The First Call Was Mine: A Memoir - Softcover

Blake, Kay

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1919428607 ISBN 13: 9781919428604

Publisher: Thorn & Thread Publishing, 2026

Synopsis

In the Literary Titan Gold Award winning memoir, The First Call Was Mine, Kay recounts a childhood marked by fear, fractured homes, and the foster system, a world where chaos felt normal and silence felt safe. Years later, she would wear a uniform, answer emergency calls, and step into burning buildings, never realizing she was still trying to rescue the girl she once was.

This memoir is a testament to the strength it takes to confront old wounds, speak long buried truths, and break patterns that tried to shape her. With vivid storytelling and unflinching honesty, Kay traces her journey from survival to self-reclamation.

Both heartbreaking and hopeful, The First Call Was Mine is a story of fire, aftermath, and the courage it takes to rise from everything that tried to break you.

About this title

About the Author

Kay is a former emergency healthcare worker turned trauma informed storyteller, advocate, and educator. She spent years on the front lines, working on ambulances, in hospitals, firehouses, and emergency management, responding to real crises while navigating her own. Her personal journey, marked by foster care, trauma, resilience, and survival, fuels her writing with fierce honesty, compassion, and dark humor.
Kay holds a master's degree in Emergency Management and is passionate about helping others break cycles of trauma through empathy, education, and empowerment. She now lives in a quiet corner of the world with her beloved dog, Augustus, building a life rooted in peace, healing, and hope for the future.
The First Call Was Mine is her debut memoir.

Edition details

• Publisher: Thorn & Thread Publishing
• Publication date: 2026
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1919428607
• ISBN 13: 9781919428604
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 242