Fantasies of Future Things

By: Doug Jones

Narrated by: Ron Butler, Aaron Goodson

In this “gorgeously compassionate” (Tayari Jones, New York Times bestselling author of An American Marriage) debut reminiscent of Barry Jenkins’s Moonlight, two men in Atlanta reconcile their human dignity against the price of their professional ambitions working for a real estate development company displacing Black residents in preparation for the 1996 Olympics.

Daily interactions between Jacob and Daniel are a powder keg of sexual tension and uncertainty. A recent Morehouse graduate and Brooklyn transplant, Jacob fears that accepting the truth of his sexuality will disappoint the hopes his parents have for him to lead a respectable life. Grieving the death of his mother while searching for answers about a father he has never known, Daniel, an Atlanta native, has resigned himself to the reality that men who love men don’t have happy endings.

When Jacob meets Sherman, a social worker fighting for one of the families being displaced by the project, he must decide if rejecting security is worth the risk of embracing the unknown. In the midst of navigating his grief, and volatile relationship with Jacob, Daniel learns of his father’s identity. Though meeting his father could provide Daniel with the closure he has always sought, the distance between what Daniel wants and what he’s willing to do for it remains a question only he can answer.

Unique and Important

This book isn’t what you think it will be. The cover makes it look like a romance, albeit a serious one. The description of back-and-forth protagonists lead you to assume who the romance will center. Only the backdrop — Atlanta in the lead-up to the Olympic Games and the neighborhoods that will be disrupted in that transition — offer a glimpse as to what’s in store. I won’t leave any spoilers here, but will only say I’m glad I took this trip.

Beautiful Story!

A sophisticatedly story about SGL men’s lives and experiences - a beautifully written piece of art.