Nostalgic Friday: Battle Dress by Amy Efaw

Welcome back to Nostalgic Friday! Since I love all things historical (culturally, physically, and personally) I do a post on Fridays honoring some awesome book that is a bit older. Many of them are books I enjoyed in my teens and others are books that I discovered as an adult that I think are relevant to YA readers.


This week I am featuring Battle Dress by Amy Efaw. Again, a book I read in high school, but with a twist. I was in an Air Force Junior ROTC at my high school, so naturally I gave the thought of a military career serious thought. This book, while fictional, is written by a West Point graduate. That's right, I had no idea that:

1. Amy Efaw would later write another book I adore, but that I loved her work from the beginning.
2. She is a West Point graduate and proudly served in the United States Army.

So I thank her for her service and hope you'll think about picking up this novel.

Andi Davis wanted to escape; escape her abusive mother, escape her resigned father, and escape from a boring, nothingness existence. West Point seemed like the best option for her. It provided strenuous training, promised rigorous academic challenges, and most of all, a way out. All Andi had to do in return for a free college education was serve in the Army after school; and after all she's been through, this should be a piece of cake.

Then Andi arrives at West Point for the first six weeks as known as Beast. This is where a majority of cadets realize what they are in for and run for the hills; but not Andi. While the upper class cadets scream, rant and rave, and use the new cadets as their personal slaves, Andi decides to hunker done and make it through. In the process she learns more about herself, her place in the world, and what she is really made of.

I found this book very real. I mean, the way everything was described made me feel like I was actually there with Andi. If you've ever seen An Officer and a Gentleman or seen an "Inside the World of a Military Academy" show you already have a mental image of what is taking place in the book, but Efaw brings it life for you. Andi was a very familiar character and listening to her story unfold was like listening to a friend talk. The other cadets were very well-rounded and balanced as well. No two cadets were alike and it made for very realistic discord. Naturally there will be some trouble-makers in every group and this story was no exception. Yet, in the end, I truly believe that everyone had grown as a person and really found what they were looking for at West Point.

Give this book a chance and I promise you won't be disappointed. And if you haven't already, check out my review of her second novel After here.

After by Amy Efaw

IT won’t stop crying. How can I make IT stop crying?

This is what’s running through Devon Davenport’s head on THAT morning. THAT morning Devon wasn’t feeling well. She stayed home from school, took out the trash, and then wrapped up in a blanket on the couch. To her chagrin, her mother comes home from work. Soon the police are knocking on the door and would like to speak to Devon to see if she heard anything around the trash that morning because a baby was found in the trash. When Devon doesn’t respond, her mother pulls back the blanket to reveal a large amount of blood coming from Devon. And then Devon blacked out.

Now she is facing criminal charges including attempted murder for the baby that she tried to throw out with the garbage. But Devon doesn’t really understand. She wasn’t pregnant. She didn’t give birth to a baby girl in her bathroom at home. She didn’t try to cover all that up. Did she? Now Devon, the perfect student and goal keeper, finds herself in juvenile detention awaiting a hearing that will decide if she should be tried as an adult or kept in the juvenile system.

An astonishingly real look at the terrifying reality of what many young, scared mothers perceive as their only option, After was a fantastic novel that explored the other side of this phenomenon. What happens to the mothers after they are taken away is explored from not only an emotional standpoint, but from a legal one as well. Very well written and a must read for "realistic fiction" fans.