I was brought back to my high school roots for today’s book, well sort of… The Lords of Discipline by Pat Conroy. You see, I attended a military (Catholic) high school. No, it wasn't a boarding school and no, we really didn’t have hazing like the group of 10! The book is divided into 4 sections which begins with being a plebe, for those who don’t know what that is, not a fun time in one’s high school life, especially in the military (it means the bottom of the ‘totem pole’). The protagonist is placed at a military school in Carolina during his senior year, flashes back to his hellish first year, back to how he is faced with the challenge of racism and support of the first African American student attending the institute and what role he is forced to play with the student. The last section has Will McLean battling against the mysterious ten. It is always interesting to me how the military stories always seem to focus on the “code red” type of underground secrets. Conroy brings me back to some of my own funny experiences in high school, but not at all like the ones portrayed in his novel. Nonetheless, it is a trip down memory lane with guys into the military and the crazy things they did to “protect the flag” and the silly things those who were anti-military did, making drum noises during the Star Spangled Banner. I remember the time we were in an all day military event. Two kids fainted when we had to stand at attention for like 75 minutes. Hey, we were in 9th grade. I think it was on the border of child abuse, thanks Colonel Reese. So where do you think I landed in the military rank? Out of 99 cadets in my class where did I rank? Closest guess gets a free gift card! Send in your guesses now, or comment below. Not a bad book, had special memories for me, so I recommend it.
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