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A review by jakewritesbooks
Ghosts of East Baltimore by David Simmons
4.0
While Horror Month 2023 has been a minor disappointment, it did encourage me to finish books I would have otherwise put off reading. That includes this little ditty, which I greatly enjoyed.
I’ve worked and lived in Baltimore. I love the city so much. But it is a city of heartbreak. Violent crime, racial disparity, income inequality, a paucity of resources for young people, drug overdoses everywhere. It’s not the citizen’s fault, it’s the city’s for being so inept, the state of Maryland for being so indifferent, the United States for being so morally bankrupt, the world for being so militantly anti-Black.
David Simmons taps into all of this as only a native can. While the horror stuff (violence, weird magic drugs, hallucinations, creepy villains) is all entertaining in its on right, this is very much a Baltimore Book for Baltimore Folk. I could feel the eastside at my feet, the sun soaked streets near Hopkins, the rowhomes facing Patterson Park, the urban expanse creeping out past Greektown and onto I-95 for those foolish enough to leave the city.
Our protagonist, Worm, wants to do just that but he knows he can’t. He knows he has to defend this city despite its bullcrap, to love it even when it won’t love him. And even with Charm City lore and horror gore, Worm’s story is what really moves the narrative, as I found myself rooting hard for him to beat the bad guys in time for his halfway house curfew.
I didn’t know until looking for a cover photo that David Simmons’ has written a sequel set in West Baltimore. I will most certainly check it out.
I’ve worked and lived in Baltimore. I love the city so much. But it is a city of heartbreak. Violent crime, racial disparity, income inequality, a paucity of resources for young people, drug overdoses everywhere. It’s not the citizen’s fault, it’s the city’s for being so inept, the state of Maryland for being so indifferent, the United States for being so morally bankrupt, the world for being so militantly anti-Black.
David Simmons taps into all of this as only a native can. While the horror stuff (violence, weird magic drugs, hallucinations, creepy villains) is all entertaining in its on right, this is very much a Baltimore Book for Baltimore Folk. I could feel the eastside at my feet, the sun soaked streets near Hopkins, the rowhomes facing Patterson Park, the urban expanse creeping out past Greektown and onto I-95 for those foolish enough to leave the city.
Our protagonist, Worm, wants to do just that but he knows he can’t. He knows he has to defend this city despite its bullcrap, to love it even when it won’t love him. And even with Charm City lore and horror gore, Worm’s story is what really moves the narrative, as I found myself rooting hard for him to beat the bad guys in time for his halfway house curfew.
I didn’t know until looking for a cover photo that David Simmons’ has written a sequel set in West Baltimore. I will most certainly check it out.