Welcome to The Irresponsible Reader’s part in the Cover Reveal for Joe Hakim’s The Community — although, guessing by the people taking part in this Reveal, geography/time zones, etc. at this point, it’s more of a Cover Confirmation. Still, welcome. A groovy cover is ahead.
But first, some words. In particular, words that you’d find on the . . .
Back of the Book
A northern coastal city. A sinister, extra-dimensional intelligence is taking hold…
Joe Hakim draws the reader into the heart of a disenfranchised community impacted by strange forces beyond its control. A group of friends: separated by time, choices, and circumstance are reunited by their shared encounters with an uncanny presence that looms over their lives. The seeds were sewn in their childhoods, now they must try and understand what is happening, before it is too late.
Raw and uncompromising, The Community fuses social commentary with a dose of sci-fi horror, to cast a light on an existence spent in the Void.
Publisher’s note: this book contains strong language and explicit sexual references.
About the Author
Joe Hakim lives and works in Hull.
He’s performed spoken word at venues and festivals around the UK, including Latitude, Big Chill and Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
He was co-host and organizer of Write to Speak, (Hull Truck Theatre 2009 to 2013).
He is currently working with schools in Hull as part of First Story.
In January 2017, Joe traveled to Trinidad with The Roundhouse and Wrecking Ball Press, as part of the Talking Doorsteps project. This culminated in a performance at the BBC’s Contains Strong Language festival in September 2017, which featured young people from Trinidad’s 2 Cents Movement working alongside young people from Hull’s Warren Youth Project and Goodwin Community Centre.
Theatre work includes co-writing and developing Omni-Science with Brick by Brick, performed at Assemble Fest 2017, and Come to Where I’m From, developed in association with Paines Plough and performed at Hull Truck in May 2017.
The album ‘The Science of Discontent’, his second with musician Ashley Reaks, was released in 2018.
Joe toured and performed with LIFE, a Hull-based punk band, performing on the UK leg of the Slaves European tour.
Without further ado…
The Cover
That’s just creepy, isn’t it?
I get a particularly 80’s vibe from both the graphic and the text — and the colors on both. It practically screams, “My intention is to mess with your mind.” Which is pretty much the point of a SF horror full of social commentary, right? I call that an apt cover.
The book is scheduled to be published in September — I can’t find any ordering information anywhere, so keep your eyes peeled for it. If the cover (and blurb) are any indication, it’ll be quite the creepy time.