You Are Not Here shares a collection of short stories that explore the journey of life, the challenges we face as humans, and the choices they present. From being ground down like coffee, aggressive basketball, and the wonders of Bob Dylan’s poetry, there are a range of stories that address uncertainty, choices, challenge, and what it means to really live. 

Michael Albanese helps us look at life not as a singular destination, goal, or even trajectory but as a series of experiences that might change abruptly. Each experience is an important part of the journey, and disappointment or sudden changes, despite being disappointing, lead to new wonders or experiences. 

While some might emphasize achievements, results, or successes, this book shows us that life itself is the journey, and each step takes us to exactly where we are meant to be. We can choose, at any one time, how to review our lives, how to make positive and even uncomfortable decisions, and how to treat ourselves with compassion along the way.

You Are Not Here arrived for me at a time of frustration and even disappointment and helped me to change my focus, not on what I had wanted to become but on who I am and the wonderful people who surround me. The journey may be different from what I had imagined or planned, but by trusting (and even acknowledging) that I am exactly where I should be, I began to feel, over the pages, a very deep gratitude for a life I had been, in some ways, frustrated with. 

The topic of the journey over the destination isn’t new, and the author explains this at the outset, but the joy, vitality, vibrancy, and love of life make this journey unique. The stories are humble, humorous, and engaging, and they reawaken the spiritual journey we take as humans, the value we have, and the choices we make, in every moment, to live our best lives. 

For anyone in a space of uncertainty who has tried and struggled or who believes that doors just continue to close, this book is an incredible read.