In this day and age of shock, gossip and scandal, it's very rare that one reads autobiographies without the writer trying to sensationalise every minuscule incident. With so many 'wonderful' characters in the South African squad you'd expect plenty of juicy details about tours, but it's refreshing that Taking The Mickey doesn't go down that route.

If you've watched and listened to Mickey Arthur both as a player and coach, it's not surprising as he always comes across as a quiet, calm character. Throughout his playing career with the Griquas and his time as South Africa coach, he was someone you would rarely flinch despite the most difficult of circumstances. Taking on the role of the Proteas coach - or any national coaching role in South Africa for that matter - one needs all the calmness available and Arthur certainly portrays a strong, unflinching coach who will fight until the bitter end for his players and the good of his team.

From being an "outsider" who didn't think he stood a chance of being offered the role to finding himself at loggerheads with his bosses at almost every opportunity, the book takes you through some of the highs and lows in South African cricket in recent history.

Often labelled Graeme Smith's 'yes man', Arthur doesn't even need to touch on this point as it's quite clear that he is a strong person who often takes the backseat when things are going well, but will be at the front when everything is not rosy.

He was there for the Proteas' harrowing experience in Sri Lanka when a bomb exploded metres away from their team hotel. While several criticised the players and CSA for the move on the matter, Arthur explains 'I had a letter delivered to my room, a fax from the Tamil Tigers, telling us that the conflict was not our fight, that they couldn't guarantee our security in Sri Lanka and that perhaps we were better off not being there'.

Another low point was the 2007 World Cup during which players were accused of boozing as South Africa again failed to live up to pre-tournament hype, but once again individuals are not singled out for misdemeanours.

Other lows were Herschelle Gibbs reaching his lowest ebb after another boozy episode and Makhaya Ntini running to the selectors after being left out of the ODI team.

'Everybody, especially senior players, is upset after they are dropped, but I was desperately disappointed when Makhaya Ntini started telling influential administrators that Graeme and I didn't want black players in the team,' writes Arthur.

Of course, there were plenty of memorable moments during his journey as coach, with the zenith being the Test series victory on English soil in 2008 and the blubbering and swimming in the Sydney Harbour as they went where no other South Africa side have gone before: conquering Australia in Australia.

There were tears again just a couple of months later, but this time of a differnet kind as he had to comfort one of his players after yet another bust-up with the South African administrators over the make-up of his squad. These fights started simmering from very early on. His honeymoon period was hardly over and he had a confrontation with Norman Arendse, the former CSA president. Arendse came and went, but the pressure from the top over selection policies and interference remained.

It was no surprise that the spat reached breaking point during England's tour of South Africa in 2009 and it seemed only a matter of time before he would walk or be fired. Gerald Majola, his 'great ally', as he refers to him, in a boardroom full of vultures, offered him an exit strategy after it became clear there was only going to be one outcome and he accepted it.

But while the rest of the world debated whether his relationship with Smith had reached a point of no return, Taking The Mickey leaves its readers in no doubt as to reason why his time as South Africa coach was up.

If you are hoping for some earth-shattering revelations then this is not the book for you, but if you're into a gentle read about someone who was there for the nadir and zenith in South African cricket then it's for you.

Shahida Jacobs