The World of Pat Conroy: The Great Santini/the Lords of Discipline/the Prince of Tides/the Water Is Wide

by Pat Conroy

Genres: American, Education

Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Pat Conroy (1945 - 2016) was the New York Times bestselling author of two memoirs and seven novels, including The Prince of Tides, The Great Santini, and The Lords of Discipline. He is recognized as a leading figure of late-20th century Southern literature.

Born the eldest of seven children in a rigidly disciplined military household, he attended the Citadel, the military college of South Carolina. He briefly became a schoolteacher (which he chronicled in his memoir The Water Is Wide) before publishing his first novel, The Boo. Conroy lived on Fripp Island, South Carolina until his death in 2016.

Conroy passed away on March 4, 2016 at his home from Pancreatic Cancer. He was 70 years old at the time of his death.

Reviews

[Chloe Sellers · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of his books are magnificent... Mr. Conroy evokes feeling with effortless fluidity. His books are at once tragic, hilarious, and deeply moving. He is one of the few authors of fiction who can enthrall me with writing alone (without depending on an epic storytelling). The most beautiful of these pieces might be Prince of Tides, though my favorite is probably Lords of Discipline. I would freely endorse any and all of them to anyone.

[Brad Huestis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man-o-man can Pat Conroy ever make music with the English language. Anyway, here’s my question—if you’ve read them, how would you rank order:

The Great Santini
The Lords of Discipline
The Prince of Tides

I thought all three were great. Santini has great characters and scenes, but doesn’t have much flow. It is basically a year in the life of a Marine family; however, some very strong scenes (such as the death of a handicapped black man) end with that chapter and never pop up again. Lords is my favorite. Maybe it is the only real novel of the three. It is certainly the only one with a solid beginning, middle, and end. Like Santini it has great characters and scenes, but it also has a great story line. Prince is a lot like Santini. Instead of a year in the life of one family, it is a multi-generational family history where the kids eventually grew up and forgave their parents for being such lousy people.

All three are set in coastal Carolina in the 1960’s. All are beautifully written love letters to the South. They are also bitter sweet love letters to the U.S. military and its fighting men and dutiful spouses. If you haven’t read them, I recommend all three.

[jim luce · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a new respect for Teaching and Pat Conroy. Separate is not equal.

[Nicholas Whyte]

http://nhw.livejournal.com/1031243.html[return][return]It's a tale of a memorably dysfunctional family - not just the standard horrors of conflicting gender roles and alcoholism, but also dead babies in the freezer and rapists eaten by a convenient tiger. The emotional dynamic between the narrator, his twin sister, his brother and their parents is convincing and compelling, and gripped me through to the end.[return][return]Oddly, the least believable element is not so much the grand drama of events in South Carolina but the narrator's conversations (and eventual fling) with his sister's psychiatrist in New York. The other slightly peculiar element, as with The Red Badge of Courage (though not as bad), is that the rednecks (including the narrator) seem suspiciously articulate.[return][return]Glad I read it. Mostly.

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the way Pat Conroy writes. His books are very heartfelt. These are not an easy read, but his language captures me.

[Mamie Dewberry]

Good but very long

[Suzanne Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Conroy is certainly on my list of favorite authors. I loved all of these.

[Deanna Herrmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

One oft favorite authors. Such an outstanding writer! Favorites: prince of tides and beach music

[Liz Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lucid clear evocative, limpid language. One can live for weeks inside a Pat Conroy book. Some lines stay with you forever as do some characters. I've reread most of them.

[Lisa Peruchini]

Amazing!!! Had no idea Military School was this brutal and the author made me feel like I was there. Pat Conroy is a wordsmith of the highest order and he wowed me all the way through.

[Mary Schwarz Schwarz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written but quite disturbing.