American history teacher and author Charles Koopman has lived a full and colourful life.

From a young age, he knew that he wanted to learn everything there was to know about the world, a precocious curiosity his parents were only too happy to encourage.

As a citizen of the United States, Detroit-born Charles was exposed to the melting pot of cultures his country is famed for, and he was determined to find out who and what else lay beyond his nation’s borders.

Graduating with a Masters in History from the University of Memphis paved the way for a career in education, a profession that ultimately proved the catalyst in allowing him to quench his thirst for knowledge on a truly global scale.

Since 2005 Charles, who describes himself as a “man without a home”, has crisscrossed the planet teaching in South America, China, the Middle East and Africa. In all, he has set foot in more than one hundred countries.

He currently resides in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, where he works as a History and English teacher at a private school.

While his passion for education never waned, he always dreamed of becoming an author, believing that books have the power to impact people well beyond the classroom walls.

Man in the Mirror is the culmination of that dream.

The self-published book is inspired by fifty proverbs that the author explains through his own experiences of the countries he has visited. Like his father, another globetrotting educator, Charles can offer readers highly philosophical insights about the world around us and what makes the human race such a fascinating topic.

If there is one thing his travels have taught him, it is that every moment should be lived to its fullest as opportunity may never knock again.