Published in March 1995, A Scattering of Salts was the last collection of poetry completed in James Merrill

James Merrill

James Ingram Merrill was an American poet whose awards include the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for Divine Comedies...

's lifetime. The book appeared one month after the poet's

Poet

A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

 death

Death

Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....

 on February 6, 1995 (see 1995 in poetry

1995 in poetry

Nationality words link to articles with information on the nation's poetry or literature .-Events:* February 16 — Announcement that 300 poems by S.T...

).

Among the books most celebrated poems are "Self-Portrait in TYVEK™ Windbreaker", "A Downward Look", "An Upward Look", "b o d y", and "The Ring Cycle". The book is dedicated to poet Stephen Yenser

Stephen Yenser

Stephen Yenser is an American poet. He is also a literary critic who has written books on James Merrill, Robert Lowell, and an assortment of contemporary poets and co-literary executor with J.D. McClatchy for James Merrill...

.