The Works of Hall Craine (1853-1931) contains all 15 of his novels. Never heard of him? Neither had I until he was mentioned in Something in The Blood, the Bram Stoker biography by David J. Skal (an excellent book). Craine’s popularity during his lifetime was unprecedented. He was an international literary celebrity, and sold a total of ten million books & was the most highly paid novelist of his day. I’ve only read the first of the novels in this collection & it was an effort to push through a plot that hinged on incest or is it incest. But I’ll read more of them. None of his novels have been discovered by Masterpiece Theatre 🙂
The Complete Poems – Walt Whitman. Whitman is one of my inspirations. I have, in paper, a great biography & also a paperback edition of Leaves of Grass. This massive collection has everything including revised versions. I’m not crazy about Kindle for poetry as enjambment & page layout suffers.
The fact that I have the Complete Works of Emile Zola should come as no surprise. This was one of the first set of works I downloaded to my Kindle. I’ve blogged about Zola a few times now. He is one of my prime fiction inspirations. I got red up with searching book stores for novels other than the big hits: Thérèse Raquin, Nana, Germinal. I’m always happy when this collection rotates to the next to read on my rotating e.book shelf.
The Complete Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is a revelation. Not many get past Sherlock. Those that do find The Lost World & some of the other Professor Challenger work. But most don’t get as far as his historical romances or Napoleonic war short stories. The problem with these historical works is their lack of ‘puzzle’ – they are straight forward plots with solid but dull characterizations. Only a completist like myself gets this far 🙂 
Moving On
a drink won’t bring you back
crack won’t bring you back
getting numb won’t
take this pain away long enough
it will always return
gets worse after each black out relief
there’s always the restless sun
making it clear
there is no return to what once was
talking it out won’t change things
gone is gone
new shoes won’t bring you any closer
a new look
is not what it will take
nothing is going to work
I feel you are there
in the next room
sleeping or watching tv
that when I’m in my way home
you are going to be there
waiting
cooking a meal for me
another toke won’t bring you back
raging at your empty space
won’t change anything
can’t fill the room
cant fill the time it’s going to take
until I run of things
to try
none of which can never bring you back
can’t dig down into the earth
to bring you back to life
to resemble the scattered fragments
caught for a moment over the lake
sunshine grey
can’t wet them with
plant them with enough fertilizer
to grow you again
bring you back to life
can’t give me life either
not enough bottles
not enough rocks
not a sweet enough pipe
not enough sex
to bring you back
can’t sing loud enough
can’t be quiet enough
to hear you
can’t wash that memory
out of my hair
can’t give your clothes away
yet
can’t fill them like you
can’t wear them myself
can’t stand to look at them
letting go
not wanting to hold
not know what to do
because nothing will bring you back
and I’m tried of doing nothing
apologies are too thin
too late
food not filling enough
not enough cake
to bring you back
not prayer
bargaining
anger
acceptance
forgetting you
not acting as if I don’t miss you
won’t bring you back
won’t keep that song
from bringing you to mind
bringing you to mind
won’t bring you back
tears won’t do it
gifts won’t do it
joining you
won’t bring you back
not wanting you back
won’t bring you back
sleep won’t bring you back
moving on
won’t bring you back
but it means
I won’t be here
when you do come back
every Tuesday 2019
September
17 – Shaw Festival – Sex (Mae West)
22 – Stratford Festival – Little Shop Of Horrors
Tuesday 24 – Hot Damn! It’s Queer Slam – Buddies and Bad Times Theatre
https://www.facebook.com/events/504067323723768/
October
15 – Stratford Festival – The Crucible
November
7 – Hot Damn! It’s Queer Slam – Buddies and Bad Times Theatre
December
The Secret Handshake Gallery – 
feature – date TBA
January
23 – Hot Damn! It’s Queer Slam – Buddies and Bad Times Theatre
March
March 5 – Hot Damn! It’s Queer Slam – Buddies and Bad Times Theatre
April
April 3 – Hot Damn! It’s Queer Slam – Season 6 finales Buddies andBbad Times Theatre
June – Capturing Fire 2020 – Washington D.C. 
capfireslam.org
Hey! Or you can give me $$$ to defray blog fees & buy coffee in Washington at 2020’s capfireslam.org – sweet, eh? paypal.me/TOpoet
TOpoet 