About this item

In this engaging and provocative new book, Lee Eisenberg, bestselling author of The Number, dares to tackle nothing less than what it takes to find enduring meaning and purpose in life. He explains how from a young age, each of us is compelled to take memories of events and relationships and shape them into a one-of-a-kind personal narrative. In addition to sharing his own pivotal memories (some of them moving, some just a shade embarrassing) , Eisenberg presents striking research culled from psychology and neuroscience, and draws on insights from a pantheon of thinkers and great writers-Tolstoy, Freud, Joseph Campbell, Virginia Woolf, among others. We also hear from men and women of all ages who are wrestling with the demands of work and family, ever in search of fulfillment and satisfaction. It all adds up to a fascinating story, delightfully told, one that goes straight to the heart of how we explain ourselves to ourselves-in other words, who we are and why. Details and updates available at LeeEisenberg.com.



About the Author

Lee Eisenberg

Lee Eisenberg has enjoyed a colorful and distinguished career on both the creative and business sides. As the editor-in-chief of Esquire magazine, he led the publication to numerous national magazine awards in diverse categories such as General Excellence, Reporting, and Design. He was also the founding editor of Esquire in the U.K.

In 1991, Eisenberg was recruited to be one of six founding partners of the Edison Project, an initiative to design a business and academic plan for a system of world-class schools across the country.

In 1995, Eisenberg joined Time Inc. where, as a consulting editor, he helped Time magazine launch a series of initiatives, including Time.com; Time for Kids; special issues on a number of topics; and The TIME 100, a collaboration with CBS News that chronicled the most influential men and women of the 20th Century.

In 1983, he wrote "Breaking Eighty: A Journey Through the Nine Fairways of Golf," a charming expose of the physical and psychological perils of the game. The book was praised (apolitically) by Rush Limbaugh.

In 1999, Eisenberg was named executive vice president and creative director at Lands' End, the direct merchant, where he oversaw print and online creative efforts, as well as the company's national advertising, marketing, and public affairs activities. He resigned in 2004 to begin work on "The Number: A Completely Different Way to Think About the Rest of Your Life," which "Business Week" named one of the Top 10 Career Books of 2006. "The Number" earned a place on numerous national best seller lists, including the "New York Times,"" The Wall Street Journal," "Business Week" and "USA Today," and has been published internationally.

His next book was "Shoptimism: Why the American Consumer Will Keep on Buying No Matter What," which was published in 2009 by Free Press/Simon & Schuster and was widely cited for its insights into both the marketing and customer sides of American consumerism.

His latest book is "The Point Is: Making Sense of Birth, Death, and Everything in Between," published by Twelve, an imprint of the Hachette Book Group. It offers a fascinating, modern take on human history's oldest questions: Why are we here? What does it all mean? Eisenberg draws on a fascinating array of philosophers, psychologists, poets, novelists, and everyday people to advance a provocative theory on how we attempt to explain ourselves to others. The book was named one of the ten-best titles in its category by Publishers Weekly.

Eisenberg has been a visiting scholar at the University of Pennsylvania, and was one of the founding fathers of Rotisserie League Baseball, the forerunner of fantasy sports. He divides his time between Chicago and New York City. For more information and updates, including an ongoing blog, visit LeeEi



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