The featured project of Paradigm Press is a trilogy of novels describing Plebe Year at the Naval Academy. The books were written while the author was living in Saudi Arabia. Since publication, sales have been brisk and the author recently completed a book signing tour of west coast Navy Exchange facilities and at the Naval Academy.
by Hank Turowski, USNA '71
The United States Naval Academy at Annapolis is an institution
entrusted with the training and motivation of the future leaders of our
military and our nation. Every year, more than a thousand new candidates
enter Annapolis. They are the "Plebes", and they come from every state in
the Union and from several foreign nations. These are the best that
Americas high schools produce, and they are outstanding young men and
women. But they bring varied family backgrounds, multiple cultural
roots, and often extreme differences in outlook and temperament. The
duty of the Annapolis system is to indoctrinate the newcomers, and teach
them to use these differences to
the best advantage and in such a way that reflects the highest standards
of moral and professional conduct.
During recent years, Annapolis and the other service academies have experienced
scandals, and the services themselves have been plagued with
negative publicity and damaging headlines. The media and the public want
to know what's gone wrong with the academies and what can be done to fix
the problems.
But is anything really wrong? Is each scandal the
result of a failed system or a failed society, or are they a sign that a
self-policing Honor Code -- in effect for more than a hundred years --
still works. Is it time for panic, or for praise?
Plebe is the three-book trilogy of Plebe Year - the great crucible that
separates the candidates from the midshipmen. Specifically it is a story
of one fictitious Plebe Year in the late 1960s, and a time when societal
turmoil was mostly external, when young men were less "inhibited" by
social correctness, and when each graduate considered mortality as a
career complication.
Annapolis was established to produce warriors. Graduates who will defend
freedom for the citizens of the nation -- no matter what the personal
cost. Plebe Year is incredibly tough, and anyone who ever survived would
agree it's best that way.
by Hank Turowski, USNA '71
Kevin O'Reilly, one of the main characters of the Plebe Trilogy is
retired from the Navy. Unaware of the intrigue and romance that await
him, Kevin accepts a job in Saudi Arabia and the novel Infidels
tells his gripping story.
"A six-foot high concrete wall surrounded the house at the end of the
cul-de-sac. It had once been a two-home duplex, but had been converted
into a single home to accommodate extended Saudi families and their
servants. In the long driveway, two white company police cars blazed
white-blue-white-blue urgency. The ambulance pulled into the driveway
almost to the entryway, and the driver and his burly attendant exited.
Hands still on doors, they paused. Muffled cries of anguish escaped the
house. Many voices joined the wailing. The driver and attendant
exchanged glances, then rushed to the rear doors, muscled a metal gurney
to the ground, and hurried inside the house." ...Excerpt from Infidels
Download the Prologue to read using the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.
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