R.I.P. J.D. Salinger

J.D. Salinger (1919-2010)

Tributes/Obituaries

Stephen King
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Associated Press
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Verlyn Klinkenborg (N.Y. Times)
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London Times
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Rick Moody
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Elaine Woo (L.A. Times)
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Mark Feeney (Boston Globe)

Gum Surgery

A week ago a surgeon

peeled my lower gums

and slid in paper thin

grafts gleaned from

cadavers, slices of skin

stitched in and lashed

around my teeth, alien

tissue, purged of DNA,

anonymous and plain.

When my mouth feels

itself again, we’ll see

if my whistle’s still

shrill enough to rattle

glasses off the shelf,

soft enough to coax

a shadow off the wall.