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One Breath: Freediving, Death, and the Quest to Shatter Human Limits
One Breath is a gripping and powerful exploration of the strange and fascinating sport of freediving, and of the tragic, untimely death of America’s greatest freediver Competitive freediving—a sport built on diving as deep as possible on a single breath—tests the limits of human ability in the most hostile environment on earth. The unique and eclectic breed of individuals who freedive at the highest level regularly dive hundreds of feet below the ocean’s surface, reaching such depths that their organs compress, light disappears, and one mistake could kill them.Even among freedivers, few have ever gone as deep as Nicholas Mevoli. A handsome young American with an unmatched talent for the sport, Nick was among freediving’s brightest stars. He was also an extraordinary individual, one who rebelled against the vapid and commoditized society around him by relentlessly questing for something more meaningful and authentic, whatever the risks. So when Nick Mevoli arrived at Vertical Blue in 2013, the world’s premier freediving competition, he was widely expected to challenge records and continue his meteoric rise to stardom. Instead, before the end of that fateful competition Nick Mevoli had died, a victim of the sport that had made him a star, and the very future of free diving was called into question. With unparalleled access and masterfully crafted prose, One Breath tells his unforgettable story, and of the sport which shaped and ultimately destroyed him.
313 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 12, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews
March 24, 2016
I am probably cheating by marking this as "read," because I skipped a big chunk out of the middle. I think it landed on my list because The Economist recommended it (can that be right?) but I wasn't too impressed. Beyond the fact that this is a textbook example of a book that should have stayed a magazine article, the author devotes a huge proportion of his pages to the pre-fame life of his subject, which is stultifyingly ordinary. There is a real story here, about challenging yourself and finding your niche, but it's so diffuse that I was more bored than enthralled--hence the skipping around. The blurbs laud the writing in this book, but I thought it was poorly edited (not the author's fault) and fairly workman-like, befitting his experience writing for ESPN.com and Men's Health. There's an audience for this book, but it isn't me.
May 22, 2017
it only gets 1 star because i love the subject material (free diving, not the protagonist's bohemian death trajectory).
i was seriously disappointed in this book. at first things were fine, then we start to read about the protagonist, and i think, ok, we're going to track this subject along the experiences of one diver, fine, a personal lens, but then i start to read language like
"he was a brooder who internalized his pain"
"though Nick was still green enough to be prone to such rookie mistakes, he was accomplished."
"he looked confident, ready, content. his eyes were lying"
"they zoomed the highway from Miami Beach and veered into the Everglades..."
"their lines remained blurred as they moved in together..."
... ad nauseum. the only way i made it through was by gritting my teeth and skimming the 'plot' and reading the diving parts.
for what i consider a pretty sophisticated subject, the writing style is that of a teenage romance novel.
the protagonist is evenly painted in a glossy heroic wash, and unfortunately dominated the book. the consistent and awkward use of hyperbolic and trite adjectives, along with the sophomoric sentence structure and vocabulary made this story seem less like a bio and more like the script for a disney film. i'm not educated in writing enough to know terms to identify the formulaic writing strategies in the book, but i sure recognize them when i'm reading them.
this book, sheesh. cracking it open again to fish for cheesy lines made me mad all over again.
it reads like something i would have written in high school. this is not a compliment.
i was seriously disappointed in this book. at first things were fine, then we start to read about the protagonist, and i think, ok, we're going to track this subject along the experiences of one diver, fine, a personal lens, but then i start to read language like
"he was a brooder who internalized his pain"
"though Nick was still green enough to be prone to such rookie mistakes, he was accomplished."
"he looked confident, ready, content. his eyes were lying"
"they zoomed the highway from Miami Beach and veered into the Everglades..."
"their lines remained blurred as they moved in together..."
... ad nauseum. the only way i made it through was by gritting my teeth and skimming the 'plot' and reading the diving parts.
for what i consider a pretty sophisticated subject, the writing style is that of a teenage romance novel.
the protagonist is evenly painted in a glossy heroic wash, and unfortunately dominated the book. the consistent and awkward use of hyperbolic and trite adjectives, along with the sophomoric sentence structure and vocabulary made this story seem less like a bio and more like the script for a disney film. i'm not educated in writing enough to know terms to identify the formulaic writing strategies in the book, but i sure recognize them when i'm reading them.
this book, sheesh. cracking it open again to fish for cheesy lines made me mad all over again.
it reads like something i would have written in high school. this is not a compliment.
December 14, 2017
This book contains some info about the sport of freediving. Most of it though, describes Nick's life and at no point does this book say that the guy was (probably) a good guy but a total douche regarding the sport. He wouldn't listen to his own body being squeezed and blacked out multiple times and he would only push big steps forward (whining like a baby when nature showed him that he was committing hubris trying to achieve in 2 years depths that world champion freedivers would achieve in 8 years). Instead this book at some point tries to examine if it was the doctor's fault for his death. Sorry to say this, but it would obviously happen at some point with that behavior where Nick would not listen any sane freediver's (and his own body's) voice. Besides that, this book in many parts is like reading a gossip magazine about freedivers. A lot -and I mean A LOT- paragraphs spent about love affairs, trios, when did someone divorce, how many years Nick was vowed not to have sex, etc etc. Sorry but this book of NOT about freediving, it merely uses freediving to unfold a drama love bio story for a couple freedivers. NO no No.
March 11, 2016
I really loved this book. I was attracted to it when I first came across it because of my own love of the Ocean. Growing up I would often swim in the Ocean, and though I never took up diving I certainly enjoyed, say, swimming underwater on a coral reef in the Whitsundays or Fiji. But I was totally unaware of the existence of the extreme sport of free diving let alone that people had died participating in it.
The book tells the story of Nick Mevoli, an up and comer in this fledgling sport, who died whilst participating in an international competition. It commences with a factual account, and then goes on to look at his life. It also explores the sport of freediving and some of the people involved in it. I was actually quite taken aback by my ignorance of some aspects. Fos instance, I was unaware of the so-called Mamallian Dive Reflex, its utilisation in this sport and its physiological effects. I was also unaware that positive buoancy in the water gives way to neutral buoancy at about 20 metres depth and to negative buoancy below about 40 metres. Nor of breathing techniques which have been developed allowing athlete's to "pack" their bodies with air and to hold some of that air in their mouths for use in equalising pressure allowing them to "eqaulise" and attain greater depths.
Nick was somewhat of a free spirit who lived his life to the full. I finished the book feeling that I knew Nick just a little, though his character and the way he lived his life are very different to my own. But I did feel, at least a little, regret and sadness at his loss.
There are other thought-provoking themes in this book. The freedom and the euphoria that the divers experience, perhaps to some extent because of nitrogen narcosis and other effects of oxygen starvation. Experiences referred to with the use of words like Zen and phrases like oneness with the Ocean or Nature. The way the divers thought nothing of blackouts and bleeding from the lungs or nasal passages. The pushing of boundaries, of seeking ever greater depths but without any satisfactory information on the physiology of deep diving or what the limits may be. It does seem that people will have to die to find out. After acquiring a little knowledge from reading the book the "No Limits" variation of the sport sends shivers down my spine. The World Record is a staggering 214 metres! This is apparently no longer a competitive event but I was surprised to learn that record attempts will still be sanctioned in what must be just about the most dangerous extreme sports discipline I can imagine.
A very good read and I highly recommend it. However, I do not recommend payment of agency prices. Wait for the price to come down, or for it to come to your library or, if you are lucky enough to be able to do so, borrow it from a friend or acquaintance.
The book tells the story of Nick Mevoli, an up and comer in this fledgling sport, who died whilst participating in an international competition. It commences with a factual account, and then goes on to look at his life. It also explores the sport of freediving and some of the people involved in it. I was actually quite taken aback by my ignorance of some aspects. Fos instance, I was unaware of the so-called Mamallian Dive Reflex, its utilisation in this sport and its physiological effects. I was also unaware that positive buoancy in the water gives way to neutral buoancy at about 20 metres depth and to negative buoancy below about 40 metres. Nor of breathing techniques which have been developed allowing athlete's to "pack" their bodies with air and to hold some of that air in their mouths for use in equalising pressure allowing them to "eqaulise" and attain greater depths.
Nick was somewhat of a free spirit who lived his life to the full. I finished the book feeling that I knew Nick just a little, though his character and the way he lived his life are very different to my own. But I did feel, at least a little, regret and sadness at his loss.
There are other thought-provoking themes in this book. The freedom and the euphoria that the divers experience, perhaps to some extent because of nitrogen narcosis and other effects of oxygen starvation. Experiences referred to with the use of words like Zen and phrases like oneness with the Ocean or Nature. The way the divers thought nothing of blackouts and bleeding from the lungs or nasal passages. The pushing of boundaries, of seeking ever greater depths but without any satisfactory information on the physiology of deep diving or what the limits may be. It does seem that people will have to die to find out. After acquiring a little knowledge from reading the book the "No Limits" variation of the sport sends shivers down my spine. The World Record is a staggering 214 metres! This is apparently no longer a competitive event but I was surprised to learn that record attempts will still be sanctioned in what must be just about the most dangerous extreme sports discipline I can imagine.
A very good read and I highly recommend it. However, I do not recommend payment of agency prices. Wait for the price to come down, or for it to come to your library or, if you are lucky enough to be able to do so, borrow it from a friend or acquaintance.
September 14, 2016
I've been really into extreme sports and adventuring the past few months. By that obviously I mean I've been spending lots of time on my couch reading books about freediving and mountaineering, watching youtube videos of base jumpers and big-wave surfers, cranking the A/C and daydreaming about arctic water and glaciers as I hide from the insufferable heat and humidity of summer in the South. All while generally wallowing in just how mixed my feelings are about my boring (and safe) life.
And I'm obsessed with freediving, even though it's the stuff of nightmares for me and my lifelong hatred of holding my breath. This book is focused on competitive freediving and the first death in a freediving competition. In general I was more interested in Nestor's freediving book "Deep" because it was also full of details about ocean-dwellers and the ONLY reason I would ever POSSIBLY consider learning freediving would be to commune with cetaceans. But Skolnick's book still gave me lots of DID YOU KNOW IT'S POSSIBLE FOR HUMANS TO facts to throw at dinner companions.
And I'm obsessed with freediving, even though it's the stuff of nightmares for me and my lifelong hatred of holding my breath. This book is focused on competitive freediving and the first death in a freediving competition. In general I was more interested in Nestor's freediving book "Deep" because it was also full of details about ocean-dwellers and the ONLY reason I would ever POSSIBLY consider learning freediving would be to commune with cetaceans. But Skolnick's book still gave me lots of DID YOU KNOW IT'S POSSIBLE FOR HUMANS TO facts to throw at dinner companions.
June 23, 2019
A cross between a documentary and a drama series, this book has too many random bits about other freedivers/freediving in general to be a biography of Nick Mevoli, and yet it focuses too much about the life dramas of Nick to be a general book about freediving. The hyperbolic narration isn't quite my cup of tea either, which is why this book was a struggle to finish reading.
I would recommend this book to somebody who seeks sensationalization but not to anybody who simply wants to understand what a professional freediver experiences (mentally and physiologically) as he/she dives into the deep on a single breath.
I would recommend this book to somebody who seeks sensationalization but not to anybody who simply wants to understand what a professional freediver experiences (mentally and physiologically) as he/she dives into the deep on a single breath.
April 25, 2019
The story and the way it is written made me cringe on many occasions. It also did not have any of the magic that others books I have read about the ocean hold. That being said, it is not bad just ok. If you want to know more about freediving read "Deep" by James Nestor instead.
July 12, 2016
Thought you were extreme? Your idea of human limitation may change after reading this book.
A riveting journalistic exploration of a truly incredible athletic endeavor (and in many ways, lifestyle) that will leave you thunderstruck. Risk takers and adrenaline junkies will find themselves nodding their heads knowingly for much of the book, but there will be times when all you can do is shake your head in disbelief.
Skolnick takes care to build Nick Mevoli's character while keeping his story line in perspective. Written almost as a docu-drama, Skolnick explains the sport in addition to exposing the all-consuming nature of high-risk sports and the wildly different attitudes of these highly talented athletes.
The book was as much about failure and fear as it was about reward and release. An important reminder about pushing your limits and the amount of patience it takes to reach past what you thought was possible. One of the quotes that stuck with me came from Will Trubridge's sponsor, Steinlager. He was competing for a world record, to become the "Deepest Man in the World" and when it seemed uncertain they tweeted this:
"When you push boundaries, success isn't guaranteed, but our support is."
Now that's the kind of mantra we could all live by.
A riveting journalistic exploration of a truly incredible athletic endeavor (and in many ways, lifestyle) that will leave you thunderstruck. Risk takers and adrenaline junkies will find themselves nodding their heads knowingly for much of the book, but there will be times when all you can do is shake your head in disbelief.
Skolnick takes care to build Nick Mevoli's character while keeping his story line in perspective. Written almost as a docu-drama, Skolnick explains the sport in addition to exposing the all-consuming nature of high-risk sports and the wildly different attitudes of these highly talented athletes.
The book was as much about failure and fear as it was about reward and release. An important reminder about pushing your limits and the amount of patience it takes to reach past what you thought was possible. One of the quotes that stuck with me came from Will Trubridge's sponsor, Steinlager. He was competing for a world record, to become the "Deepest Man in the World" and when it seemed uncertain they tweeted this:
"When you push boundaries, success isn't guaranteed, but our support is."
Now that's the kind of mantra we could all live by.
November 5, 2023
I don’t understand some of the reviews, I thought this book was beautiful and fascinating. I can’t remember what drew me to the book, I love non fiction but I’m not really into sports - extreme or not. I got a real sense of the community, passion and adventurous life the freedivers lived. I can’t believe how many beginnings, relationships and events were detailed in this book, along with the all the technical information. I flew through it, loving every page!
September 3, 2023
This book is at its best when it’s focusing on freediving. If you enjoyed The Deepest Breath documentary on Netflix, I’d recommend checking it out.
July 7, 2025
I read this one during COVID when I literally had little else to do but sit around and hold my breath. This book is fascinating, and the content has really stuck with me, so much so that something came up just today that was of relevance and made me remember that I'd learned it in this book and that even now it was still thinking about it. Most of my books are usually just stepping stones to other books, but this one has stood on it's own without any problem for close to 5 years of very active reading.
There are several threads, one following the tragic story of a freediver, one on the act itself, and then about the crazy depths that some of these super people can do (80 to over 100 meters!!!) on one breath of air.
If you find yourself holding your breath while reading. I'm sure you're not alone. As a lark, I still do some of the breathing exercises the book mentions.
Unique, informative, and a very worthwhile read!
There are several threads, one following the tragic story of a freediver, one on the act itself, and then about the crazy depths that some of these super people can do (80 to over 100 meters!!!) on one breath of air.
If you find yourself holding your breath while reading. I'm sure you're not alone. As a lark, I still do some of the breathing exercises the book mentions.
Unique, informative, and a very worthwhile read!
December 31, 2017
It was a bit weird to read this book, since I have met several of the divers described in this book in real life before the tragic events during the championschip of 2012. Adam Skolnick does a great job to describe the background and gives insight how the struggle of the protagonist has lead to the accident portraid in this book. The book gives a insight in the competitive freediving lives. It sadly however lacks the depth to better understand the psychology and fysiology behind freediving and competitive freediving in particular. Also there has been a relevant development in the sport in the past 20 years that could have explained why this accident particularly has happened, specifically the introduction of new techniques and a changing ethical approach of near-accidents.
November 3, 2018
Reading like some of the best investigative work of Jon Krakauer, Adam Skolnick's One Breath: Freediving, Death, and the Quest to Shatter Human Limits follows the story of Nick Mevoli, a brilliant and tragically doomed freediver who died while attempting to set an American record at the Vertical Blue competition at Dean's Blue Hole in the Bahamas. As with any great forensic investigation, the story starts with its conclusion and works its way through time, painting not just a picture of Mevoli but also of the world of competitive freediving. The end result is a work that blends the best of sports writing and investigative journalism, as well as a more elemental "man versus nature" story that would do Herman Melville proud. Read this book.
September 15, 2021
This is the first book I've read on Freediving. I'm glad to read about the Freediving, its communities, through stories surrounding Nick Maveoli.
To those who rated the book lowly, I'm sorry that the book is not what you expected. As for me, after reading the book, I felt the loss of Nick Maveoli as if he's one of my friends. No, he's not perfect but, you see, none of us or our friends are perfect; We, each, have our flaws. That only makes the journey of reading it more real.
I thank the author for writing this book, thus giving us a glimpse of what it is like to be one of the professional Freedivers, along with the personal struggles that make the stories relatable, and most importantly, Human.
To those who rated the book lowly, I'm sorry that the book is not what you expected. As for me, after reading the book, I felt the loss of Nick Maveoli as if he's one of my friends. No, he's not perfect but, you see, none of us or our friends are perfect; We, each, have our flaws. That only makes the journey of reading it more real.
I thank the author for writing this book, thus giving us a glimpse of what it is like to be one of the professional Freedivers, along with the personal struggles that make the stories relatable, and most importantly, Human.
October 31, 2017
Really enjoyed this part-biography, part science-exploration, part history of freediving. One Breath tells the story of Nick Mevoli, the first person to pass away during a freedive competition in 2013, and investigates some of the emerging research about freediving's impact on physiology and the key players in the sport. Very interesting nonfiction!
November 14, 2016
I immersed myself in this book this weekend to get my mind off other stuff.
It was good.
Now I want to learn to freedive. Jennifer says no. We'll see.
It was good.
Now I want to learn to freedive. Jennifer says no. We'll see.
November 20, 2023
Fascinating novel about nick melvolis life as a freediver. Lots of very important messages about life, love and the ocean.
October 1, 2019
I picked this up a week before my Freediving course after a very well-researched effort that involved googling 'Freediving books' and picking the second result because I'd read and liked the first one already (James Nestor). This book should really have been titled One Breath: Freediving of Nick, death of Nick, and Nick's quest to shatter his own limits. My new experiment is to pick up books while battling with certain specific questions I want answered or open-ended insights I want delivered, and the write-up about this book seemed perfect for my questions about the psychology of freediving, freedivers, and the illusory nature of human limits. So I guess I was a bit disappointed by this biography/documentary about Nick Mevoli. I took exactly 3 notes, which is a very poor return on the 5-6 hours spent reading. Even those were so basic that I don't even reproduce them on this review for later consumption.
It did give me the revelation though that it is exceedingly hard to dislike a dead person. Nick is an over-emotional train-wreck dirtbag free-spirit entitled hippie man-child. But he's dead. And everytime I read something that made me roll my eyes, I only felt guilty and despicable about it, instantly seeing the horrified faces of the people who love him looking at me like I'm the one who killed him. Even writing this gives me an uneasy film of grease on my skin that I'm struggling to power through and emerge on the other side free. The fact is, he isn't very likeable by someone with my particular set of biases, and the fact that he's objectively awesome and ballsy and insane, all things I love in humanity, wasn't enough to compensate for my biased distaste. It reminded me of Mokhtar from Monk of Mokha, a biographical work intended to tell the world of this admirable character, only made me think of a slimy huckster. I'm just a cynical asshole it turns out, and that's half the reason I only had 3 notes from this book. The other half is that this book is pandering to emotion over substance, people over ideas, and drama over insight. So now I have to move to book 3 on the google results, and we all know book 3 is always the worst.
Selected Freedive concepts I found interesting -
1. Equalization, air spaces reduce in volume, lung squeeze
2. New stressors of pressure, pain of equalizing, constricting lung all reduce breath hold capacity
3. Light becomes bluer, things are closer and bigger, sound is directly all around and louder,
4. Initial kicking needed then neutrally buoyant then sucked down. Reverse on way up. Water holds you tight at all times, constant feel on your skin.
5. Narcosis, DCS,
6. Animals dive after exhaling, so reducing Nitro by 90%. Resistant to low-oxygen and high-co2 warning signs from body. Can stay longer. When I finished breath hold I was still at 98% O2.
7. Dead space and VC, air in airways not involved in gas exchange so useless.
8. MDR, shunting of fluids and life to vital organs, slow heart rate, peeing,
9. Ascent: Expansion of gases, popping of ears, drop in partial pressure, shallow black out, lightening. Swoosh in ears on ascending, as if recovering from a faint.
10. Different reactions to blackouts: some sleepy, startled, throw tantrums
11. Perfect dive isn’t about depth or conquering pain or speed, but finding the moments between thoughts where you live in the moment
12. Thermocline in the water at depth feels like you’ve suddenly dunked head in ice
It did give me the revelation though that it is exceedingly hard to dislike a dead person. Nick is an over-emotional train-wreck dirtbag free-spirit entitled hippie man-child. But he's dead. And everytime I read something that made me roll my eyes, I only felt guilty and despicable about it, instantly seeing the horrified faces of the people who love him looking at me like I'm the one who killed him. Even writing this gives me an uneasy film of grease on my skin that I'm struggling to power through and emerge on the other side free. The fact is, he isn't very likeable by someone with my particular set of biases, and the fact that he's objectively awesome and ballsy and insane, all things I love in humanity, wasn't enough to compensate for my biased distaste. It reminded me of Mokhtar from Monk of Mokha, a biographical work intended to tell the world of this admirable character, only made me think of a slimy huckster. I'm just a cynical asshole it turns out, and that's half the reason I only had 3 notes from this book. The other half is that this book is pandering to emotion over substance, people over ideas, and drama over insight. So now I have to move to book 3 on the google results, and we all know book 3 is always the worst.
Selected Freedive concepts I found interesting -
1. Equalization, air spaces reduce in volume, lung squeeze
2. New stressors of pressure, pain of equalizing, constricting lung all reduce breath hold capacity
3. Light becomes bluer, things are closer and bigger, sound is directly all around and louder,
4. Initial kicking needed then neutrally buoyant then sucked down. Reverse on way up. Water holds you tight at all times, constant feel on your skin.
5. Narcosis, DCS,
6. Animals dive after exhaling, so reducing Nitro by 90%. Resistant to low-oxygen and high-co2 warning signs from body. Can stay longer. When I finished breath hold I was still at 98% O2.
7. Dead space and VC, air in airways not involved in gas exchange so useless.
8. MDR, shunting of fluids and life to vital organs, slow heart rate, peeing,
9. Ascent: Expansion of gases, popping of ears, drop in partial pressure, shallow black out, lightening. Swoosh in ears on ascending, as if recovering from a faint.
10. Different reactions to blackouts: some sleepy, startled, throw tantrums
11. Perfect dive isn’t about depth or conquering pain or speed, but finding the moments between thoughts where you live in the moment
12. Thermocline in the water at depth feels like you’ve suddenly dunked head in ice
July 10, 2019
Although I love going under the water in the bath and staying there for many many seconds, the most extreme sport I partake in is probably knitting (them needles are sharp you know!!)
I am nevertheless fascinated by extremities of human endurance and was keen to read about freediving in all its watery detail. Well.........
Like other reviewers here, I found Skolnick's writing to be a pseudo Jackie Collins trash novel!! Nick Mevoli is made out to be a kind of latter day saint when in fact he sounded nightmarishly narcissistic, conceited and egotistical, blatantly ignoring the advice of friends, lovers and family to reach his own over-inflated goals. The sport itself is treated with garish and brassy attention, focusing more upon the physical appearance of the competitors (blond haired, golden skinned, bikini clad, etc) and their frequent romances or tiffs!!
Whilst I admire a lot of these folk that do extreme sports, ultimately I think they can be selfish, self-centred types, who when they die in horrific circumstances through sheer pigheadedness, leave everyone to pick up the pieces and influence their peers to try and find some "blame". Whilst the doctor mentioned in Mevoli's resuscitation effort sounds like she was out of her depth (pardon the non-intended pun), only Mevoli chose to go in the water knowing he wasn't "match fit" and had the completely wrong psychological state of mind to dive effectively. He repeatedly submitted his body to extensive damage and wouldn't accept the responsibility of the consequences of that damage.
The book feels like it was purely aimed at presenting Mevoli in a good light, and those involved in his death in a bad one.
Ultimately we all need to remember one golden rule here....... DON'T FUCK WITH THE OCEAN!!!
I am nevertheless fascinated by extremities of human endurance and was keen to read about freediving in all its watery detail. Well.........
Like other reviewers here, I found Skolnick's writing to be a pseudo Jackie Collins trash novel!! Nick Mevoli is made out to be a kind of latter day saint when in fact he sounded nightmarishly narcissistic, conceited and egotistical, blatantly ignoring the advice of friends, lovers and family to reach his own over-inflated goals. The sport itself is treated with garish and brassy attention, focusing more upon the physical appearance of the competitors (blond haired, golden skinned, bikini clad, etc) and their frequent romances or tiffs!!
Whilst I admire a lot of these folk that do extreme sports, ultimately I think they can be selfish, self-centred types, who when they die in horrific circumstances through sheer pigheadedness, leave everyone to pick up the pieces and influence their peers to try and find some "blame". Whilst the doctor mentioned in Mevoli's resuscitation effort sounds like she was out of her depth (pardon the non-intended pun), only Mevoli chose to go in the water knowing he wasn't "match fit" and had the completely wrong psychological state of mind to dive effectively. He repeatedly submitted his body to extensive damage and wouldn't accept the responsibility of the consequences of that damage.
The book feels like it was purely aimed at presenting Mevoli in a good light, and those involved in his death in a bad one.
Ultimately we all need to remember one golden rule here....... DON'T FUCK WITH THE OCEAN!!!
June 1, 2025
This is a part documentary, part biography account of Nick's life. Alternating chapters are about the competitions following nick's death. Alternate chapters are about nicks life like his romances and career before freediving (in chronological orders) and the background stories of the other top free divers. some part of Nick's early life can seem quite irrelevant to free diving (e.g., the part about his life involved in film making and acting).
it does expose how much risk extreme risks some freedivers, including Nick, are willing to take—often pushing through or hiding their injuries (coughing blood!) It also exposes the sport’s lack of regulation, raising questions about safety and responsibility.Nick’s tragic death may have prompted long-overdue changes to make freediving competitions safer. or maybe it hasn't.
it does expose how much risk extreme risks some freedivers, including Nick, are willing to take—often pushing through or hiding their injuries (coughing blood!) It also exposes the sport’s lack of regulation, raising questions about safety and responsibility.Nick’s tragic death may have prompted long-overdue changes to make freediving competitions safer. or maybe it hasn't.
June 15, 2017
A good read for everyone who's interested in freediving. The author deepdives into the fundamentals of the freediving theory and the dangers it brings along, provides the overview of the freediving history and how brave men of the last century proved the incredible abilities of a humain body. The book left me with a feeling I've been to all this competions and met all this extraordinary people myself, visited all this amazing places, was one of the spectators during the comps.
P.S.: as a native Russian speaker I would improve the spelling of the words, that the Russian coach was shouting to Alexey after the dive. The book spells «vyshi» a few times and I couldn't get the word in Russian for it at first. The correct spelling would be «dyshi» (breathe - дыши)
P.S.: as a native Russian speaker I would improve the spelling of the words, that the Russian coach was shouting to Alexey after the dive. The book spells «vyshi» a few times and I couldn't get the word in Russian for it at first. The correct spelling would be «dyshi» (breathe - дыши)
February 23, 2020
A touchingly tragic story of the life of freediving's first casualty. This novel helped guide its reader into understanding basic freediving terms without being overloaded and slowing down the storytelling process. Occasionally, Skolnick throws a paragraph full of depth numbers and statistics without livening it up and these sections of the story tend to drag for non-sports enthusiasts, reading like a play-by-play but without the excitement. Still, the tale of Nick Mevoli is heartbreaking and Skolnick explores this fairly contemporary athletic niche of freediving while still entertaining. A good read for anyone with a lust for life and excitement, or simply any swimmer, diver, or adventurer.
January 26, 2019
4.5
Other reviewers seem to have had different expectations of this book.
I went into it thinking it was a memoir. I was ready to read all about Nick Mevoli, his upbringing and introduction to the sport, his mentality, his training, what his friends and family thought, and all the other good and bad details about his life in the world of freediving.
All the historical, mathematical, and medical explications of the sport? Huge bonuses.
I enjoyed this book because I got a glance into Nick’s life and the sport that was a huge part of it. (I feel like others may have wanted a book all about freediving and was upset when there was too much Nick...)
Other reviewers seem to have had different expectations of this book.
I went into it thinking it was a memoir. I was ready to read all about Nick Mevoli, his upbringing and introduction to the sport, his mentality, his training, what his friends and family thought, and all the other good and bad details about his life in the world of freediving.
All the historical, mathematical, and medical explications of the sport? Huge bonuses.
I enjoyed this book because I got a glance into Nick’s life and the sport that was a huge part of it. (I feel like others may have wanted a book all about freediving and was upset when there was too much Nick...)
January 7, 2024
As a newbie recreational freediver, I started to read this book to learn more about the sport and what's involved. While I enjoyed reading about all the training, competitions, and history of freediving that's rapidly made it into the well-known sport that it is today, I felt that the writer spent too much time focusing on Nick's personal life dramas, including all his romantic affairs etc, that veered towards making this sound like some kind of teenage romance novel. I don't think it did Nick any favors to focus on all the sordid details.
July 21, 2018
This is an interesting read about a sport you may not known to have existed and a guy you may not known to have existed. Both the guy, Nick Mevoli, and the sport, freediving, will intrigue you and incense you at the same time. You get a deep glimpse into the world of this coming-out-of-anonymity sport and the people who are internally fueled by it. It's about the power of humanity and and power of water which can heal and harm at the same time.
August 9, 2019
There are many reviews claiming this book has lots of cheesy lines and trite adjectives. I agree, and found a lot of the writing to sound quite adolescent. BUT, if you can look over the unusual writing style, it’s worth a read. The info on the sport and culture is thorough and interesting. Although the story of Nick’s life is drawn out maybe unnecessarily long, it is a decent story. As an ocean lover, I mostly enjoyed this book!
September 7, 2019
I read this book because it was displayed in my dentist's window. And I am so glad I did. It is a fascinating story of a sport that I had watched on tv and had seen the sight of the blue hole in Long Island, Bahamas - Dean's Blue Hole, where there is tribute to many who have died trying to free dive to incredible depths. It was a very interesting and personal story about Nicholas, a free diver who died in his quest.
August 15, 2020
Purchase One Breath here for just $10!
Fascinating insight into the obsession of becoming the best you can be and the extreme sport of Freediving. I knew very little about this sport before, but found the book captivating and also a sad account of Nick Mevoli's life. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to explore a completely new world.
Alicia, The Book Grocer.
Fascinating insight into the obsession of becoming the best you can be and the extreme sport of Freediving. I knew very little about this sport before, but found the book captivating and also a sad account of Nick Mevoli's life. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to explore a completely new world.
Alicia, The Book Grocer.
December 23, 2023
I enjoyed this book. It started off pretty slow and being that it was out of my comfort zone it wasn’t much of a page-turner to keep me hooked. Regardless, as I pressed on and uncovered more of the story, I began wanting to see how it ended and wanted to know the rest of the details pertaining to Nick Mevoli’s life and end. I recommend it to those looking to tap into the crazy world of free-divers and those who appreciate learning the passion and skill that ocean competitors have.
July 8, 2024
2.5 - I think this is probably one of the best books there is about free diving. The first hundred pages I was quite captivated then it began to become really quite repetitive. Like all extreme sports there is physical risk. Bit medical-ly in parts but can see the draw of that for some, also some interesting physics with equalising pressures etc. Didn't keep me drawn in but am glad to have read it. Left it in a hotel so hopeful an adventurer will pick it up to enjoy.
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