Stand By Your Beds!

by Cordell Cross

With WW2 over with, and the Korean War winding down, crack Canadian troops were posted to cadet camps throughout Canada. These battle-ready soldiers were told they would be training cadets and they assumed their charges would be officer cadets. Not so - the cadets were much younger, but this didn’t matter. Although the corporals, sergeants, sergeant majors and officers had never worked with teenagers before, they decided to train them the only way they knew ... with discipline. Stand by Your Beds is the hilarious and heart-warming story of seven cadets approximately 14 and 15 years old attending a military summer camp that holds 1200 for six weeks during the summer. What summer? Any summer, because kids are the same in all countries, and the antics they get into flow from their youth. Stand by Your Beds is dedicated to all cadets and members of the armed forces of Canada, the USA, Great Britain, NATO countries, and NATO’S cooperating countries, particularly Australia, and New Zealand. In Stand by Your Beds seven boys form a closely-knit group to survive the rigors of military life far away from home. The boys feel that if they work as a team, they’ll be able to endure the corporals, sergeants, and officers training them. To say the least, those arms are not the same as the loving arms of the boys’ mothers who said goodbye earlier. So sit back, put your feet up, and relax. A moment after you start reading, you’ll want to be a teenager again. Oh yes, and you can laugh out loud if you want. Chuckling is good for your health, but laughing is even better. Everyone will enjoy this book.

400 pages, Paperback

First published October 20, 2011

Reviews

[spike marlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was in the army cadets in the 1970's so I read this book with interest. I went to Camp Vernon twice, once for a two week course and once for a 6 week course. I then went on to do the parachute course twice. It brought back some very good memories and a true realization that the army cadet movement has done a good job in my opinion of being a positive youth movement. However, the army cadets also had elements of misogyny and homo-phobia. Theft was rampant at Camp Vernon and I remember guarding my cap badge to prevent it being stolen. Despite what the author says, allowing girls into the cadet, movement did not ruin it. It enhanced the movement and made it relevant to all members of society. I enjoyed my time in cadets and I enjoyed my time at the Vernon Army Cadet Camp. While the author has an axe to grind it doesn't take away from the daily life of a cadet at Camp Vernon which the author has portrayed quite well. If you ever went to Camp Vernon this book might bring back memories both good and bad.

[David Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brought back a lot of nostalgia for me. A bit heavy on the “sexcapdes” for the age of the troops… but maybe I just don’t remember being that bloody horny as a teenager?

Rings true.

I’d probably only have given this 4 stars… but Cross gets another star for not bowing under pressure to conform to woke whitewashing nuttiness. He talks about this in his Introduction as well - well done, Sir!

Different times, folks. Different eras. And while some things have improved, we’ve also lost some important stuff along the way.

[Melissa · Rating 1 out of 5]

If there was ever a book that deserved banning, this might be one of them... The amount of homophobic, misogynistic, and racist language was embarrassing to read as a fellow Canadian and past cadet. I finished this book out of morbid curiosity. Assuming the portrayal of the Vernon Army Cadet Camp in this book is accurate, I can see where our current culture crisis in the CAF originates from.

[Shannon Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love love love this book/series! I was a cadet in my teens and so many of the things written in here resulted in me laughing "omg that happened to me/my friend/someone I know!" I highly reccommend this to anyone with a background or interest in the military!