Keeping Faith: A Father-Son Story About Love and the United States Marine Corps

Throughout the book, the chronological story of the training at boot camp is interspersed with John Schaeffer's poetry and letters to his dad and Frank's letters to Recruit Schaeffer. "Keeping Faith" unveils the love and emotions of a father and son in an intimate way and examines the subtle changes in that relationship that the journey from childhood to adulthood, via the Marine Corps, brings. If you are a the parent of a poolee or new recruit, this book will be invaluable to understanding what your son or daughter is about to undertake and what it will mean to you. For those who have already made the journey, "Keeping Faith" will rekindle all those emotions, from your recruit getting on the bus, to the pride filled day of graduation. It should be mandatory reading for all Marine parents. Even your non-Marine friends would gain an understanding of why Marines and their parents are so proud of the title, United States Marine.

I highly recommend this book to all.

Neal Wells
Proud Father of...

2 Marines and an Airman


What a book!   September 24, 2002
24 out of 25 found this review helpful

Keeping Faith details, through Father and Son journal excerpts, letters and conversations, the days leading up to, and during, Frank Schaeffer's youngest son John's enlistment into the USMC. The book presented me with moments of hilarity, and tears. I recommend it strongly not only to Fathers and Sons, but also to military families everywhere.

For Fathers the book provides an honest look inside a father's heart as he struggles with the issue of letting go of his youngest child, while facing the realities of the empty nest.

For Sons the book gives an intimate look and one son's path to manhood, as he breaks away from his father's shadow and enhances his sense of self, without ever leaving his father's heart.

For USMC fans the book offers an intimate look inside the Corps experience. From the hell of boot camp life and the interdependence it fosters among the recruits to the often-frustrating life within the Corps that follows boot camp graduation. What an eye opener for those whose only experience with the Marine Corps is that which is presented by Hollywood!

What a book!


A Great Tribute to our Servicemen in the Corp   May 6, 2003
R. Spell (Memphis, TN USA)
20 out of 21 found this review helpful

This book covers a cross section of subjects. While I think the father intended it's focus to be about his relationship with his son, the son's in-depth narrative of boot camp and his transformation into a Marine were much more touching to me.

As to the father-son relationship, this is the tale of a loving father who is losing his son as he grows to a man. And this really starts before he enters the Marines as he becomes more attached to a girl of whom the father does not approve...When the son John enters boot camp, the real excitement starts as you live through the experience with him. The brainwashing of these recruits seems extreme until you watch these recruits grow into the type Marines the DIs wanted. I'm not sure I could survive the mental and physical effects of boot camp and anyone who has passed boot camp is to be commended. It's interesting to watch these guys struggle the last few weeks with injuries that should be treated but would only delay the recruit's training.

After boot camp, the book then shows the negative of the military. This motivated recruit is sent for Morse Code training for 4 months only to be sidelined for over a year, as his security clearance has not been processed in Washington. What a waste of taxpayer money and young people's lives. But even this demeaning treatment does not shake the extreme pride in the Corp.

Probably the most important lesson of this book is how a son from an upper-middle class family chooses a career in the Marines while suffering the ridicule of the liberal friends of his parents and how his father's attitude changes about this. I felt this could have been covered in more depth. More importantly, this recruit bonds with the fully integrated Marines and learns to share many experiences with most other recruits less fortunate.

I strongly recommend this book to learn more of one of our greatest natural resources, the men and women who choose to serve in the military. The most heart-wrenching part of this book is seeing the stories of Marines with families who qualify for food stamps. People, something is not right with that concept


Keeping faith with the faithful   November 25, 2002
Robert Busko (Waynesville, NC USA)
11 out of 11 found this review helpful

The caterpillar to butterfly story of the development of young men who have joined the military is an old, old story. Certainly many books poke at this timeless theme, and Hollywood certainly isn't unfamiliar with the same theme. John Schaiffer and his father Frank do justice to this idea without becoming trite or syrupy.
The book examines what it mean to become a Marine. But it also directly and indirectly digs into the idea of commitment to a higher idea...in this case giving up oneself to become a member of an elite group of fighting men, and in the process getting back more than one gave up. It flip flops between John's narrative and his fathers observations. Interesting.
As a former Marine I found a connection with John. Having gone through bootcamp in June of 1967 in San Diego, the connection to this new generation of Marines is immediate and profound. This, as all former Marines know, isn't new. The membership in this club spans all generations. No generation gap here.

If you're a former Marine, you'll want to read the book for obvious reasons. If you're not, read it anyway. You'll gain some respect for the youth of today.


Keeping Faith...in what?   April 30, 2004
Andrew Nakashima
11 out of 25 found this review helpful

As a Marine, and as an instructor at one of the schools the young co-author attended, I am disgusted by this book. When a person uses their experience in the military, you expect them to actually have some experience. The few stories included in the book that related to the Marines were far-fetched and exaggerated, at best. John's outlook and those of his friends that he chose to portray for financial gain are demonstrative of all that is wrong with today's Marine Corps. In the few pages that included "war stories" based on John's vast experience, there is a great deal of tough talk. All of it coming from young men who haven't spent one day in the Fleet Marine Force. One would be hard-pressed to find an honest look into the life of a Marine within these pages. The only reason I rated this book so much higher than it actually deserved, is because 1 star is as low as the rating system goes.