Interesting but oddly unsatisfying. Not sure what more I could have wanted, perhaps a bit of a deeper reflection on how cultures have viewed do-gooders or saints over the centuries and why that might be different now. That said, Macfarquhar's refusal to overanalyze her subjects was probably the right choice. Also, I appreciated that some of the people she speaks about are well-known modern-day saints, like the guy who founded the leper colony in India or the nurse in Central America, and others are not famous but struggle with the same overwhelming drive to do good for others at their own emotional, psychological, financial expense.
Macfarquhar does discuss throughout (in chapters alternating with the essays describing her do-gooders) of the role of saints in society, why not everyone can be saints, and so on. Those parts felt tantalizing but short of real exploration or insight. Contrast with Awakenings, which is devastating.
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