“Our Existence Is Political: An Interview With JJ Bola, Author Of Word” — Electric Lit

“It would be fair to say that poetry saved JJ Bola. In many ways, he belonged to the London area of Camden Town, where he grew up — one of the most heterogeneous neighbourhoods in the city, and as such, quintessentially London: everyone belongs. But he was also different to all the kids he was growing up around: he had been born in Kinshasa, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and moved to the English capital at the age of 6 with his parents. That made them all refugees. And that encompasses a lot of things: having to constantly renew documents; never having the certainty that you won’t get kicked out of the country you live in; not being fundamentally understood by your peers; or having to give up your life plans.” Read more here.