I firmly believe that a book or a movie can be about absolutely anything as long as its well written. There are a few sports movies out there that I have enjoyed, that I got wrapped up in, all because what they were really were was just good stories. This is a book like that. If you do happen to read the back cover, you will learn that the book is about boxing, but it's hardly just about boxing. Saying The Power of One is only about boxing is like saying doing well in school is only about showing up to class. Well, bad analogy, but you get my point.

The book starts off with the main character, whose real name you never learn, heading off to boarding school at 5 years old. Although it's told from his point of view, the story is not at all childish because Peekay is wise beyond his years. (Peekay is the name he chooses for himself after he is called Pisskop, which means "pisshead." I never did quite understand why he chose a name based on that insult, but he carries his new name proudly.)

The book is overly sentimental at times, but is so well written that that is easily forgiven. Bad things happen to Peekay, but the reader quickly realizes that all will work out in the end. The question is how. The book is so beautifully written that the rather basic story line of a poor kid with a big dream fighting his way to the top by staying honest becomes a truly unique tale that will stay with you long after you've put the book down.

Highly recommended.

Wow, what an emotional whopper of a book. The Power of One is the heart-breaking and heart-warming coming of age story of Peekay, an English boy growing up in the turmoil of a racially fractured and evolving South Africa in the 1930s and 40s. The characters are consisently powerfully rendered with compassion, warmth, hatred and hope and the narration by Humphrey Bower is a good as it gets. This book will make you cry and will fill your heart. My only complaint in this otherwise fabulous book was ending as Peekay finally gets his revenge and which I felt was just out of character. 5 stars.

I don't usually review a book unless there is something about it that grips me more than usual. This one had a lot going for it, in spite of the information that repeated two or three times, which should never have got past the editor and likely would not have these days.

The ending nearly spoiled the entire story for me. The story and the boy, had one major goal that he was determined to reach for the entire novel, one that was repeated throughout no matter what happened to him. I would make a great deal of sense to me if, once a character changed and grew into something more than he had been in the beginning, that goal would finally change into something perhaps more worthwhile. That did not happen here. Not only was the goal never reached in the book, but the author turned the ending to one of merely revenge and violence--a horrible beating of the character (now an adult) who had bullied our protagonist when he was a child. That is where the so-called Power of One is supposed to triumph? This was the most disappointing ending I have ever read.

Bryce Courtney's debut novel, The Power of One left me hungry for more of his compelling characters, Peekay,
Doc, Granpa, The Prison Gang, Miss Bornstein, Ms Boxall, the Judge and on and on. Set in South Africa during WW II it offers a tantalizing journey of a young English boy, Peekay, thrust into situations that would test the mettle of the most morally and physically strong amongst us, and yet he conquers all. His chief mentors in life, a German professor, English librarian, and an unlikely assortment of Africans, Boers and others take a strong interest in his intellectual and physical development.

Blessed with keen intelligence and tremendous willpower Peekay's goal is to become the Welterweight Champion of the World. Boxing is the catalyst for much of the action and it is critical in the gut wrenching finale, where Peekay encounters his long-time antagonist, The Judge, in the most unlikely of encounters.

Masterfully done. A Great read.

Audible audiobook performed by Humphrey Bower


How had I never heard of this book before? A challenge to travel the world combined with a challenge to read a book that “made-me-cry” brought this one to my attention, and am I ever glad it did!

Courtenay’s autobiographical novel tells the story of a small boy sent to boarding school because his mother has had a nervous breakdown. He’s bullied and terrorized, but learns how to get along with the help of a pet chicken and a native medicine man. Peekay (a nicer version of the nickname the bullies christen him with) is an intelligent, bookish kid and his reading ability helps him advance in school far beyond his chronological age. Just when he figures he’s gotten the hang of this boarding school, he’s advised that he’s leaving for a new home.

A six-year-old on a several-days-long train journey is pretty vulnerable, but the porter, conductor and other railway employees take Peekay under their wing. This is where he learns about boxing and sets a goal for himself that he pursues relentlessly.

I’m not the writer Courtenay is, so can’t really do justice to the plot of this coming-of-age story. But the writing grabbed me from page one and I was sorry to see it end. Peekay has more than his share of difficulties and tragedies befall many of the people he comes to love and rely on. He’s a great kid and I was cheering for Peekay throughout. And while I’m no fan of boxing, I even enjoyed the lessons on strategy and technique.

Humphrey Bower does a great job of performing the audiobook. He really brings the characters to life, though I did have some difficulties understanding the accent at times.

I found this book to be a mixed bag. For example, I loved the story of the main character's relationships with others, particularly with an old German professor who helps to shape his mind. However, I got bored with the focus on boxing, something I have no interest in but which permeated every aspect of the story. I thought the treatment of racial and cultural issues was excellent, especially the insights into struggles among the Boers, Afrikaners, and English settlers. On the other hand, I got tired of the story itself, which had five or six climaxes and denouments. I thought the author's treatment of South African nationalism was very good, and it helped me understand later issues of apartheid and Mandela. On the other hand, I really disliked the end, in which the main character finally gets revenge on a man who had tormented him when he was five years old. I wanted him to find redemption through his power to forgive rather than through the power of his fists. The narrator of the audiobook (which is how I "read" it)has a wonderful Australian accent and is very expressive, but reading this in print form might give you the chance to skip over the endless boxing scenes.

It's a long time since I read this but I remember very clearly comparing the treatment of White Boy as Hero in this book to Huckleberry Finn, and feeling outraged by the puerile lack of genuine empathy for the fate of South African blacks.

I wasn't sure whether I would like this book since all I knew was that it was about boxing which I am not a big fan of, but a girl had told me this was her favorite book so I thought I would give it a try. I loved it. In some ways it is a fasinating look at South Africas devastating history, but the protagonist's innocent perspective just draws you into his story. The characters in the story are what really make it great, Peekay's mentors, friends and even the evil adversaries he has to overcome. Even if you know nothing about boxing, the fight scenes are written in an accesible way anyone can picture and enjoy. I recommend this book to anyone who if you would enjoy a bildungsroman about having a dream and not ever giving it up...

There is no way I would have picked this from choice - the blurb on the back wasn't really inspiring me and I was expecting not to like it at all. Oh, so wrong!

The writing is amazing - I was immediately hooked by the character and the setting and everything about the world the author created. Maybe because it was a world that is slightly alien to me, but is was a fascinating read.

At first Peekay is quite a sad character - a small boy lost at a boarding school where he is bullied, his only friend a chicken and with no real idea of what goes on in the world around him. As he learns to deal with the tragedies in his life, creating a way to survive, you just want to hug him. He is completely endearing and completely lovable.

As his life moves on, he meets an extra-ordinary set of characters. Some are only introduced for a couple of chapters, some recur throughout, but each one is written in such a brilliant way. You couldn't help either fall in love or absolutely hate every single one, depending on how they react to Peekay.

Amazing book - so glad I read it - can't wait to read more by this author.

I thoroughly enjoyed many elements of this book, and I learned a tremendous amount about boxing and the history of South Africa, through a child's eye view. However, my opinion took a downward plunge toward the end of the book -- specifically the final 5 pages of the book. I don't want to include any spoilers, but what on earth was the author thinking?!? I interpreted the book's message so differently from what is depicted in the final scene. Perhaps I owe the author a second reading. STRANGE!!!

Update:
Just downgraded my review from 3 to 2 stars. The more I think about the story and try to derive meaning from it, the madder I get!

The main character, Peekay, is a young boy who comes of age in South Africa during and after the Second World War. He is a memorable character -- almost too good to be true, but very admirable. He's academically brilliant, and a gifted boxer, but mainly he just radiates goodness and love for his fellow man, especially the black Africans who surround him. Written in 1989, this novel is more about the boy himself rather than the politics of the country, but is also enlightening in the way it portrays race relations among the English, Boers and Africans in the 1940s and hints at the sweeping changes on the horizon.

The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay. First published 1989.

So much has been written over the years about this book that I can’t add anything more illuminating to what has already been said. So this will just be my concise opinion.

This would have to be my third reading of The Power of One and still, although the story is well known to me, it still has the power, ignore the pun, to move me.
Every human emotion is on display here be they good or bad. This sadly is the human condition. We have within us the ability to do great good but conversely we can often use that ability to do great wrongs. If no one makes a stand nothing changes. It just takes one person with enough power and resolve to get things started.
This for me is the power behind The Power of One.

I was surprised at how emotional I became when reading the passage about Grandpa Chooks death by stoning, or how infected I became with Doc’s thirst of knowledge. Talk about being invested in the characters.

If you haven’t read this yet, do yourself a favour and do it.

A truly memorable reading 5 star experience.