With modesty and humor, Good is About as Good as It Gets portrays coming of age in post-World War II America, when the cultural horizons in a middle-class family were limited but the possibilities for achieving upward social and professional mobility were still generous. With precise and evocative details, Belle gives an honest accounting of his journey_as many failures as successes_from a paper boy to the job he wanted before he knew what it was, a college dean. The book has been aptly described as Òan unpadded intellectual, emotional and professional resume of someone fashioning himself.Ó