Comments on “Bugging Out”

Cape Cod journalist and lecturer Tom O’Connell, author of The O’Connell Boy: Educating “The Wolf Child,” is publisher of Sanctuary Unlimited books and www.sanctuary777.com. Listed in Who’s Who in the East, he was selected in Cape Cod Life magazine’s 25th Anniversary Issue as one of the “Top 100 Influential” people on Cape Cod. He was president, American Medical Writers Association, New England Chapter and national correspondent, The U.S. Journal of Drug & Alcohol Dependence. A Cape Cod Writers’ Center member, he teaches writing at Cape Cod Community College.

“Bug out: 1. To leave or quit, usually in a hurry 2. To avoid a responsibility or duty.”

Bugging Out: An Army Memoir (1954) tells how the author dropped out of Boston College to marry, then volunteered for the Army draft to qualify for the G.I. Bill of Rights on his return to college.

Demoralized by cruel superiors during infantry basic training, and lonely for his pregnant wife, he is caught between duty and self-preservation. Reluctantly, he turns to “bugging out.”

With wit and irony, O’Connell uses candid dialogue and vivid descriptions to relate how he dealt with the military assaults on his independent personality.

The author’s “battle of wits” shows one young man coping with the Army’s challenges to his sanity, and offers scenes refl ecting outrage, despair, and hilarity.

“Tom O’Connell’s years as an arrested free spirit in Mrs. White’s group foster home prepared him to be a ‘volunteer draftee’ in the U.S. Army. He survived both periods of emotional torture to write another fascinating and gripping memoir.”

—Dr. Finbarr Corr, author & educator

Comments on “The O’Connell Boy: Educating
‘The Wolf Child’”

“I read the manuscript in one day. I couldn’t put it down. It brought back old memories, some of which I cried and some I laughed. I felt like I was still in the time period of 1932-1950. Your talent for writing is beyond anything I have read and I read 3 to 5 books a week. Congratulations to you, Sir, for I certainly enjoyed it. Thank you.”
--Ethel Mace Thompson, Dedham, Massachusetts

“It’s like a stroll down memory lane and the memories are of a simpler and quieter time we were so lucky to be able to share. I really enjoyed the book. In fact, I'm reading it over.”
--Jean Barry, Norwood, Massachusetts

"Tom O’Connell connects with readers soul to soul. He writes of personal challenges and achievements in a way that inspires readers.” “Thanks for a terrific interview the other night. I had no idea of your background or writing accomplishments until we agreed to talk on my show. I am most impressed. Best of luck with this memoir.”
--Jordan Rich, WBZ News Radio 1030, Boston, Massachusetts

“He provides lively impressions of his ‘wolf child’ life in homes run by Irish immigrants...experiences in a Catholic Charities group foster home in Norwood and with his grandmother in East Dedham are vividly highlighted...memories are provided in earthy dialogue sprinkled with wit, candor and affection.”
--The Dedham Times

“To put it mildly, former Norwood and Dedham resident Tom O’Connell didn’t live a typical childhood....experienced more trauma than most. The memoir is meant to touch on an orphan’s feelings, quest for freedom, and struggle to find a place in the world through both the Great Depression and world War II.”
--Brian Falla, Daily News Transcript, Needham, Massachusetts

Comment found at Amazon.com on “The Monadnock Revelations”

“Interesting spiritual memoir...I am the daughter of Eleanor Moore. She would have enjoyed reading this book. Tom has written his experiences in a very enjoyable and easy to understand way. This is truly a true account of that time in Tom’s life and those that read this book will come away uplifted.”
--just_joyce008, Los Angeles

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