Whitethorn, by Bryce Courtenay, Narrated by Humphrey Bower, Produced by Bolinda Audio, Downloaded from audible.com.

Tom Fitzsacsy English but has not spent any time outside of South Africa and doesn’t speak English. Nonetheless, the Afrikaners consider him to belong to the enemy because he’s English and, treat him to great loneliness and bullying at the orphanage. His only friend is a Black man “the pig boy” who takes care of the pigs on the orphanage farm. This man helps Tom adopt a puppy that was supposed to be killed and helps hide the dog. Then, Tom becomes privy to some dark secrets involving some of the officials of the orphanage and their use of boys, and this ultimately leads to the murder of his friend. Tom survives, grows up, goes to college, and makes a good living, but he is obsessed with the murder of his friend which was not investigated because the man was Black. Very good with Courtenay’s usual resilient boy coming out on top. And with Humphrey Bower narrating, there’s no way this book could lose.

I learned that you cannot control many of the things that happen in your life, but you can control how you react to them. Never underestimate the power of an individual to change his/her own world through a vision, commitment, and perseverance. That is a common theme that runs through many of Courtenay's books and one of the main reasons I enjoy them so much.

I'll be honest- at first I thought that I wouldn't like a return to Africa. But then as I started reading it, I remembered what I liked about the Africa that Bryce Courtenay writes about. I like the Afrikaans and other languages he uses in it. What I liked the most about this one was the proof I guess that nobody's born racist. And considering Tom's upbringing, the hard time he's had fitting in, it makes sense that he'd connect with the other suppressed races and people. I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. It has a good message- reading and learning more about things is the only way to become a better person.

Exceptional penmanship from Bryce Courtney on this mega life story of an African white orphan named Tom.

A really long, and heartwarming coming of age story about a South African orphan. It touches on lots of things I am familiar with from my life, and is exciting and a tear jerker by turns. Highly recommend for anyone with a connection to Southern Africa, or who likes adventure stories. The characters are beautifully done and the portrayals of the region’s different cultures all ring true to my experience at least. Plus, the voice acting is excellent. I’ll read more by Courtenay.

Borrowed this book from my husband while on vacation. Not my typical book selection. Has a slow start but gradually builds to a finish with a happy ending.

It's the story of a young orphan boy and the man he grows up to be through all his trials and tribulations. An event happens to him while at "The Boys Farm" that changes his life forever. That event shapes him and drives him to what he ultimately wants to be and do.

Set in South Africa, after WWII, politics and discrimination are at the forefront of that country. The attitudes and beliefs of a wide range of characters/people are portrayed. The kindness that is shown by some (strangers) is heart warming. The evilness, though, of others is sad, if not, the same as today and in every country.

In the end, this book shows us who we can be, if we choose to. Open hearts = open minds.

Another amazing read from my favorite Australian author. Similar to The Power of One, this book tells the life of a young South African boy, Tom, who is the only English boy in a Afrikaans orphanage. Tragic and yet filled with love and hope as he finds his way to adulthood.

Epic!

Another engrossing novel by Bryce Courtenay. He is really a master storyteller. Many of his novels take place in Africa, where he comes from and his apparent love for his country shows through in his stories.

This book centers around a young boy, Tom who is placed in an orphanage called The Boys Farm, located in a remote town in the high mountains. The year is 1939 when the nation is divided where many of the Afrikaners are desperately opposed to the English. Tom is an exceptional child with an innate love and caring for the downtrodden. He befriends the Pig Man at the orphanage who is a black Zulu and not hardly considered human by most of the white africans. The story follows him into adulthood and the people that cared enough to see that he had potential to become someone special. His life takes many interesting turns and I found myself trusting his wits to come out on top of sticky situations.

Okay in think

Another superb book by Courtenay. This story of a white English orphaned boy growing up on a 'Boys Farm' in South Africa offers a great palette to highlight the socio/political landscape of the time. What I found most remarkable about the writing style was that he was able to write in the style according to the age of the main character, Tom Fitzaxby, so we get less detail and clear recollection of events when he is younger and then greater detail and smarter language as he grows up.

A terrific read and highly recommended.

Definitely a matter storyteller! Kept me enthralled the whole way.