Matt McAvoy Book Review

In his cerebral and deeply personal collection of musings, anecdotes, narratives and motivational vignettes, Michael Albanese acknowledges, more than once, that people have a tendency not to get his work – and hints that reactions to this offering might be no different.  Personally, I have to say that I enjoyed it – whatever it was.  It comes from the heart and it means well.  As for my personal opinion on what Michael was attempting to achieve, I think the project is cathartic for him.  It is his way of saying to himself: “I haven’t achieved all that I had hoped, and that is fine, for what I have achieved is so much more than that.”  It is an admirable sentiment, and quite frankly it can apply to any one of us in any context.  I feel at times perhaps Michael is trying conspicuously hard to convince himself, when there may be times he is not entirely so, but that’s okay, for that is what this book is about: first and foremost, before anything else, it is therapy for the author – one of the three fundamental reasons writers write (the other two being pure art and to inform).  The fact that he chooses to share his findings, beliefs and conclusions with us is a privilege, for he does so articulately and very entertainingly.

Filled with observations about life, including allegories and anecdotes about people he knows, Michael imparts how some have achieved, some have failed, some have succeeded then lost, while others have lost then won – but all have one thing in common: they strived for more, for better, and set out to achieve it.  As we know, real failure isn’t a lack of success; it is the dereliction of attempts to even get started.  There are times in the book when you feel the author has been perhaps a little hard on himself, and this has maybe upset people around him; hopefully, with this book, he is going easier on himself, understanding that to try is inspirational, and people who love you don’t hold it against you that you didn’t reach the heights you set out to, but rather that you are so tough on yourself about it.  I do hope that the author absorbs his own messages in this book.

You Are Not Here is inspirational and, whilst perhaps obscure and subjective, it is a curveball approach to motivational coaching – though still a guide for the reader, like any other.  I do recommend it, for Michael expresses some very wise words, and eloquently so.  Furthermore, I think you will enjoy the artistic nature of this book; the narratives are short, punchy and engaging; the poems are attention-grabbing and pleasant to read; the illustrations are wonderful: abstract stick-people they might be, but they are clever and thought-provoking – the sort you might put in a 6x6 frame and hang next to your desk.  It is a working book – and, you feel, a continual work in progress.  I hope it gives Michael what he wants from it, and I wish both it and him success.