The Power of One

Sample book review of The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay:

The Power of One is a story of a boy growing up in the Northern Transvaal of South Africa. It takes place just before the fall into Apartheid, when the British Government  still controlled the country and resentment festered in the simmering heat. The Afrikaners, men and women who came from the Netherlands but who, after a half dozen generations, thought of themselves as african, hated the English passionately for the conquering of their country. Mentioned over and over again are the 26 thousand Afrikaners who died of disease and starvation in the british concentration camps, a fact that many could not forget. The english on the other hand, where all high and mighty, with their Oaks imported from their homeland, and their wealth wielded like a weapon. They were in charge of the best schools, biggest companies, and altogether, smug in their superiority. At the bottom were the Native black africans, who where  scorned by all as at best stinking monkeys. These people were forced to leave their deep rooted traditions and way of life to come into the white man’s world. Even proud Zulu chieftain airs had to survive off of the crumbs left behind by the English and Afrikaans. All together, the country was ripe with conflict.

This is the home in which the boy, Peekay, grows up. He experiences the injustices of the waring groups in his homeland, but has a unique take on tensions. Instead of holding grudges or building hate, he finds understanding and compassion in the semi arid land. This is because of several different lifestyles he had as a child. His mother was very sick when he was a small boy, so he had a black nannie who breastfed him and took over as a mother figure in his life. He learns the tongues of her people, and of other Black africans, and loves them, without knowing anything about white superiority. His life is good, until he is forced to go to an Afrikaner boarding school at five. There he receives injustice because everyone tries to take out on their hate against the english on him. But later, when he becomes a boxer, his view of the Afrikaner way of life allows him to mingle with the Afrikaner boxers, and gain respect from them. And lastly, his is english, and ends up going to a prestigious private school in Johannesburg. All of these experiences allow him to be part of the three groups, and bridge the gap to connect everyone in fraternity. He even goes so far as to become a leader for all the different groups- a champion boxer for the Afrikaans, top of his class for the english, and a hero and warrior chief of the Black Africans. 

Peekay is really an amazing guy. Not only does he lead others, he challenges himself intellectually and physically. He meets several mentors that push him along the way, and friends that makes him question religion, race, and the political bonds that so clearly segregate everyone else. Additionally, he questions himself, and what he wants to be. Who is Peekay? To help answer his question he takes a motto that he repeats daily, and ends up relying it upon like the rising sun. “First with the Head and then with the Heart,” he says, and whether it is school or boxing, this motto drives Peekay to adventure and love. But it is just one of the many bits of wisdom hidden throughout Courtenay’s book. There are lots of stories, philosophies, and resolutions that will leave a reader end up feeling good and wanting more. They will be rooting for Peekay so much that it will be like saying good by to a hero, or a good friend, when the last page turns and the book is done. For this is the brilliance of South Africa, the land of the beloved country.