British-Nigerian author Jason Okundaye is set to publish his debut nonfiction essay collection titled Revolutionary Acts: Love & Brotherhood in Black Gay Britain in March 2024 with Faber & Faber. The book cover just came out and we are absolutely stunned by the thought-provoking design and illustrations.

Okundaye’s book is a moving narrative of conversations with elderly Black gay men in Britain. Sharing their journeys of migration, struggles, dreams, and desires, Revolutionary Acts represents Britain from the perspective of these marginalized populations. According to the synopsis, the book is “marked by resilience and self-determination, inspired by the love and beauty Black men have found in each other.”

We can definitely see all of these central themes represented beautifully in the stunning book cover. Featuring two sensual illustrations amidst a vivid blue background, the cover foregrounds the title and the themes of queerness and desire.

While one of the illustrations depicts a pair of Black legs wearing green shorts, the other one shows a young Black man talking on the phone while lying down on his bed. While not overtly erotic, the two illustrations definitely speak to the overarching narrative of love, queerness, and desire.

The author Okundaye revealed the cover on Twitter, remarking that his book is a “social history of Black men who lived openly and daringly, come and meet them.” We are so excited for Okundaye’s debut book to hit bookstores on March 7, 2024.

Read the publisher’s synopsis below:

In this landmark work, Jason Okundaye meets an elder generation of Black gay men and finds a spirited community full of courage, charisma and good humour, hungry to tell its past – of nightlife, resistance, political fights, loss, gossip, sex, romance and vulgarity. Through their conversations he seeks to reconcile the Black and gay narratives of Britain, narratives frequently cleaved as distinct and unrelated.

Tracing these men’s journeys and arrivals to South London through the seventies, eighties and nineties from the present day, Okundaye relays their stories with rare compassion, listening as they share intimate memories and reflect upon their lives. They endured and fought against the peak of the AIDS epidemic, built social groups and threw underground parties; they went to war with institutions (and with each other) and created meaning within a society which was often indifferent to their existence.

Jason Okundaye was born in 1997 to British-Nigerian parents in South London, where he currently resides. His essays and features have been published in the Guardian, Evening Standard, British GQ, and the London Review of Books, amongst others.

Preorder Revolutionary Acts here.