A review by jamie_macdonald
Mask Off: Masculinity Redefined by J.J. Bola

hopeful reflective fast-paced

2.5

The author’s personal anecdotes and commentaries are wonderful, and the inclusion of opinions and ideas from other men he has spoken to are a lovely addition. However, for me the book maybe tries to cover too much ground and skims over complex ideas without much analysis, giving only a broad overview of concepts without addressing them in a particularly meaningful way. In his conclusion, the author explains that the book’s purpose is to invite men (and all people) to engage with ideas of feminism, intersectionality, and masculinities. This is the reasoning for the whistle-stop tour I think, and it is hard to fault the intentions. As a queer man, I felt my experiences of masculinities weren’t represented or considered particularly deeply in this book. However, as the author himself argues, masculinities are so diverse and are experienced in such a diverse way that there is no way to quantify them all. This is the strength and weakness of the book: the insights into the author’s own experiences with masculinities are invaluable, but the more general overviews of issues of class, sexuality, consent, extremism, and others, aren’t quite as effective. Despite this, Mask Off is a wonderful read and essential in its discussions of Black British experience and intersectionality. 
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