NPR : ‘The Cremation of Sam McGee’

One of my favorite poems, and certainly my favorite poet. For more Robert Service go here.

‘The Cremation of Sam McGee’

by Scott Simon and Daniel Pinkwater

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Ted Harrison

Sam and friend set off. Kids Can Press

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A map of the Yukon graces the back cover. Kids Can Press

Weekend Edition Saturday, August 19, 2006 · Robert Service’s poem, “The Cremation of Sam McGee,” tells the tale of two gold miners in the Yukon and one man’s “last request.”

The poem, which was originally published in 1907, was later transformed into a children’s book with colorful illustrations by Ted Harrison, in 1986.

Now, a 20th-anniversary edition has been released by Kids Can Press, with new cover art and heavy paper stock. The tale is bookended by the following verse:

There are strange things done in the midnight sun
By the men who toil for gold;
The Arctic trails have their secret tales
That would make your blood run cold;
The Northern Lights have seen queer sights,
But the queerest they ever did see
Was that night on the marge of Lake Laberge
I cremated Sam McGee.

Source: NPR : ‘The Cremation of Sam McGee’