Describe your latest work. When I started working on Plant-Thinking in 2008, I had no idea that the project would turn out to be as broad as it did....
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emm2012, January 11, 2013 (view all comments by emm2012)
This is an AWESOME book!! I've been meaning to read it for a while and now that I have, I am forever changed. The way people effect one another and the power one person can have are remarkable. This book teaches us that lesson. One the we often think we know, but cast aside.
saradreilly, September 27, 2011 (view all comments by saradreilly)
I always give this book as a gift to my book loving friends and it has never failed me...EVERYONE LOVES IT. It is not defined by gender, age, race or any "type" of reader. The last time I bought a copy of this book for a gift I re-read it myself.
saradreilly, September 1, 2011 (view all comments by saradreilly)
Hands down absolutely one of the best books I have ever read (as an adult!) Every one I recommend this to is also thrilled and grateful for the title. Coming of age and so much more. READ THIS BOOK or at least put it on your bucket list...you will not be sorry.
dotschott, January 27, 2010 (view all comments by dotschott)
A "take hold" kind of read! It brings back that wonderful highschool or college feeling that you had when you had to read a required reading that turned out to be amazing, insightful, symbolic and not light-hearted.
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Jeane, February 10, 2008 (view all comments by Jeane)
The story of an English boy growing up in South Africa, obsessed with the dream of being a professional boxer. This is a powerful book that deals with issues of racism, oppression and prejudice. It is moving and profound. The characters are vividly depicted through riveting scenes and well-written dialog. The descriptions of boarding school, prison life, naturalist expeditions, literary correspondence and the world of boxing make it rich indeed. This is no light-weight reading! It may be a bit melodramatic at times, but overall an excellent book.
Was this comment helpful? | Yes | No (5 of 6 readers found this comment helpful)
"Review"
by The Cleveland Plain Dealer,
"Unabashedly uplifting....Asserts forcefully what all of us would like to believe: that the individual, armed with the spirit of independence — 'the power of one' — can prevail."
"Review"
by The New York Times,
"The Power of One has everything: suspense, the exotic, violence; mysticism, psychology and magic; schoolboy adventures, drama."
"Review"
by The Washington Post Book World,
"Marvelous...It is the people of the sun-baked plains of Africa who tug at the heartstrings in this book....[Bryce] Courtenay draws them all with a fierce and violent love."
"Synopsis"
by Random,
“The Power of One has everything: suspense, the exotic, violence; mysticism, psychology and magic; schoolboy adventures, drama.”
-The New York Times
“Unabashedly uplifting . . . asserts forcefully what all of us would like to believe: that the individual, armed with the spirit of independence-‘the power of one-can prevail.”
-Cleveland Plain Dealer
In 1939, as Hitler casts his enormous, cruel shadow across the world, the seeds of apartheid take root in South Africa. There, a boy called Peekay is born. His childhood is marked by humiliation and abandonment, yet he vows to survive and conceives heroic dreams-which are nothing compared to what life actually has in store for him. He 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.
“Totally engrossing . . . [presents] the metamorphosis of a most remarkable young man and the almost spiritual influence he has on others . . . Peekay has both humor and a refreshingly earthy touch, and his adventures, at times, are hair-raising in their suspense.”
-Los Angeles Times Book Review
“Marvelous . . . It is the people of the sun-baked plains of Africa who tug at the heartstrings in this book. . . . [Bryce] Courtenay draws them all with a fierce and violent love.”
-The Washington Post Book World
“Impressive.”
-Newsday
“A compelling tale.”
-The Christian Science Monitor
"Synopsis"
by Libri,
In this magical novel, an irresistible boy tells the story of his survival and coming of age against the background of South Africa during and just after World War II.
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