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april_siese's review against another edition
probly not in the right headspace for this just yet tbh
booksandbedtime's review against another edition
3.0
JJ Bola did great at getting us into the mind of someone who is depressed and contemplating suicide. It’s a tough book to read though. I had a very hard time connecting with it. Not the issues at hand, but the MC’s voice. It felt a bit all over the place. I couldn’t understand his decisions and how a lot of the events even came to be. The organization of the story was super confusing too.
Overall, I’m glad I read it, but it wasn’t a hit for me. However, if you know someone struggling with depression, it might be a good story for you.
Overall, I’m glad I read it, but it wasn’t a hit for me. However, if you know someone struggling with depression, it might be a good story for you.
bookofcinz's review against another edition
4.0
When the author uses this quote to start a book, prepared to be ruined, They said you came looking for me. I didn't drown; I was the water"- Jo Nketiah Also...the the title was a dead giveaway.
This book is being marketed as a mash up of Transcendent Kingdom and A Man Called Over and I think its doing the book a disserve, I think this Open Water and Transcendent Kingdom had a baby... The Selfless Act of Breathing would be the child. This is my way of saying... it's a beautiful child that you MUST READ!
This is such a beautiful debut, Bola has a way with words where they get under your skin, and stay there. I was so moved by how the author handled Michael story, it was nuanced, fresh, engaging, and truly beautiful, I think everyone should read this book.
We meet Michael, a young teacher at a high school in London. He is loved by his students, his co-worker enjoys his company, his best friend loves him, he still lives with his mother and can barely save enough after he gets paid. While he is doing was well as can be, for a long time he's felt like he doesn't have the will to go on. He continues to push through those feelings- even when his mother brings home the pastor and asks for his blessing for them to get married. After a traumatic experience, things finally pushes him to leave it all behind... and that's where the story starts, with these lines, "I quit my job; I am taking my life savings, $9,021, and when it runs out, I am going to kill myself."
With an opener like that, prepare for the unexpected. To leave London, head to LA and all over the USA... but what happens when the life savings runs out? Well... read to find out.
I cannot wait to read what Bola writes next. Loneliness is a topic I feel we don't talk a lot about and Bola did it with heart and nuance. Michael experience is so layered, being a Black teacher in London, from Immigrant parents, being raised by his mother who expects so much of him, including going to church regularly. I really did not want the book to end. What a beautiful read.
Below are some of of the quotes from the book I absolutely LOVED!
We fight to be seen, for the world to know that we are here, only for us to be forgotten, to be invisible once again.
Have you ever loved, knowing it would end, but giving your whole heart regardless?
She loved books in a different way than I; they brought her back into the world but helped me escape.
The thing about losing love is makes you feel like you can never love again, like you are not worthy.
It reminds him of the Caribbean restaurants in Dalston or Tottenham High Road, and how there's always something endearing about the way the servers behind the counter never smile at you, or the way they tell you, "we nuh ave that," and yet you keep coming back because you love it.
Loneliness is being there for everyone, everyone, in the hope that someone will be there for you. But no one ever is. You are the sun, lighting the world of another, while setting yourself on fire.
And above all, it is love, that spark of bright light, that dazzling flame, ephemeral or eternal, may it find us, may it be us, the will that carries us forward, the bond that brings us back, from beyond this lonely feeling to healing; the selfless act of breathing.
This book is being marketed as a mash up of Transcendent Kingdom and A Man Called Over and I think its doing the book a disserve, I think this Open Water and Transcendent Kingdom had a baby... The Selfless Act of Breathing would be the child. This is my way of saying... it's a beautiful child that you MUST READ!
This is such a beautiful debut, Bola has a way with words where they get under your skin, and stay there. I was so moved by how the author handled Michael story, it was nuanced, fresh, engaging, and truly beautiful, I think everyone should read this book.
We meet Michael, a young teacher at a high school in London. He is loved by his students, his co-worker enjoys his company, his best friend loves him, he still lives with his mother and can barely save enough after he gets paid. While he is doing was well as can be, for a long time he's felt like he doesn't have the will to go on. He continues to push through those feelings- even when his mother brings home the pastor and asks for his blessing for them to get married. After a traumatic experience, things finally pushes him to leave it all behind... and that's where the story starts, with these lines, "I quit my job; I am taking my life savings, $9,021, and when it runs out, I am going to kill myself."
With an opener like that, prepare for the unexpected. To leave London, head to LA and all over the USA... but what happens when the life savings runs out? Well... read to find out.
I cannot wait to read what Bola writes next. Loneliness is a topic I feel we don't talk a lot about and Bola did it with heart and nuance. Michael experience is so layered, being a Black teacher in London, from Immigrant parents, being raised by his mother who expects so much of him, including going to church regularly. I really did not want the book to end. What a beautiful read.
Below are some of of the quotes from the book I absolutely LOVED!
We fight to be seen, for the world to know that we are here, only for us to be forgotten, to be invisible once again.
Have you ever loved, knowing it would end, but giving your whole heart regardless?
She loved books in a different way than I; they brought her back into the world but helped me escape.
The thing about losing love is makes you feel like you can never love again, like you are not worthy.
It reminds him of the Caribbean restaurants in Dalston or Tottenham High Road, and how there's always something endearing about the way the servers behind the counter never smile at you, or the way they tell you, "we nuh ave that," and yet you keep coming back because you love it.
Loneliness is being there for everyone, everyone, in the hope that someone will be there for you. But no one ever is. You are the sun, lighting the world of another, while setting yourself on fire.
And above all, it is love, that spark of bright light, that dazzling flame, ephemeral or eternal, may it find us, may it be us, the will that carries us forward, the bond that brings us back, from beyond this lonely feeling to healing; the selfless act of breathing.
zellm's review against another edition
4.0
I loved the dual storylines of this book, and thought the way they built to a mutual conclusion was beautiful. The back and forth was a little confusing at first but once I settled into it, it felt really natural and was a great way to tell Michael's story. I loved him as a character and thought the plot was beautiful. As far as a book about wanting to die goes, this is everything "The Midnight Library" wanted to be but wasn't able to.
jpreads6's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
This book had a great plot but I felt like we weren't given enough time with the character in the present in order to see his point of view. The book fell flat for me at the end with the random death , and it just left me feeling like "it was all a dream" in the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt and Suicidal thoughts
nietlucht's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 | I’m not quite sure how I feel about this book. It was an interesting and captivating story, but the writing itself didn’t feel convincing (even just plain bad at some points) and I couldn’t find a way to connect to the main character either. But it also had Really great parts, and overall the book does send a good message about mental health and it’s consequences and effects.
lilyreads01's review against another edition
4.0
The Selfless Act of Breathing by JJ Bola is a deep, lyrical story of unraveling. Michael Kabongo is a British-Congolese teacher living in London. He is living two lives on the surface he looks to inspire his students and protect his mother but inside he is drowning as he witnesses injustice, discrimination and the violence that isolates the young black men around him. After a tragedy, Michael decides to leave for America with his life savings, his journey is a ticking clock as he finds himself spiralling into depression and darkness. On this journey he finds love, friendship and loss. The prose is beautiful and rich creating a tender portrait of a man in crisis. Each chapter changes setting and timeframe and this can be difficult to navigate and some chapters I wish were more expansive on Michael’s journey, Overall, this is a moving, important book on the power of hope and opening ourselves up to vulnerability. For fans of contemporary fiction 4 stars ⭐️.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy of this book in exchange for honest feedback.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy of this book in exchange for honest feedback.
aus10england's review against another edition
dark
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Sexual content
hemingway23's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0