Why do some people succeed in life, while others struggle or fail? In March 1946, scientists recorded the birth of nearly every British baby born in a single week, launching what has become the world’s longest running major study of human development. In The Life Project: The Extraordinary Story of Our Ordinary Lives, Helen Pearson reports findings from this and additional studies that have tracked the lives of five generations of children, over 70,000 people throughout the British Isles. The studies richly answer the scientists’ initial questions, and illuminate interventions that can boost every child’s odds of success.
