Annaleaha's Recovery Story 'You Are Not Here'

‘You are not here’ is a recovery story based on a young teen Annaleaha, who is trapped in a downward spiral of grief and has no one to share her loss (of her beloved partner Brian) with. Eventually after an emotional journey Annaleaha overcomes her state of grief and detaches from the past to make room for her future.
The message the novel portrays (accepting and moving on, but not forgetting the past) is extremely relevant to today’s society because everyone experiences loss and many such as Annaleaha have trouble on their path to recovery. “How can you recover from a loss no one will let you have?” An example of this in our society is the personal loss we all experience at some stage in our life, whether it be family, friends or loved ones. …show more content…
A close friend of Annaleaha sees how unhealthy her grieving is and gifts her with a book ‘the death book’ hoping to help her recover. The death book occupies Annaleaha with a series of activities to help the process of her troubled grieving.
The death book alongside brief conversations with close family, friends and Brians Grandmother, helped Annaleaha come to the understanding that “The dead don’t need the living” and vice versa. Annaleaha believed that her stories made the “dead feel less lonely and more loved.” But then realized that these people didn’t need her, as “each stone represents a life time of stories” stories that will exist after she is gone.
After Annaleaha realized that she should stop living in the past, she truly began her healing and accepted comfort. Annaleaha soon shed the grief she wore so long and got closure, without forgetting Brian she was able to live with the memory of him. “I’ll still think of you, you’ll still be the first guy I ever really cared for, but I’ve got to let you