The Pink Marine is the story-full of hilarity and heartbreak-of how a teenage boy who struggles with self-acceptance and doesn't fit the traditional definition of masculinity finds acceptance and self-worth in Marine Corps boot camp. When Greg Cope White's best friend tells him he's spending his summer in Marine Corps boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, all Greg hears is 'summer' and 'camp'. Despite dire warnings from his friend, Greg vows to join him in recruit training. He's eighteen, underweight, he's never run a mile-and he's gay. Greg's sheltered life hadn't prepared him for military service. A prince out of water, he packed five suitcases since he'd never been away from home for thirteen weeks. The U.S. Marines stripped him from all of that, shaved his head and put a rifle in his hands. At first he struggles to keep up, and afraid his secret will be discovered. But midway through, the desire to survive and become a Marine trumps fear. He learns that everyone, just like in the real world, comes into the service feeling 'different'; possibly prejudged for the color of their skin, their weight, their poverty--some have even chosen boot camp over jail. Can a flighty, 112-pound, unmanly Texan transform into one of the few, the proud, the Marines? Will Greg even survive?
The Pink Marine is the story-full of hilarity and heartbreak-of how a teenage boy who struggles with self-acceptance and doesn't fit the traditional definition of masculinity finds acceptance and self-worth in Marine Corps boot camp. When Greg Cope White's best friend tells him he's spending his summer in Marine Corps boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, all Greg hears is 'summer' and 'camp'. Despite dire warnings from his friend, Greg vows to join him in recruit training. He's eighteen, underweight, he's never run a mile-and he's gay. Greg's sheltered life hadn't prepared him for military service. A prince out of water, he packed five suitcases since he'd never been away from home for thirteen weeks. The U.S. Marines stripped him from all of that, shaved his head and put a rifle in his hands. At first he struggles to keep up, and afraid his secret will be discovered. But midway through, the desire to survive and become a Marine trumps fear. He learns that everyone, just like in the real world, comes into the service feeling 'different'; possibly prejudged for the color of their skin, their weight, their poverty--some have even chosen boot camp over jail. Can a flighty, 112-pound, unmanly Texan transform into one of the few, the proud, the Marines? Will Greg even survive?
When Greg Cope White's best friend tells him he is spending his summer in Marine Corps boot camp at Parris Island, South Carolina, all Greg hears is "summer" and "camp." Despite dire warnings from his friend, Greg vows to join him in recruit training. He is eighteen, underweight, he's never run a mile-and he is gay. It's 1979-long before Don't Ask, Don't Tell, the Supreme Court marriage equality ruling, and with no LGBT rights in place in most states, and the Marines having a very definite expulsion policy in place for gay people when it comes to military personnel, will Greg even survive? The Pink Marine is the story-full of hilarity and heartbreak-of how a teenage boy who struggles with self-acceptance and his sexuality and doesn't fit the traditional definition of manliness-finds acceptance and self-worth in Marine Corps boot camp. Greg's sheltered life has not prepared him for military service. At first he struggles to keep up, and afraid his secret will be discovered. But midway through, the desire to survive and become a Marine trumps fear. He learns that everyone comes into the service feeling "different"; possibly prejudged for the color of their skin, their weight, their poverty-some have even chosen boot camp over jail. In this land before Gay Pride became almost a national holiday, can a flighty, 112-pound, effeminate Texan transform into one of the few, the proud, the Marines? About the Author Greg Cope White is a television comedy writer. He's written for Norman Lear, Marta Kauffman & David Crane among others and for shows airing on NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, and HBO. He's not a doctor but he played on Another World. He's a world-traveling bon vivant with a voracious appetite for life. He puts his funny where his mouth is, blogging on EatGregEat, The Huffington Post, and cooking on television. Catch him on Cooking Channel's Unique Sweets. Advance Praise for Greg Cope White and The Pink Marine "Greg is as inspirational as he is hilarious-I love this book " -Margaret Cho "A great story beautifully told-surprising, funny, courageous and inspiring." -David Hyde Pierce "This is the story of how, through pure gumption, a most unlikely Marine candidate rises to the occasion to show his true colors " -Jane Lynch "Marine Corps boot camp was the toughest thing I ever did. I had to cope with being skinny, weak, and timid in a place that demanded strength, confidence, and fearlessness. But I didn't have to cope with being gay or having to hide who I actually was. . . . The Pink Marine is a wonderful book and I'm proud to be Greg White's fellow jarhead." -Jim Beaver, Actor (Justified, Deadwood)/U.S. Marine "For five years, on a television show called Covert Affairs, I had the privilege of pretending to be a member of the U.S. military. For six years, in the United States Marines, my friend Greg pretended to be straight. He wins. The Pink Marine will inspire you, make you laugh, and remind you of what's important in this life." -Christopher Gorham, Actor (Covert Affairs, Popular, Ugly Betty)
Anthony Swofford's Jarhead is the first Gulf War memoir by a frontline infantry marine, and it is a searing, unforgettable narrative. When the marines -- or "jarheads," as they call themselves -- were sent in 1990 to Saudi Arabia to fight the Iraqis, Swofford was there, with a hundred-pound pack on his shoulders and a sniper's rifle in his hands. It was one misery upon another. He lived in sand for six months, his girlfriend back home betrayed him for a scrawny hotel clerk, he was punished by boredom and fear, he considered suicide, he pulled a gun on one of his fellow marines, and he was shot at by both Iraqis and Americans. At the end of the war, Swofford hiked for miles through a landscape of incinerated Iraqi soldiers and later was nearly killed in a booby-trapped Iraqi bunker. Swofford weaves this experience of war with vivid accounts of boot camp (which included physical abuse by his drill instructor), reflections on the mythos of the marines, and remembrances of battles with lovers and family. As engagement with the Iraqis draws closer, he is forced to consider what it is to be an American, a soldier, a son of a soldier, and a man. Unlike the real-time print and television coverage of the Gulf War, which was highly scripted by the Pentagon, Swofford's account subverts the conventional wisdom that U.S. military interventions are now merely surgical insertions of superior forces that result in few American casualties. Jarhead insists we remember the Americans who are in fact wounded or killed, the fields of smoking enemy corpses left behind, and the continuing difficulty that American soldiers have reentering civilian life. A harrowing yet inspiring portrait of a tormented consciousness struggling for inner peace, Jarhead will elbow for room on that short shelf of American war classics that includes Philip Caputo's A Rumor of War and Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried, and be admired not only for the raw beauty of its prose but also for the depth of its pained heart.
Single mum Maggie spent years looking over her shoulder. Then war hero John moved in next door. The sexy marine’s arms offered her solace and passion, and he formed an instant bond with her son. Yet a very real threat from Maggie’s past still haunts her – and is getting closer every day...
"John Bercaw's journey to Vietnam started at the beginning of the Korean war when, as a young boy, he thrilled to see his first helicopter as it defied gravity and common sense by flying. A circuitous route through troubled teenage years and four years in the Marines led him to Fort Wolters, Texas, and the US Army's Warrant Officer Rotary Wing Aviation Course. For the first time in his life, he felt a deep sense of belonging. John's successful struggle to master the beast called helicopter earned him an all-expense-paid trip to South Vietnam and the opportunity to prove himself as an combat pilot. His year of war was not as expected. Awed by the lush landscapes of Vietnam and the unexpected moments of war's savage beauty, Bercaw changed his mind about war and its effect on the men who fought in it. He found himself able to overcome fear and doubt in combat and do his job to the best of his ability. Based on the books he had read and the movies he had seen, he had not anticipated the addiction to the highs and lows brought on by the intensity of war. The difficult part came at the end. Leaving Vietnam before the war was over, the sudden end to the daily adrenalin rushes and the sense of being part of something important, aggrevated by the shameful reception experienced by all returning veterans, initiated a period of depression that haunted him for years."--
This story illustrates the impacts of climate change on our Great Barrier Reef. It is told through the eyes of a feisty fish called Anthia who starts to see the disappearing colours of the reef as a warning sign that the reef is in trouble
A torrential hurricane stranded Karen Beckett in a tiny motel room with Gunnery Sergeant Sam Paretti, the one man she never wanted to see again! Just months before, Karen had severed all ties with the gorgeous marine—but bittersweet memories of their love refused to vacate her mind. Now her rescuer demanded a hefty price for shelter from the storm. His eyes shimmered with a desire equal to the hunger clawing at Karen’s control. But she had to resist! Because to surrender to their urgent need would mean exposing her past…and admitting her fathomless love for Sam….
