Parris Island Daze: My Drill Instructor Was Tougher Than Yours [Paperback]

Bob Shirley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 22, 2006

Parris Island Daze: My Drill Instructor was Tougher Than Yours tracks an under-sized eighteen-year-old boy with something to prove, as he guts out one more day of boot camp. His tormentors Gestapo methods and foul language shock Private Joyce, but he gradually adapts using an irreverent internal dialogue of his perception of each situation. He frequently gets caught smiling and awarded extra instruction, which he sometimes is able to cheat on the count. With the support of his acid wit, buddy Buffalo Butt, salty bulldog Cpl. Winston, and the spirit of legendary Chesty Puller, he is eventually forged into a Marine.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

The author is a Parris Island graduate, commandant of Marine Corps League Detachment #1229, and a member of the Marine Corps Association. His PI training helped him earn three college degrees and have careers as an electrical engineer, CPA, corporate finance officer, and stockbroker. He enjoys reading, dog racing, and harassing younger Marines. He resides in Kingsland, Georgia with his long-suffering wife, Karen.

Product Details

• Paperback: 247 pages
• Publisher: Infinity Publishing (September 22, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0741435047
• ISBN-13: 978-0741435040
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,143,994 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST READ FOR ALL MARINES, January 15, 2007

By 

Harold Beasley "Beetle Bailey" (Dyersburg, TN) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Parris Island Daze: My Drill Instructor Was Tougher Than Yours (Paperback)

This book is both hilarious and haunting. Bob Shirley brings the boot camp experience back to our minds in a very real way. I could almost see my drill instructor in my face after 48 years. He explains his experience as a Pvt. Joyce. He was in Parris Island the same year as I was, 1958. He was in the 2nd batallion and I was in the 1st but the training was almost identical. In fact some of the words and phrases he used are the same as my drill instructors used. I know we can all look back and laugh at some of our experiences there but yet remember the fear and confusion we felt at the time. As we look back on it , as he has done, we can see a very definite reason for the training we received there. I'm sure it saved many lives in Vietnam and elsewhere. It also taught us about life and the challenges we would face. After I read it I wanted to try to locate my drill instructors. Unfortunately, my 2 main instructors had already passed away. The widow of one of them said she was sure her husband would like to have heard from me. If you read this book, try to locate your drill instructors and tell them that you appreciate what they did for you. I would rate this book to be at least 95% accurate.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Book, March 29, 2007

By 

Zell Miller "Zell Miller" (Georgia, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Parris Island Daze: My Drill Instructor Was Tougher Than Yours (Paperback)

"Parris Island Daze is the best book I've ever read on boot camp at Parris Island. I've read every word in the book and even read some aloud to my wife. It's a wonderful, wonderful book that I hope all Marines will read and enjoy. It's great." Former Governor of Georgia and U.S. Senator Zell Miller, author of Corps Values: Everything You Need To Know I Learned In The Marines.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Smooth and hilarious, November 8, 2006

By 

Jonathan Maziarz "Bent Piton" (St. Marys, GA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Parris Island Daze: My Drill Instructor Was Tougher Than Yours (Paperback)

Some authors take a roundabout course to their first book. Bob Shirley was no different. His journey as an author just happened to begin by having a man named Snake scream at him.
The year was 1958. It was boot camp. Marine Corps boot camp. And Trainee Under Rapid Development (TURD) Joyce (Shirley's alter ego) is in over his head.
He undergoes various indignities and trials by fire, all with the express purpose of turning him into a Marine. Shirley puts all these experiences into words in a way that not only has the reader laughing alongside as he silently mocks a drill instructor, but allows a look at what deadly serious business training new Marines can be. What impressed me the most was how Shirley managed to paint full pictures of his drill instructors. Of course, they neatly filled out the Hollywood-generated caricature we civilians have in our minds, but Shirley's take on the drill instructors of Parris Island also allowed them to retain their humanity on every level. Even when they were screaming at the recruits, giving them an "Adam's apple massage" or having them drop down for 20 pushups.
But Private Joyce perseveres. Between the paranoia induced by never knowing when the drill instructor were going to find a reason to administer punishment to the frustration of trying to hold back from strangling the DI as his confidence grew, Joyce uses humor to to keep going. He also survives Marine Corps food, the mysterious warbling of his drill instructor during marching training and the bloodthirsty sand gnats to reach what every private strives for, graduation day. Shirley said that marching onto the parade ground in front of the reviewing stand, the Marine Corps hymn playing, is still the proudest moment of his life.
And being a Marine has meant everything to Shirley. He said that after completing boot camp, he felt there was nothing he could not do. Shirley said it gave him the confidence to see things through to the end, a character trait that allowed him to earn three college degrees and succeed in several fields of business, from engineer to stockbroker.
It also helped him complete his first book, Parris Island Daze: My Drill Instructor Was Tougher Than Yours. Shirley said he'd been writing on and off for 10 years, but had only completed a handful of episodes that ended up in the book. However, when he retired in July 2005, he found his inspiration and some days, wrote for 18 hours at a stretch. Some parts were rewritten many times, but the end result is a smooth and often hilarious read.
"My original purpose in writing this book was to entertain Marines," Shirley said. Based on the comments he's received from his peers, including from former Parris Island drill instructors, he has succeeded.