In Shades & Graces, Salcman tells us early on that "Every intern knows it doesn't matter how long an incision is, just how wide," and in this accurate and marvelous detail provides a metaphor for the way a surgeon's suturing provides a signature, "closed but open like a grave," that "even God can't erase." In poem after poem, Salcman's signature-the stitched lines of his verse-are characterized by verve, clarity, and formal finesse, and as such they attempt to heal the various and vexing wounds of experience. -Michael Collier, former poet laureate of Maryland, director of the Bread Loaf Writers¿ Conference, Professor of English at the University of Maryland and author of "My Bishop and Other Poems."