Explaining It: A Life Between the Lines

By Robert Hagelstein

Explaining It: A Life Between the Lines is a memoir shaped less by chronology than by character-both the author's and the era's.

Told mostly through episodes and short stories, this reflective work traces a journey from a troubled childhood to the creative and professional breakthroughs of adulthood. The author reflects on the enduring impact of family, friends, and his marriage to Ann; the joy of playing the Great American Songbook on the piano; and lifelong passions-for reading and writing, capturing moments through photography, and the adventure of life on the water.

This is a life shaped as much by what was overcome as by what was achieved. From early days in publishing to leading the Greenwood Publishing Group for nearly three decades, the author navigates professional and personal growth, second chances, and intellectual discovery. Alongside these major life chapters are some of his own short stories, which mirror his journey and deepen the memoir's emotional resonance.

What emerges is a meditation on how a life is made-sometimes intentionally, often unexpectedly, and ultimately through the enduring power of self-discovery and persistence.

Although written to stand alone, Explaining It: A Life Between the Lines also completes the author's Explaining It trilogy, following two earlier works:

Waiting for Someone to Explain It: The Rise of Contempt and Decline of Sense (2019) - a political meditation on a fractured era and the erosion of civic discourse
Explaining It to Someone: Learning from the Arts (2020) - a personal exploration of the wisdom found in literature, theater, and music

Taken together, these works encapsulate a life.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0FJFXF13N
• ISBN13: 9798218679156
• Release Date: July 2025
• Publisher: Lacunae Musing
• Length: 422 Pages
• Weight: 1.24 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.0" x 9.0"