Baltimore Social Worker Publishes Novel About Inner-City Life

From Kyle Berkley:Kyle Berkley has worked in the social services/mental health field for nine years. He has provided counseling to a large population of Baltimore City clients from the homeless to low-income residents, doing his best to provide them with solutions to their problems. This provided him with credible material for his debut novel, The Wake. In his debut novel, Berkley shares the story of a fictional inner-city community in Baltimore facing a variety of challenges faced by low-income communities. Berkley has two upcoming events in Baltimore: He is participating in the Baltimore Times Holiday Marketplace on December 1, 10 am to 4 p.m. and will do a book signing at Barnes and Noble- Inner Harbor on Saturday, Dec. 8, 2-4 p.m.

Set in the fictional, Ridgely Square community in Baltimore, The Wake shares the story of Florence Simms, the matriarch of the Simms family, who has come to accept the drama, distress, and disappointment that has been the center of her family’s life. Like many of the other families in the community, the Simms' battle with child abuse, drug addiction, terminal illnesses, and poverty. However, when community gentrification, an increase in police killings of the neighborhood’s residents and an unrivaled family crisis are added to their obstacles, the Simms family begins to fall apart, along with the Simms’ and their community’s secrets are revealed at the wake.

“I wrote this book because, in my work life as a social worker in the inner city, I work with many people who live challenging lives like the characters in my novel. I wanted to bring their stories to life, so readers will know that these people are good people who are often lost due to their life circumstances. A portion ofthe sales from my book will go to my non-profit, The 4 Us Initiative, that provides housing to homeless families, and victims of domestic violence”

Berkley completed his education in Baltimore City public schools, graduating from Frederick Douglass High School. He continued his education at Coppin State, Sojourner Douglass College, and Morgan State universities earning his Bachelor and Masters’ degrees in Social Work. He is currently completing his Doctoral degree at Walden University.

The Wake is available for purchase on all the major online booksellers. For information about the author and his book, go to www.authorkylesberkley.com.

Image via Kyle Berkley