What makes a happy person, a happy life? In this remarkable book, George Dawson, a 101-year-old man who learned to read when he was 98, reflects on the philosophy he learned from his father--a belief that "life is so good"--as he offers valuable lessons in living and a fresh, firsthand view of America during the twentieth century.

Born in 1898 in Marshall, Texas, the grandson of slaves, George Dawson tells how his father, despite hardships, always believed in seeing the richness in life and trained his children to do the same. As a boy,George had to go to work to help support the family, and so he did not attend school or learn to read; yet he describes how he learned to read theworld and survive in it. "We make our own way," he says. "Trouble is out there, but a person can leave it alone and just do the right thing. Then, if double still finds you, you've done the best you can."At ninety-eight, George decided to learn to read and enrolled in a literacyprogram, becoming a celebrated student. "Every morning I get up and Iwonder what I might learn that day. You just never know."

In Life Is So Good , he shares wisdom on everything from parenting ("Withchildren, you got to raise them. Some parents these days aregrowingchildren, not raising them") to attitude ("People worry too much. Life isgood, just the way it is").