Service, Robert W.

Best Tales of the Yukon: Including the Classic "Shooting of Dan McGrew" and "the Cremation of Sam McGee"

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GRANDFATHER OF THE COWBOY POETS
Cremation of Sam McGee
"There are strange things done in the midnight sun..."
A deep and inqusitive piece of literature.
Poems/ballads about the Yukon people.Sad,witty&funny.Bravo!

Best Tales of the Yukon: Including the Classic "Shooting of Dan McGrew" and "the Cremation of Sam McGee"
Robert W. Service
Manufacturer: Running Press Book Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Best of Robert Service
Collected Poems of Robert Service
The Cremation of Sam McGee
The Spell Of The Yukon
The Klondike Fever: The Life and Death of the Last Great Gold Rush

ASIN: 0762414596

Book Description

In 1904, the Canadian Bank of Commerce transferred teller Robert W. Service to the Yukon Territory. Soon, he was famous as the poet who chronicled the Klondike gold rush and the savage beauty of the frozen north. His tales of hard-bitten prospectors and sourdoughs in "The Land God Forgot" make vivid, exciting reading. Here are all the brawling, colorful characters that Service immortalized, including One-Eyed Mike, Dangerous Dan McGrew, Pious Pete, Blasphemous Bill-and, of course, the lady known as Lou.

Customer Reviews:

GRANDFATHER OF THE COWBOY POETS.......2006-12-24

Robert Service, if anyone, could be called "the grandfather of cowboy poets." This has been a popular genre over the past few years and much of the work done by these wonderful men and women can be traced back to Service's poems and style. Being called the "Bard of the Yukon" is certainly true, but sells this particular writer short. His works include so much more that just the delightful poems of the Canadian Territory. Simply written, with a story, they are quite a delight for both old and young alike. I recent years, some of our elitist in our academic world have been less than kind to this poet. This is all well and good with me. They simply don't get it. Service's work will quite likely endure far longer than some of the ranting I read in the professional journals. I read these poems to young folks in my classes, and they seldom fail to delight and indeed, inspire. It is difficult to go wrong with this one. Highly recommend.

Cremation of Sam McGee.......2006-02-23

Went to Alaska and heard the poem, had to own it.

"There are strange things done in the midnight sun...".......2004-12-04

Robert William Service (1874-1958), the son of a Scottish banker father and English mother, moved to Canada in 1896 at the age of twenty-two. After a failed attempt at farming and several years of drifting, he got a job with the Canadian Bank of Commerce in the Whitehorse, Yukon Territory in 1904, and was later transferred to Dawson. During his time in Canada, Service wrote numerous poems about life in the north. Though the Klondike Gold Rush had been mostly over by 1898, tales of it still abounded and from these he drew much of his inspiration. His first book of poetry, "The Spell of the Yukon and Other Verses," was published in 1907 (printed under the title "Songs of a Sourdough" in London), and was followed in 1909 with "Ballads of a Cheechako." In 1912 Service left Canada to take a job as war correspondent in the Balkans. He continued to write poetry, but moved on to other subject matter and did not return to Canada. Eventually Service ended up in France, where he married and resided until his death.

An Alaskan by birth, I grew up on Robert Service's poetry. My father read selections to me at bedtime when I was little, and I was fortunate enough to hear some professional dramatic readings of Service's work as well (if you're ever lucky enough to get such an opportunity, don't pass it up!). His poems perfectly capture life in the frozen north. His imagery is so vivid that you can see the rugged beauty of the wilderness in your mind's eye as you read. You can feel the biting cold of winters, too: "You know what it's like in the Yukon wild when it's sixty-nine below; When the iceworms wriggle their purple heads through the crust of the pale blue snow; When the pine trees crack like little guns in the silence of the wood; And the icicles hang down like tusks under the parka hood" (pg. 131, from "The Ballad of Blasphemous Bill"). Someone who's never been very far north can't fully imagine what it's like, but Service's words will get you as close as is possible, short of an actual trip.

Service's work also encapsulates the spirit of the men who roamed the Yukon during the Gold Rush era. The wanderlust, the loneliness, the foolish enthusiasm, the futility, the madness and the insanity - it's all there. You'll feel "half dazed, half crazed" yourself as you read some of these pieces. It's like a window into the past, into another time and place. And what makes Service's work even greater is his magnificent wit. The poems are full of dark, morbid humor, and laced with irony. "The Ballad of Hard-Luck Henry" (pg. 112) is a great example.

This particular book, "Best Tales of the Yukon," is a combination of poems from Service's first two books, "The Spell of the Yukon" and "Ballads of a Cheechako." It consists entirely of pieces written during his Canadian period, and the editors have arranged them so as to provide a "chronological saga of the Gold Rush" (pg. ix). They've done a magnificent job, beginning with "The Men That Don't Fit In" (pg. 14) and closing with "The Law of the Yukon" (pg. 145) and "Lost" (pg. 150). In between you'll find "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" (pg. 57) and "The Cremation of Sam McGee" (pg. 126), the two that would become his most famous and most frequently recited poems. My other favorites include "The Trail of 'Ninety-Eight" (pg. 28), "The Spell of the Yukon" (pg. 119), and "The Ballad of Blasphemous Bill" (pg. 130). All in all, there are 47 great poems for you to sink your teeth into. There is also a useful glossary at the back, offering definitions of the various Yukon-isms sprinkled throughout Service's work. Definitely worth adding to any collection of poetry and literature.

A deep and inqusitive piece of literature........1999-02-19

I loved this book and encourage others to read it. This book can chill your soul and at the same time make you feel warm inside. From the Cremation of Sam McGee to the Shooting of Dan McGrew, Mr. Service had me admiring his work especially after I read 'Grin' which adopts a good perspective of life. Excellent!

Poems/ballads about the Yukon people.Sad,witty&funny.Bravo!.......1996-09-18

(1986)I'm stuck in Sinop,Turkey. At the radar station we are bored 'cause it's winter and right now nothing is going on when suddenly a voice from behind me starts what sounds at first like a lethany but evolves into a ballad. No music,just a voice, and it's telling a story... "There's a race of men that don't fit in, A race that can't stay still; So they break the hearts of kith and kin, And they roam the world at will. They range the field and they rove the flood, And they climb the mountain's crest. Theirs is the curse of the gypsy blood, And they don't know how to rest." You'll find more stories: of love, revenge, perseverance and faith. For the near winter season, nothing beats this collection. Nice for reading aloud by a fire or if unavailable, in a room with the TV off. You don't need to be a proffesional story teller. The prose will take care of everything...

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The Spell of the Yukon and Other Verses
ROBERT W. SERVICE
Manufacturer: BARSE & HOPKINS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: B000E7LAAI

Product Description

Poetry of the Yukon gold rushes.

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A pleasing discovery
American Poetry Classic
Wild Prose, Rough Living, Tender Heart

The Spell Of The Yukon
Robert W. Service
Manufacturer: Kessinger Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Best Tales of the Yukon: Including the Classic "Shooting of Dan McGrew" and "the Cremation of Sam McGee"
The Best of Robert Service
Collected Poems of Robert Service
The Cremation of Sam McGee

ASIN: 1419183257

Book Description

One said: Thy life is thine to make or mar, To flicker feebly, or to soar, a star; It lies with thee -- the choice is thine, is thine, To hit the ties or drive thy auto-car.

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One said: Thy life is thine to make or mar, To flicker feebly, or to soar, a star; It lies with thee -- the choice is thine, is thine, To hit the ties or drive thy auto-car.

Customer Reviews:

A pleasing discovery.......2006-03-15

I don't get poetry. For me, it tends to be hard to decipher and follow. Maybe that's why I tend not to read it. Robert Service is a pleasant surprise, and a "rediscovery" for me. I heard a friend's son try to recite "The Cremation of Sam McGee". His recitation was somewhat lacking in clarity, but the poem sounded "fun". I picked this book up in a bookstore (I bought a second copy from Amazon.com for a gift) and read "My Madonna". I laughed out loud and decided I NEEDED to own the book. Robert Service's images came through loud and clear. I thouroughly enjoyed reading his poems, and while I will admit he kinda beats the reader over the head with some of his images, there is no denying I understood what he was trying to portray. Stark. Forbidding. Unsettling. Chilling. Humerous. Pick the book up read it and find yourself being drawn into another century, and appreciating YOU don't have to live in that time or that place.
I saw a live performance of "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" in a saloon in Fairbanks, Alaska, several decades ago. I had forgotten how entertaining Robert Service could be. Rediscover or discover him, you'll be glad you did.

American Poetry Classic.......2001-02-28

This is a classic. PERIOD! Do yourself a favor and buy this little book so that you can memorize "The Creamation of Sam McGee" if nothing else. You will always have a way to keep small children spellbound with this captivating verse.

This, along with Service's other poems have a magical way of transforming us to the Yukon. You will feel as though you are there!

Wild Prose, Rough Living, Tender Heart.......2000-04-18

Robert Service wrote in the golden years of the Klondike -- of the rough and ready men, and women just as tough. No-one in Robert's world (real or imagined) minced words or had any self-consciousness about them. It was live and let live and sometimes kill or be killed.

Reading his poems transports us back to that frozen place in nature when it was literally every man and every woman for him/herself, yet Robert conveys to us not only a sensitivity (in his poem extolling the simple light switch -- something quite novel in those times, especially in the Klondike), but the beauties he saw in the others -- gathered around the village's first "grammyphone", hearing the voice of "canned man" coming from it -- some savages taking to their canoes because it seems demonic, yet others equally savage, enraptured by this miracle of sound.

Product Description

Adventure Classics is the second multi-author anthology in the Graphic Classics series. The book presents thirteen stories and poems of danger, horror, comedy and romance; all told in new comics adaptations. Included are "The Valley of the Sorceress" by "Fu Manchu" author Sax Rohmer, "The Masked Ball" by Alexandre Dumas, and "Tigre" by Zane Grey. Plus a classic war story by Damon Runyon, a saga of Captain Blood by Rafael Sabatini, and a noir crime tale by "Zorro" author Johnston McCulley. Also more stories from O. Henry, Rudyard Kipling, Arthur Conan Doyle, Robert W. Service, Edith Nesbit, Robert Louis Stevenson and Fitz-James O'Brien, as illustrated by Hunt Emerson, Michael Manning, Mary Fleener, Don Marquez, Mark A. Nelson and more great contemporary artists. With a dramatic cover painting by Chris Moore.

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Ripping good stuff! Tales of pirates, desert sorceresses, lusty women and dangerous men.......2005-09-17

The mysterious desert. The high plains. The stormy seas. The dense jungles. These are the places where actions speak louder than words, where the sharp retort of a six-gun decides who is right and who is dead, and a blind tiger stalks with preternatural senses and determination. These are the settings for Adventure Tales, a genre of literature prominent in the 1900's, in which many of the finest authors of the period plied their trades.

In this, their 12th volume, Graphic Classics has assembled an anthology of some of the greatest adventure stories of the time, full of hot blood and cold nights, mystery and magic. These classic tales have been interpreted by a host of talented illustrators, lending their own unique insight into the authors original stories. This is their second anthology book, like Volume 10 "Horror Classics," combining many workers in the genre rather than focusing on a specific author.

Some of the best authors are on display here. Robert Louis Stevenson, author of "Treasure Island," Sax Rohmer, creator of Yellow Peril villain Fu Manchu, Alexander Dumas, creator of The Three Musketeers, renowned cowboy author Zane Grey, Damon Runyon, author of "The Idylls of Miss Sarah" which was adapted as the musical "Guys and Dolls," Rafael Sabatinin master of Pirate Tales and creator of Captain Blood, Johnston McCully creator of the swashbuckling Zorro, Sherlock Holme's creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and Rudyard Kipling, author of "The Jungle Books."

Finally, there is O. Henry, whom if it weren't for Graphics Classics, I might have known nothing more of than the sweet Christmas fable, "The Gift of the Magi," rather than met him as a scribbler of dark cowboy adventures.

This volume contains:

The Wind Blew Shrill and Sharp - A lusty sea poem by Robert Louis Stevenson. Skot Olsen provides an excellent and strong sailor to accompany the compelling verse.

In the Valley of the Sorceress - Egypt was a mysterious and magical place at the time, and Sax Rohmer weaves a web of desire and danger. An archaeologist attempts to open the hidden tomb of Sorceress Queen Hatasu, but finds his efforts daunted, and his soul beguiled by a beautiful Arab maiden. Illustrator JB Bonivert brings a unique and fanciful style to this classic adventure.

The Masked Ball - By Alexander Dumas. A short and dark tale of heartbreak and desire, accompanied by a hedonistic masked ball where people seek to drown their loneliness and hide their faces. Michael Manning provides a dark atmosphere, heavy with black spaces, as an appropriate accompaniment.

Tigre - The jungles of Mexico are the setting for this tale of lust and revenge. By Zane Grey, an old farmer is a master of wild animals, particularly his blind brutish tiger named Tigre. The only thing he can't tame is his young and pretty wife. Who stalks who in the dense jungle? A straight-forward but perfect comic book adaptation by Don Marquez, particularly of the lovely Senora.

The Shooting of Dan McGrew - A popular cowboy poem by Robert W. Service, adapted with humor and pathos by Hunt Emerson. A lonely miner, a dangerous gambler, and the lady that's known as Lou.

Two Men Named Collins - Damon Runyon gives us a sad and silently heroic of two soldiers who share the same name. On is lonely and ugly, one is popular and handsome. But the one holds the secret of the other, and nobility is not always what it seems. Illustrator Noel Tuazon does a spectacular adaptation of this tail, lending even more weight and atmospher to the yarn.

Blood Money - An adventure of Rafael Sabatinin's celebrated rouge Captain Blood. A straight-forward comic book adaptation by Kevin Atkinson, this is a clever celebration of the key to Captain Bloods success. Pure luck.

Gunga Din -Rudyard Kipling gives us a blood-rousing poem of an Indian water bearer and the Thuggee wars. The prose is amazing. "But when it comes to slaughter, you will do your work on water, an' you'll lick the bloomin' boots of 'im that's got it." Great illustrations by Mary Fleener, this was the first time I had read this classic poem.

The Man without a Shadow - An Irish short story author, this is a companion piece to "A Day-Dream" which appears in "Horror Classics." A whimsical adaptation by Milton Knight of a clever tale.

The Mystery of the Semi-Detached - I always knew Edith Nesbit as the author of the children's tales "The Boxcar Children," but little did I know she had this tale of murder and ghosts in her. With excellent Victorianesque illustrations by Antonella Caputo.

The Stolen Story - Johnston McCully is best known for swashbuckling, but this tale of fictional theft is equally gripping. A man's dreams are met, although they turn into a nightmare. With appropriately grotesque illustrations by Chris Pelletiere.

The Crime of the Brigadier - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had many characters, one of them Brigadier Gerard, a teller of tall-tales and adventurer in Napoleon's army. This funny yarn is comically adapted by Nick Miller is a suiting style.

The Roads We Take - Another black tale of cowboys by O. Henry, a story of betrayal, and a man's true character. Outlaw Shark Dodson saw two roads ahead of him, both leading to the same ending. A bleak story, with a perfect adaptation by Pedro Lopez. So good I immediately read it again after finishing it.

As exciting, wild, and spooky to read as its predecessors.......2005-08-11

The twelfth volume in the "Adventure Classics" series of graphic novels and short story collections, the reader is treated to some of the finest adventure writing by some of the most talented authors, and adapted to the graphic novel format by illustrators and artists of matching caliber. The stories comprising this issue include: "In the Valley of the Sorceress" by Sax Rohmer, ill. by J. B. Bonivert; "The Masked Ball" by Alexandre Dumas, ill. by Michael Manning; "Two Men Named Collins" by Damon Runyon, ill. by Noel Tuazon; "Tigre" by Zane Grey, ill. by Don Marquez; "Blood Money" by Rafael Sabatini, ill. by Kevin Atkinson; "The Stolen Story" by Johnston McCulley, ill. by Chris Pelletiere; "Gunga Din", by Rudyard Kipling, ill. by Mary Fleener, and more. Thrilling tales of the past century brought to life in a wide variety of bold, black-and-white styles make Adventure Classics Volume 12 as exciting, wild, and spooky to read as its predecessors.

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I love this book

Rhymes of a Red Cross Man
Robert W Service
Manufacturer: Barse & Hopkins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Product Description

Collection of poems by author who served in World War I.

Customer Reviews:

I love this book.......2006-05-03

... My Dad was a Red Cross Man in another war, on Okinawa, and left me a copy of this book, much annotated... the poetry is terrific and I guess another reason I treasure this old book so much, is personal. God Bless all the Red Cross people everywhere, and all the soldiers.

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Best Tales of the Yukon
Robert W. Service
Manufacturer: Running Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HFL5WU

Ploughman of the moon;: An adventure into memory,

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Ploughman of the moon;: An adventure into memory,
Robert W Service
Manufacturer: E. Benn limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Dan McGrew, Sam McGee and Other Great Service

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WONDERFUL STUFF HERE - STILL
Fine poetry by an adventurer.
Great collection of Robert Service, superbly illustrated

Dan McGrew, Sam McGee and Other Great Service
Robert W. Service
Manufacturer: Wilderness Adventure Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Best Tales of the Yukon: Including the Classic "Shooting of Dan McGrew" and "the Cremation of Sam McGee"
Rudyard Kipling: Complete Verse

ASIN: 0923568123

Book Description

Robert Service's particular sense of the wild makes him stand out as a true North American poet. His fanciful tales of the rough-and-tumble Yukon have made him one of the most popular and frequently recited poets in the English-speaking world. Service's poems are perfect for sharing with children and friends, reading alone, or best of all, reciting around the campfire.

Dan McGrew, Sam McGee, and Other Great Service includes over fifty of Robert Service's best-loved poems, while Mark Summers' illustrations perfectly capture their mood.

Customer Reviews:

WONDERFUL STUFF HERE - STILL.......2005-01-13

This is a wonderful collection of the works of Robert Service. The poetry here is the kind that you loved as a kid. Then you grew up and became ultra-sophisticated and you were able to roll your wisdom filled eyes and look down your well educated nose at such work. Fortunately, you soon grow out of this phase of your life (sooner if you are lucky, most get over themselves around the age of 25 or so) and you happen to pick this delightful work up again. Yes, folks, it is still as good as when you were a kid! Actually, I love reading it to my preteen and teen age grandsons. They still appreciate it, and will again after they go through their little bit of growing up. I highly recommend this one for anyone who love reading or loves poetry.

Fine poetry by an adventurer........2002-10-31

When I studied poetry in school I didn't particularly like most of what we were assigned to read. And then I read Robert Service's poem The Shooting of Dan McGrew and discovered that I liked it. Next I read The Cremation of Sam McGee and decided that poetry could actually be fun. Eventually I read other poems by Robert Service and discovered that, although most were more serious than Dan McGrew and Sam McGee, they still appealed to me. In fact, thanks in large part to Service, I have now developed a taste for other poetry as well. Robert Service was an adventurer as well as a poet and his adventurer's perspective makes his poems particular appealing. If you're a fan of Robert Service this is a good collection of his work. If you haven't read him yet this is a good place to start. And if you think that you don't like poetry, maybe Service will help convert you as he did me.

Great collection of Robert Service, superbly illustrated.......1999-08-28

This is an outstanding collection of great Robert Service Poetry, superbly illustrated.

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The house of fear;
Robert W Service
Manufacturer: Dodd, Mead, & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00085Z6WY

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Ballads of A Cheechako
Robert Service
Manufacturer: Barse & Hopkins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000K5Q32E

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