Hologram Boyfriends

Comedian, monologist, and storyteller Mike Albo takes listeners along on his quest for love in the digital age in this insightful, funny audio original. This program is read by the author and includes live performances and sound effects, creating an immersive and theatrical edge to this unique listening experience.

Told through a series of fast-paced, entertaining vignettes narrated by the author himself, Albo likens his search for fulfillment to shopping for the perfect boneless chicken breast, revealing a world where emotions can be as commodified as consumer products. His observations, both hilarious and profound, echo the insightful wit of David Sedaris, making us laugh while prompting reflection on our shared human experiences.

In Hologram Boyfriends, Albo humorously dissects the intertwining of emotional and sexual desire with the insatiable consumption of social media and apps. From the time he asked a psychic if he would ever find love, and she responded: “Well, I don’t see you alone…forever,” to an early 2000s gig where he tried to convince a major media company that using the term “GayStreaming” was probably not a good idea, Hologram Boyfriends depicts the (lightly fictionalized) emotional roller coaster of the author’s career and romantic love life—and just how, in the end, he has become more tenaciously optimistic than ever.

"Sometimes it’s just not good enough to be fabulous. Mike Albo deserves everything and more. If you can’t figure that out, then you’ll never get to know Mike. In Hologram Boyfriends, he puts it all on the line, so get with the program!” —Sandra Bernhard, actor, comedian, and host of the Sandyland podcast on Sirius XM’s Radio Andy

“A masterpiece of both open-hearted humor and acid cultural criticism. It’s Sedaris, it’s Solnit, it’s better. Hologram Boyfriends also has healing powers: Mike Albo’s stories cleanse the bloodstream of the psychic microplastics we absorb through dating apps and online desire markets. Listen and listen again—it feels so good to be free.” —Virginia Heffernan, American journalist, cultural critic, and author of Magic and Loss: The Internet as Art

“Narrator Mike Albo’s accent is perfect for his stories of looking for not just love but also inner peace online: mostly funny but sometimes quite moving, too.” —Kirkus

"With the humor and self-awareness that [Mike] Albo is known for, he somehow manages to tackle broad themes about the impact of media technologies on our relationships, the timeless search for meaning in an increasingly complicated world, and the very nature of reality, while revealing deeply personal thoughts on identity, sex, and spirituality." —Provincetown Magazine

“Writer, actor, and comedian Mike Albo provides a unique listening experience that is both hilarious and moving...His voice is consistently engaging.”—AudioFile (Earphones Award Winner)

An audio original from Macmillan Audio.