The Ghost Road is my latest book. The stories in this new title are like the “ghost road” itself that sits in the middle of an Essex County field. This old strip of asphalt is long forgotten of those heady years when dragsters used this to race other daredevils behind the wheel. In this book, you will find the forgotten tales of Windsor that involve devastating tornadoes, explosions at the riverfront with a symphony orchestra, 19th century race riots, the stories of murderers, assassins, faith healers, sports legends. I launched this new book at Biblioasis on Wyandotte Street East in Windsor. These photos were taken by the talented Emily Buta of Windsor. Take a look at what you missed. But if you are interested, I will be reading at Elias Deli Nov. 11 at 1 p.m. Food and drink and books will be there. Welcome Emily Buta and her masterful photography:

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This past fall, poets laureate came from across the country at my invitation as Windsor’s first poet laureate  to do a reading at Willistead Manor, a place that had been built by the Walker family in old Walkerville. Joey Acott, a Windsor videographer, interviewed these poets, and filmed Marty Gervais at the reading. The reading was sponsored and arranged by the Cultural Affairs Office of the City of Windsor.

I knew nothing about this book until I saw a poster for it — one that writer and book designer Kate Hargreaves dropped off to me at the University of Windsor. She slid it under my door when I was away. I saw the title: DREAMING OF LOST AMERICA, published by Guernica Editions. The office that I am in at the university is adjacent to the one McNamara used. On the other side of me was another giant in our literature down in this part of southwestern Ontario. That was John Ditzky. I have known Gene since the late 1960s when he published some of my poems in The Windsor Review magazine, a journal he started well over 40 years ago. I was a brash, young know-it-all poet, eager to share stories with the world. Gene gave me that opportunity in publishing my work. I am not sure why. I am not sure if it was my writing. I am not sure if it was something said that seemed convincing, but he took the time to listen, to read what I was writing, to encourage me. Friday night (yesterday) was pretty special. I haven’t seen Gene for quite some time. But he has this new book, and this was his launch at Biblioasis on Wyandotte Street here in Windsor. My daughter, Elise, who studied American Lit with McNamara, joined me. She didn’t want to miss the reading. She brought along Lucien, my 20-month grandson who devoured cookies with both hands at the back of the room and kept flipping open books. It was like old times when I used to bring my daughter to all my readings. She grew up among poets and artists, and so this was familiar territory. (And once when she was in McNamara’s American Lit class she wore a t-shirt with Walt Whitman’s image on the front, and Gene recognized the shirt  because he had made these and sold them at the first Art in the Park that was held in Windsor. My daughter hadn’t known that — she had inherited the t-shirt from my drawer.) This book — Gene’s 16th collection — brings back a lot of these associations. He is a writer with a clear and profound vision of what is important, a master at fashioning the “story” behind the poem, and making it live in the imagination. Check out this book. The words sing and the images come alive on the page. Below is a photograph I took of Gene at the reading held at Biblioasis.