George Saunders Is No Saint (Despite What You May Have Heard)
The New York Times••entertainment
Key Points:
- George Saunders, awarded the National Book Foundation’s medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, is praised as both a master of literary craft and a teacher of kindness.
- Saunders has a long teaching career at Syracuse University and has reached a wide audience through his bestselling book "A Swim in a Pond in the Rain" and his popular Substack, Story Club With George Saunders.
- Despite his public image as a "guru of goodness" stemming from a viral 2013 convocation speech on kindness, Saunders acknowledges his own human flaws and the complexity of living with grace and compassion.
- His new novel, "Vigil," explores profound questions about determinism and personal responsibility, reflecting Saunders' belief that art should formulate difficult questions rather than
