The Brat Packers were saddled with the indelible moniker in 1985 by New York journalist David Blum in a story about stars Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe and Judd Nelson. It spread to some of the other young actors of the era. For many of them, the decade marked the high point, at least in terms of stardom, of their careers.

One of the core actors associated with the Brat Pack was Andrew McCarthy, one of the St Elmo's Fire ensemble who also starred as working-class kid Molly Ringwald's wealthy crush Blane in the 1986 John Hughes-scripted movie Pretty in Pink. Other films he's remembered for are the comedies Mannequin and Weekend at Bernie's: not necessarily great works of art but emblematic of an era.

Like many of his fellow Brat Packers he never quite overcame the association with that description and the related connotations of hedonism and substance abuse. But as this highly readable memoir shows, McCarthy managed to survive and even thrive despite the challenges and temptations.

McCarthy's book is his attempt to understand and come to terms with his early life and success, a period during which he experienced both a longing for success and emotional connection and a deep desire for solitude. He occasionally teeters on the brink on navel-gazing but remains engaging and self-aware.

His account of his early life, with its unsuccessful academic and romantic pursuits, and discovery of acting in high school are familiar but have their charms, as does his subsequent attempts to pursue acting - he was lucky to have one inspirational teacher - and early struggles. We learn how he got his big film break in Class alongside Rob Lowe and Jacqueline Bisset. McCarthy, astutely rather than arrogantly, attributes his success in St Elmo's Fire and Pretty in Pink to "an emotional availability that was difficult to mask" and "a freshness, a sense of discovery, that can be captured only in passing". He notes this is a quality, not a skill.

McCarthy's early movie Heaven Help Us (aka Catholic Boys) is a small but surprisingly funny and touching story: I would have loved to hear more about it. But he has his own priorities.

His account of his difficult relationship with his father - who in his later years repeatedly hit up his son for "loans" they both knew would never be repaid - is poignant. McCarthy is candid about his alcohol and drug abuse without descending into sordid oversharing.

McCarthy has continued to work steadily as an actor in movies and on television. But he's also worked extensively behind the camera, parlaying his early interest in the technical side of filmmaking into frequent employment directing episodes of such TV shows as Orange is the New Black and Gossip Girl. He's been a travel writer and written a couple of other books.

I hope he returns to writing about his career. I would like to read more.