Lords of Discipline

I just finished reading Pat Conroy's Lords of Discipline. I had not been too eager to begin reading it, because I knew from reading his My Losing Season that it was going to be about the cruelty he and others endured as cadets at The Citadel. He disguised The Citadel as "Carolina Military Institute." The book builds to a climax that left me in tears, but I am so glad I read it (or, more precisely, listened to it as an audio book). His development of characters is just perfect. What a rich imagination he has. I found myself trying to guess what was going to happen to each of the characters. Which would turn out to be persons of honor and courage? Which would turn out to be pathetic people not to be trusted? One thing I knew for sure, though, all would be thoroughly believable characters.