Potpourri

when I was young, it was Jules Verne
Children of Captain Grant
I studied it as one might learn
a poem or a chant
I read it back and forth, and more
knew many parts by heart
the characters I did adore
I relished every part

Three Musketeers did follow suit
as I grew older still
and D'artagnan's noble pursuits
each swordfight and each kill
Milady, evil as they come
and Constance, her sad toll
the Cardinal, and Buckingham
adventure for the soul

Then Asimov, his robot tales
(I still contribute to his sales)
Then Dune, breathtaking story
An ageless allegory
In thousands, I can't recount
the Book Club gave me a discount
but there is one that does stand out
so I'll no longer beat about

It's Snow Crash, by Neal Stephenson
the coiner of the Metaverse
It is my job today; for some,
the reason that I took to verse
most prescient, and most relevant
no, not the most poetic
no other writer -- adamantly
captured the esthetic
of what the future was to be
and so Snow Crash -- the one for me

Author notes: https://allpoetry.com/contest/2802457-Best-Reads