy of this book is on display in their museum.
Extolling the values of hard work, honesty and thrift and showing the value of learning from your mistakes this book uses examples from the lives of historical figures. As the Industrial Revolution was in full swing at the time of writing the great figures are often industrialists and inventors, but the values described are just as relevant today as then.
This book is worth reading purely as a self help book for those interested in bettering themselves, but it is also a product of its time and shines light on the values of Victorian Britain and the concerns of the working people of that time.
It has also been objected to the book that too much notice is taken in it of men who have succeeded in life by helping themselves, and too little of the multitude of men who have failed. Why should not Failure, it has been asked, have its Plutarch as well as Success? There is, indeed, no reason why Failure should not have its Plutarch, except that a record of mere failure would probably be found excessively depressing as well as unin structive reading. It is, however, shown in the following pages that Failure is the best discipline of the true worker, by stimulating him to renewed efforts, evoking his best powers, and carrying him onward in self-culture, self-control, and growth in knowledge and wisdom. Viewed in this light, Failure, conquered by Perseverance, is always full of interest and instruction, and this we have endeavoured to illustrate by many examples.