Customer Reviews

Battle Dress

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

As a female West Point graduate, I can tell you this book is a terrific account of a new cadet's first summer. I read it on a plane and couldn't put it down. The guy sitting next to me must have wondered why I alternately laughed out loud and wiped away tears. It brought back all the emotions of Beast Barracks and the challenges I faced. I sent copies to my parents and grandparents to give them more insight into my experience.

A woman's relationships at West Point are different than at most colleges; the competitive environment (where women often are viewed as the weak link) adds a new dimension to interacting with men and with other women. The low proportion of women (10%) makes them stand out more, warping their developing sense of self. Then add a dysfunctional family support system, and you get some idea of the challenges for Andi, the main character.

I truly hope Amy Efaw continues the story line. The lessons from West Point show young adults what they can achieve and overcome, and what success is all about.

If you want to read more about women at West Point, try to find a copy of Carol Barkalow's book, "In the Men's House." Carol was one of the first female graduates (1980) and her excellent book follows her cadet experience and early military assignments.

The setting of Battle Dress is West Point Military Academy, but the message I received from this first book written by Amy Efaw is: No matter what your life has been, it's up to you and your attitudes whether you make it or not. Never give up!

I found Battle Dress to be both motivating and good recreational reading, although I had to put the book down after the first two chapters because I was exhausted. Amy Efaw gives us a realistic and entertaining picture of a young woman's life at West Point without having to resort to filth and gore. "Andi Davis" leaves the disorder of her home and the insecurity of her childhood, and finds structure, identity, and acceptance at West Point. Efaw skillfully describes Andi's environment and experiences, her agonizing thoughts and fears, and her failures and triumphs. Andi doesn't always win, but then, neither do we. I cried with Andi, cheered for her, and laughed out loud.

The program at West Point, as described by Efaw, would probably seem harsh to the average reader; but they're training men and women to be leaders in potentially dangerous circumstances, where a careless mistake could cost lives. Since reading Battle Dress, I have a new respect for the Academy and its graduates. West Point may be the place where "striving for excellence" was invented.

Great book! Funny, poignant, easily held my attention. The main character, Andi, is someone we can all identify with. I found myself rooting for her and sharing in her successes and failures.

If any teenager is considering applying to West Point or thinking about the military, they should read this book to find out what to expect and how it prepare.

This absolutely the best young adult novel ever written about West Point. The book explores well beyond the mechanics of military life as Efaw examines the interpersonal relationships between Andi Davis, her family and her fellow cadets. This is a story that will touch everyone who reads, both teens and adults alike. THIS IS A MUST READ!

Beast: that is what the first six weeks of intensive training are known as at West Point Academy. It is unbearable even for many that make it as far as acceptance into the elite training camp, but Andi Davis knows she can hack it. Her life at home has no order, and she has always stood on the outside of a group. If she can handle her unpredictable mother and her distant father, she can handle anything. Even being one of two girls in her whole platoon. She thinks.

Beast is nothing like her home life. There is so much order that Andi can't even turn her head to look around her. The change is hard enough to deal with, but combine that with the tests of physical endurance and the insults screamed at her and the other cadets, and even Andi begins to flounder. There's only one thing that keeps her from giving up: she doesn't want anyone to know that she's really a loser, like her family has always told her; she refuses to satisfy the few male cadets who seem to be waiting for her to fail.

But as the six weeks pass, something begins to happen. She begins to see that she that maybe her family is wrong, maybe she isn't a loser. For the first time, Andi feels a part of a group. Amid all the screaming and punishment, Andi realizes that she is learning more than commands --- she is learning about a private community from the inside, a community she's a part of.

I wasn't sure I'd enjoy this book because of its subject. However, I was immediately drawn in and found it a quick, enjoyable read. There are many scenes that involve physical competition that were so well-written I found my own breathing speed up as though I was competing. Andi is a great heroine, more concerned with reaching her own goals than living up to someone else's standards. Gabi, her one female friend, may be a bit irritating at times, but then you realize just how different the world of West Point is --- in the outside world, Gabi would probably be one of the more popular girls in the class.

However, there were issues that were unresolved and left me unsatisfied. Andi's mom definitely seems to suffer from some mental illness, but she is instead portrayed simply as mean and angry. Andi never comes to terms with her family and, eventually it seems, decides to leave them behind as she becomes more and more wrapped up in the military world. The author never mentions how Andi feels about the real reason she is there: she is training to be a soldier, to kill the enemy. At some point, I imagine she must have grappled with this, since patriotic passion was never a reason for her entering the military --- so what happens when this reality hits her?

All in all, an entertaining though flawed read.

--- Reviewed by Kate Torpie

What a great story! As the mother of two female graduates of West Point, I often wished that I could be a fly on the wall during their plebe summers. Through her character, Andi, the author has given us insight into the fear and uncertainty experienced in the beginning of the Cadet Basic Training culminating in the personal growth and achievement as the summer ends. The story was so real to me that I actually found myself reliving the Mom-type feelings from those Plebe summers.I would recommend this book to all young women who may be planning to attend a service academy and to their parents as well. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

This is a great book that gives an accurate portrayal of life as a New Cadet at West Point. But it's more than just a dramatized documentary about life as a girl at a military school. It's a well-written and captivating story of a girl who escapes her past by embracing herself. She discovers that the strength to pull her through was inside her all along and always will be. This is a great book for any girl who needs to know that she is her own solution.

Most YA books have clunky language that makes your brain stutter every sentence or two; no matter how good the story, it becomes difficult to wade through. This book's dialogue, description, and character development feels graceful and effortless. Whatever you think of the experience that the character is undergoing, you are drawn in whether you want to be or not. I'm only halfway through and already popped on to Amazon to see if Efaw has written anything else - I suspect it would be a pleasure to read, whatever the topic.

I don't care what people said about this book IT WAS GREAT! I had to read this book for a reading program and it was the only book that I just wanted to keep reading! It may be fictional but it shows people military life from a women's point of view instead of the guy's point of view. If you haven't read this book then you have got to read it! Andi goes through a lot of sruggles emotionally and physically. Amy does a great job of discribing her surroundings and everything that is going on. I deffinately give this book 2 thumbs up!

I bought the book out of curiosity and was enthralled. I have never been to West Point and I am not a young girl, but the story and the writing were riveting. One night I read the book to my 5 and 1/2 year old son at bedtime and he could not wait until the next night's reading. The descriptions are excellent and the struggles that the young heroine and her friends experience are universal. I am looking forward to her next book and so is my son.