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A review by kellyhook_readsbooks
The Selfless Act of Breathing by J.J. Bola
2.0
While I recognize the importance of mental health representation in fiction, THE SELFLESS ACT OF BREATHING missed the mark for me. On the surface, no one would know that Michael Kabonga was in the midst of a deep depression and planning to end his life.
We spend a majority of the time in Michael's head as he contemplates the meaning of life and travels from the UK to America to have one last hurrah of reckless spending and promiscuous encounters. The focus on Michael's inner thoughts may have been deliberate to illustrate how disconnected he was from others, but it was too introspective and philosophical for my taste despite the poetic prose. Having more robust development of the secondary characters would have added an additional layer to the story that could have made it more enjoyable.
While there are brief glimpses of hope, this book is overall bleak and depressing. Reading this in the midst of my first trimester pregnancy ailments and in the dreary depths of a Midwest winter was a poor choice on my part.
RATING: 2.5/5
PUB DATE: February 15, 2022
Many thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.
We spend a majority of the time in Michael's head as he contemplates the meaning of life and travels from the UK to America to have one last hurrah of reckless spending and promiscuous encounters. The focus on Michael's inner thoughts may have been deliberate to illustrate how disconnected he was from others, but it was too introspective and philosophical for my taste despite the poetic prose. Having more robust development of the secondary characters would have added an additional layer to the story that could have made it more enjoyable.
While there are brief glimpses of hope, this book is overall bleak and depressing. Reading this in the midst of my first trimester pregnancy ailments and in the dreary depths of a Midwest winter was a poor choice on my part.
RATING: 2.5/5
PUB DATE: February 15, 2022
Many thanks to Atria Books and Netgalley for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.