The Power of One
Bryce Courtenay, year
Random House
544 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780345410054
Summary
Based on Bryce's own childhood experiences in South Africa this is his debut novel celebrating the power of one individual to profoundly change a life.
In 1939, as Hitler casts his enormous shadow across the world, the seeds of apartheid take root in South Africa. There, a white South African boy is born. When his mother suffers a breakdown, the boy is taken to his grandfather's farm where he is raised by his beloved Zulu nanny, Mary Mandoma.
Eventually the youngster is sent to an Afrikaans boarding school. As the only English-speaking student, he is bullied and beaten by an older student known as The Judge. It is there he is given the name"Pisskop," a derogatory term used by Afrikaaners during the Boer War. Later he adopts the name P.K.—or Peekay—the name he calls himself throughout the book
Despite the hardships, Peekay manages to become a gifted student, musician, and boxer. His precocious talents are nurtured by a series of teachers, mentors, and friends, who introduce him to a world of magic, myth, and inspiration.
When he wins a scholarship to an exclusive secondary school, Peekay befriends Hymie Levy (Morrie in US editions), a wealthy loner and the school's "token Jew." Drawn to help the downtrodden Peekay and Hymie, found a school for Black South Africans. Hymie also joins Peekay in several scams and becomes his boxing manager.
Throught his early years, which have been marked by humiliation and abandonment, Peekay embarks on an epic journey through a land of tribal superstition and modern prejudice where he will learn the power of words, the power to transform lives, and the power of one. (Adapted from the publisher and the author's website.)