Sword Drill

Rating:
Summary: An extraordinary book
Review: As a Citadel grad..and someone who is familiar with this type of lifestyle portrayed in the book...I must say he has done a great job in recreating how life is a The Citadel. The Citadel is a unique bastion of education. We have our critics...but we are great because of the hardships and trials we face as cadets. Like Thucydides said: "Superiority Lies With He, Who Is Reared In The Severest Of Schools" That one quote explains The Citadel in such great detail. This book is a must read. You can not put it down. I picked it up and read it to the end in one day. This is by far one of the greatest books I have ever read...next to "The Lords of Discipline". Please check this book out. If you are a Citadel grad...you will be greatly intrigued. I give it 5 stars.

Rating:
Summary: An amazing account of JSD
Review: As a current Citadel cadet I was amazed at how accurately knob year was portrayed and although I never experienced Junior Sword Drill, I can imagine it was done just as accurately. This was an amazing account of the struggles, hardships, and training that these men went through. Hopefully the Guards will never die like JSD did, but the way things are changing it's easier to disband them than to defend them. Let's just hope that the administration never takes the easy route, for the Citadel has never been about taking the easy way out!

Rating:
Summary: Words cannot do justice to the culmination of the 14 nights!
Review: David Epps does a masterful job of getting and keeping your rapt attention in a "passage of rights" that few Citadel Cadets can claim as part of their experience at The Military Academy of South Carolina. It is no small feat to take a real-life situation, surrounded by experiences,conflicts and obstacles and mold the central character into a living, breathing human being. He matures from boy to man with all the frailties and aspirations necessary to draw you into his story. I was fortunate to have witnessed a family member partake in one of the last performances given by this elite group and the experience was beautifully indescribable - made even more so after learning the process behind the scenes. Mr. Epps passionately takes you through this journey in a multi-dimensional setting that is vividly brought to life. This book and the author deserve a wider audience, because there is so much to be learned about the "building of a man" under adversity.

Rating:
Summary: Words cannot do justice to the culmination of the 14 nights!
Review: David Epps does a masterful job of getting and keeping your rapt attention in a "passage of rights" that few Citadel Cadets can claim as part of their experience at The Military Academy of South Carolina. It is no small feat to take a real-life situation, surrounded by experiences,conflicts and obstacles and mold the central character into a living, breathing human being. He matures from boy to man with all the frailties and aspirations necessary to draw you into his story. I was fortunate to have witnessed a family member partake in one of the last performances given by this elite group and the experience was beautifully indescribable - made even more so after learning the process behind the scenes. Mr. Epps passionately takes you through this journey in a multi-dimensional setting that is vividly brought to life. This book and the author deserve a wider audience, because there is so much to be learned about the "building of a man" under adversity.

Rating:
Summary: The Lords of the Swords
Review: In 2001, we drove to The Citadel for my son's first Parent's Weekend in his knob year. I used the opportunity to read Conroy's Lords of Discipline. Last weekend, we drove to Charleston to see him get his ring. I used the opportunity to read The Sword Drill while there and on the way back home.

As such, both of the books become more of the genre of docu-drama than fiction - it creates a rather surreal environment to experience these "alpha-omega" events as a parent. The context of Epps' superb book is that of a cadet as a knight in search of an ideal perfection. As a parent who has watched his son grow from boy to man in those three years under the influence of The Citadel, it was indeed a powerful and moving experience to read the book in conjunction to seeing him get to "wear the ring".

For those readers who have only a peripheral knowledge or involvement with the unique institution that is The Citadel, Epps provides a superb insight as to what a Citadel education is all about. It is a must read for any prospective family or cadet recruit.

I am still torn as to the proper role of the Junior Sword Drill in such training - its propriety precariously balanced on a sword's razor edge. All things considered, it is probably for the best that it has been disbanded - but each reader/parent/cadet will have to come to their own judgment after much introspection.