The Selfless Act of Breathing

In this wonderfully tender novel about masculinity and mental health, about being lost and finding yourself again, Bola’s vulnerable delicate writing conveys so much truth and heart about how we are now, how closed we are, how much goes unsaid and the quiet pain in our hearts – Nikesh Shukla
This book is a bold work with a broad scope, bravely tackling masculinity, hopelessness and despair with force and directness – Okechukwu Nzelu
A beautiful, absorbing read. By turns searing and quietly devastating – Irenosen Okojie

I knew from the opening, that this book was going to break my heart. The Selfless Act of Breathing left me breathless. It is beautifully tender. I was gripped right from the opening. The structure pacing, description, narration, and voice make this book a Masterclass in empathy. It is moving with tension multi layered like a symphony. The Selfless Act of Breathing is immersive and reflective; challenging what we might think mental health crisis looks like and who has them

– Yvonne Battle-Felton
While this book isn’t necessarily a light read, it does point to the limits of travel - a new setting doesn’t erase old problems, and in some cases, it may create new ones * Independent, Best Travel Story *
The Selfless Act of Breathing feels existential and urgent as a millennial Mrs. Dalloway for a Black man who must straddle two worlds, two cultures, and two timelines, deciding where–and if–he wants to live. With prose as intimate as a private diary, as lush as spoken-word poetry, JJ Bola has artfully rendered this portrait of depression at once achingly empathetic and remarkably insightful – Afia Atakora, American Historian Prize-winning author of Conjure Women
Narrated with haunting lyricism, The Selfless Act of Breathing is an intimate journey through the darkest of human impulses to the gleaming flickers of love and radical hope – Susan Abulhawa, Palestine Book Award-winning author of Against the Loveless World
Bola’s insightful, intimate and lyrical work has been entrancing readers… Reminiscent of Paul Beatty and Ralph Ellison * The Bookseller *
Well, wow. The writing in this book was so lyrical and beautiful… I really couldn’t put this book down and finished it in two days… The last page had me on the verge of tears – NetGalley Reviewer
I loved this book - I lost my whole day reading - just couldn’t bear to put it down! – NetGalley Reviewer
In a world that makes it difficult for many of us to articulate our suffering, The Selfless Act of Breathing is a necessary invitation to scream when we feel like screaming, cry when we feel like crying, and prioritize our own often-neglected needs for love. JJ Bola crafted a soul-shifting novel that will let millions know it’s okay to not be okay, and that the one of the most rewarding, and healing, places we can travel is into ourselves. The unwavering courage and care that Bola demonstrates with this work is to be revered – Mateo Askaripour
It’s uncompromising stuff, but injections of precipitous drama - a car-jacking in LA; a doomed love affair in New York - together with unexpected flights of lyricism keep things moving. An emotive, brave novel that ultimately holds out the prospect of salvation, without sacrificing any of its power. * Daily Mail *
Arresting… Important and emotive… Powerfully raw – Michael Donkor * The Guardian *
A heartfelt and searing exploration of depression … readers will be swept up in the sheer beauty of Bola’s writing * Eastern Daily Press *
Possessed by a daring turn of phrase and at times a beautifully powerful sense of personal poignancy, this novel not only speaks to the people society ignores all too often, but to the feelings and frustrations we try and repress… it is one that should be pushed into the hands of friends accompanied by the question: do you feel this too? * Big Issue *
Heartfelt and searing… Devastating and insightful… Readers will be swept up in the sheer beauty of Bola’s writing * The i *
The Selfless Act of Breathing [is] part of a wave of novels by young men of colour exploring race, romance and mental health problems with disarming candour * The Sunday Times *
Providing a spark of hope * Observer *
Absolutely stunning * Elizabeth Day *
Lyrical and philosophical * Bookseller *

JJ Bola is an established writer, poet and UNHCR Ambassador. His three poetry collections - Elevate (2012), Daughter of the Sun (2014), and WORD (2015) - were published in one collection, Refuge (2018), which was read out in the House of Commons during Refugee week in 2018.

He was one of Spread the Word’s Flight Associates 2017 and a Kit de Waal Scholar for the Birkbeck University MA in Creative Writing. As a former refugee, JJ Bola was invited to the Davos Economic Forum 2018 and held a discussion with Cate Blanchett.

His debut novel, No Place to Call Home, was published in the UK in 2017, and in 2018 in North America. His non-fiction book Mask Off: Masculinity Redefined, which exposes masculinity as a socially conditioned performance, was published in the UK in 2019.

JJ speaks and performs both internationally and in the UK.