Drawing on 38 years of experience, Brian Lightman's perceptive and thoughtful book is a reflective account of his career, looking at the development of the education system both from his perspective as a teacher and school leader and, more recently, as one involved in national policy. Major themes include the disruptive impact of the electoral cycle that has consistently led to a failure for developments to be properly embedded, and a visceral criticism of what the author sees as a highly polarised and divided education service in the Michael Gove era. The final section makes the case for a radical change to the culture that pervades our education service.