Foreword by David Sloan Wilson, author of Evolution for EveryoneAre some people predisposed to kindness to the point of being destructive to themselves and others? How much of our help is fulfilling our own needs--including those of our hidden passions?This is the true story of Carole Alden, a brilliant, yet eccentric mother of five, who had a deep and abiding need to help society's outcasts. At her rural homestead an adopted pony mingled with llamas, goats, emus, and dozens of other creatures, familiar and exotic. But Carole's desire to help others extended beyond the animals she took in. It extended beyond her meager resources, even beyond the children she insisted she loved, yet sometimes left neglected in a surreal world of danger.Finally, in the remote reaches of Utah's Great Basin, Carole Alden shot and killed her husband. Dragging his heavy body from the house, she headed for a makeshift grave. Was the murder self-defense? Premeditated? Or was something else altogether at hand? In this searing exploration of deadly codependency, Barbara Oakley--acclaimed author of the best-selling Evil Genes--takes the reader on a spellbinding voyage of discovery that examines the questions: Are some people naturally too caring? Can science help us understand how our concerns for others can hurt everything we hold dear? Are some people in fact "wired" to be too kind? Oakley explains the latest scientific breakthroughs that shed light on what is seemingly inexplicable.This gripping story brings extraordinary insight to our deepest questions. Is kindness always the right answer? Is kindness always what it seems?