Here's something I know to be true, although it's a little corny, and I don't quite know what to do with it: What I regret most in my life are failures of kindness. Three months after George Saunders gave a convocation address at Syracuse University, a transcript of that speech was posted on the website of The New York Times, where its simple, uplifting message struck a deep chord. Within days, it had been shared more than one million times. Why? Because Saunders's words tap into a desire in all of us to lead kinder, more fulfilling lives. Powerful, funny, and wise, Congratulations, by the way is an inspiring message from one of today's most influential and original writers.

Author Biography

At one point a geophysical engineer, MacArthur Fellowship winner George Saunders is an acclaimed writer of short stories, essays, novellas and children's books. His work includes the story collections CivilWarLand in Bad Decline, a finalist for the 2006 PEN/Hemingway Award, Pastoralia and In Persuasion Nation. Tenth of December won the inaugural Folio Prize in the UK and The Story Prize in the US in 2014, as well as being shortlisted for the National Book Award. He has also won prizes for his bestselling children's book The Very Persistent Gappers of Frip and has written a book of essays entitled The Brain-Dead Megaphone. George Saunders was listed as one of TIME magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World in 2013. He currently teaches Creative Writing at Syracuse University, New York, and writes regularly for GQ, Harper's and the New Yorker, who in 2002 named him one of the 'Best Writers Under 40'. He lives in New York with his family.