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The book has four parts capped with a prologue and epilogue. In the prologue,
Williams answers why he was ultimately drawn to the Marines and what the myth of
being a Marine meant to him. The first part of the book follows his trials and tribulations
of his recruit training, more commonly known as Boot Camp. The second part deals with
his coming to terms with the life of being a Reservist. The third part of the book is the
bulk of the book and it deals with his experience of being activated for service in the First
Gulf War, and his return home. In fact, it is in this part that the title of the book comes
from and the story behind it goes directly to the perception of conflict that is often part of
Regular/Active Forces and Reserve Forces working together. The last part of the book
is the shortest, but it covers the greatest passage of time as far as the story of Buzz
Williams. It covers the last four years of his Marine Reserve service and his entry into
the teaching profession. The epilogue covers, in brief, his decision to leave the Marine
Reserves and the further development of his civilian career. In the end, we are left in no
doubt that Buzz Williams is still a Marine at heart.
The story captures the effective storytelling ability of Williams but also the range of
emotions he experienced. The book is entertaining and effectively tells the story of Buzz
Williams as a Marine Reservist. Williams communicates the experience of a Reservist
while holding nothing back. He illustrates this in his descriptions of Boot Camp, when
he felt he had earned the respect of his Drill Instructor only to be singled out by him when
he was advanced to the next graduating recruit class to ensure his completion of his
recruit training in time for his next semester of school. The resulting ostracism, he felt,
effectively demonstrates the highs and lows of Reserve service. In many ways his story
of Boot Camp captures the Reservist experience,(which Williams very effectively
portrays): the effort to earn respect only to lose it for being identified as a Reservist. This
is an example of what happens within the military community; the civilian world brings its
own trials and tribulations, which Williams addresses as well.
The Reservist also experiences this lack of understanding from the civilian side of
his/her world. Williams illustrates this with an extreme example of some of the university
professors he dealt with on his return from the Gulf. Some were prepared to
compromise and assist him in meeting the academic requirements he had missed as a
result of his deployment, while others could not hide their hostility. The case of one
professor is particularly cited (page 266-7). In many ways the insulated world of the
Regular Forces due to its geographic locations around Canada is protected from this
hostility that in many cases the Reservist is confronted with as the only visible member
of the military establishment available for someone to reach out and attack.
Williams also illustrates the problem that the Reservist has after any part-time
military training, the matter of winding down and the transition to the civilian world.
Because of the nature of Reserve training, packing a lot of training objectives into a
minimal amount of time, this in most cases ultimately leads to little or no sleep. In the
case of Williams, this resulted in a post-exercise car crash. This incident is a realistic
example faced by a Reservist who rapidly moves between the two worlds of the military
and civilian. Williams also touches on the difficulty of meeting expectations in both
worlds. One example is in his return from Boot Camp where he continues the practice
of a locker layout much to the confusion of his mother who cannot understand this focus
on minute details.
Williams telling of the Reserve experience is not without weakness. The number of
Reservists who chose to release from the Marine Reserves after the First Gulf War
would provide a context to his discussion when Williams talks about the numbers who
release from his own Marine Reserve Company. He talks about the sense of loss when
he started parading with his Reserve Company and the fact familiar faces were not
there, they had released. The sense of abandonment by Williams is convincingly told
but if he had provided definitive numbers not only for his company but also for the Marine
Canadian Army Journal Vol. 11.1 Spring 2008