The Power of One

By: Bryce Courtenay

Narrated by: Humphrey Bower

Length: 21 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

"First with your head and then with your heart." So says Hoppie Groenewald, boxing champion, to a seven-year-old boy who dreams of being the welterweight champion of the world. For the young Peekay, it is a piece of advice he will carry with him throughout his life.

Born in a South Africa divided by racism and hatred, this one small boy will come to lead all the tribes of Africa. Through enduring friendships with Hymie and Gideon, Peekay gains the strength he needs to win out. And in a final conflict with his childhood enemy, the Judge, Peekay will fight to the death for justice.

©2013 Christine Courtenay (P)2014 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Read this because Mike Reilly said it was his favorite

I really didn’t know what to expect but, Loved this story. Gave me the feels.

Amazing amazing. Amazing

The best story you could hope for. And the best narrating ever. Loved it loved it loved it. I listen to it every year♥️

I Named My Firstborn Son, Peekay

This book is so good I named my firstborn son, Peekay.

This story is original and fresh! Full of excitement and heartfelt moments. The author clearly understood build up and pay off.

I cannot fully exclaim how much I love this book and Humphrey Bower brought it to life exceedingly well

Loved it!

Narration was incredibly pleasant to listen to. Great accents. The story was, sad, funny, exciting and inspiring.. I loved it!

Powerful wonderful book

I usually listen to audiobooks in the car. I would find myself listening to this book doing daily chores, because it was quite gripping. I was not disappointed that it ended.
What an amazing story.

Pleasantly Surprised

I was looking for books related to boxing, and ran across this one. With a name like "The Power of One" I was afraid this was going to be a sappy, motivational tale ala "The Peaceful Warrior". After reading several favorable reviews however, I decided to give it a shot. First off, the narrator is superb, and, at least to an American who doesn't know any South Africans, seemed to capture the varied dialects of South Africa wonderfully. The story itself doesn't fall into the trap of attempting to be inspirational, and has enough grit and action to keep things interesting.

My only complaint would be that the protagonist and some of the "good guys" he meets along the way are a bit, as the author states in the introduction, "larger than life". They make very few errors and primarily make almost unbelievably modern moral decisions in a largely immoral society. But there is enough depth in the characters to keep things interesting.

Wow!

By far the best story and narrating I've yet to experience in Audible's collection. Bower's makes the listen all the worthwhile. The passion and dialects he's able to banter is exceptional. Although the story is a little far fetched at times, the book left me wishing for more.

Raging Bull meets Harry Potter meets Huck Finn

I'm not sure why I enjoyed this book as much as I did. The protagonist, Peekay, sees a series of setbacks by the time he's 6, and just near the end, but he is otherwise unbeaten, and remains without flaw through the entire novel. It's pretty much the reverse of the classic fiction formula to "send your hero up a tree, and then throw rocks at him as he tries to climb down." It's probably a wise choice that it was written in the first person, making the story then mostly about all the other character's' actions toward and reactions to the faultless — and, as a result, mostly formless — Peekay.

He doesn't even seem to learn what should be the lesson of the novel, which is that we are all interdependent and that his "Power of One" philosophy would have left him for dead. Nor, in the course of the story, does he eventually achieve his stated goal — becoming world welterweight boxing champion — although that may be addressed in the sequel.

Which I will likely read or listen to. Because as I say, and as my rating makes clear, I thoroughly enjoyed this story, the author's style and sense of humor, and even the mythic representation of the Stoic philosophy in action.

Powerful book

I enjoyed this book because it had a great and believable plot. You would cheer on the main character and feel that you are there experiencing his pain and triumphs. I would highly recommend this book.

Well Written

Another great production by Bryce. I guess this was the first, but it was not the first I read. The author really brings together a great historical sequence of life and the trials and tribulations of the main character, PK. Interesting ending, very different than I was expecting, but I'll say no more on that so as not to spoil it for others.

This is a great read especially if you like other Bryce Courtenay books and if you ike a great life drama, with a little humor sprinkled in this is a book for you.