Braxton Coates grew up in a family of seven boys in rural Johnston County, North Carolina, during the 1920s and 30s, some of that time in the county's poorhouse. His boyhood was filled with school, farm work, and imaginative play. By the time he entered college, the United States was on the brink of entering World War II. In his later years, Braxton wrote a number of anecdotes about his boyhood experiences. He reminisced about his first day at school, working in tobacco and cotton, teenage tribulations, 4-H activities, his love of singing, and falling in love. He recalled school recesses, church events, fish tales, mules, brotherly mischief, and more. In Boyhood Daze and Other Stories: Growing Up Happy During the Great Depression, Braxton's daughter has blended her father's written and oral stories, recollections from his brothers and other family members, and personal letters and documents with a history of the time and place to weave together a touching story of life in Depression-era North Carolina.