The Power of One (novel)
First Edition (Australia)
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| Author | Bryce Courtenay |
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| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Bildungsroman, Historical novel |
| Publisher |
Heinemann (Australia) Random House (US) |
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Publication date
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21 February 1989 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 576 pp (UK hardback edition) & 518 pp (US paperback edition) |
| ISBN | (UK hardback edition), (US paperback edition) & (children's adaptation) |
| OCLC | 59213894 |
| Followed by | Tandia |
The Power of One is a novel by Australian author Bryce Courtenay, first published in 1989. Set in South Africa during the 1930s and 1940s, it tells the story of an English boy who, through the course of the story, acquires the nickname of Peekay. (In the movie version, the protagonist's given name is Peter Phillip Kenneth Keith, but not in the book. The author identifies "Peekay" as a reference to his earlier nickname "Pisskop": Afrikaans for "Pisshead.")
It is written from the first person perspective, with Peekay narrating (as an adult, looking back) and trusting the reader with his thoughts and feelings, as opposed to a detailed description of places and account of actions.
A film adaptation was released in 1992.
"The Power of One" follows an English-speaking South African boy named Peekay from 1939 to 1951. The story begins when Peekay's mother has a nervous breakdown, and Peekay ends up being raised by a Zulu wet nurse, Mary Mandoma, who eventually becomes his nanny. At a young age, Peekay is sent to a boarding school. As the youngest student attending the school, he is frequently harassed. The students call him Piskop (meaning piss-head) and rooinek (redneck—a name given to the British during the Boer War) among other names. This continues with an older boy, the Judge, and his partners who further punish him for his frequent bedwetting with verbal and physical abuse. The Judge is a Nazi sympathizer, and he has a hatred for the English, proclaiming that Hitler will march the English out to sea. The Afrikaans woman who runs the boarding school does not console him and walks around threateningly with a whip.
After Peekay returns home after his first year at the boarding school, his nanny calls a medicine man called Inkosi-Inkosikazi to cure his bedwetting. Inkosi-Inkosikazi not only succeeds, but also leads Peekay's mind to a place where there are three waterfalls and ten stepping stones, where Peekay can always "find" him. The next school year, Peekay returns with a magic chicken of Inkosi-Inkosikazi's and a different paradigm, called "the power of one". Peekay is excellent in his studies, but maintains a camouflage to hide it from his fellow students and teachers. He finds that this is a good way to beat the system and avoid unnecessary abuse. As the punishments from the Judge continue to get worse, Peekay ends up doing the Judge's math homework. At the end of the year, the Judge forces Peekay to eat feces, and kills his beloved chicken. He looks forward to arriving home to his nanny, but has been informed there has been a change in plans. He will be travelling to a town called Barberton, where he will meet his grandfather.
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