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Bryce Courtenay (1933–2012)

Author of The Power of One

36+ Works 12,437 Members 254 Reviews 24 Favorited

About the Author

Bryce Courtenay was born in Johannesburg, South Africa on August 14, 1933. He studied journalism in London and then settled in Australia in 1958. Instead of becoming a journalist, he went into advertising and became a successful creative director. He won most of the local and international show more advertising awards and a gold medal for Best Documentary at the 1984 New York Film Festival. He started writing after he turned 50. His first novel, The Power of One, was adapted into a 1992 film starring Morgan Freeman and Stephen Dorff. His other novels include Jessica, The Potato Factory, Tommo and Hawk, Solomon's Song, Tandia, and Jack of Diamonds. In 1993, he wrote the non-fiction book April Fool's Day, which is a personal account of the death of his son Damon after he contracted AIDs from a routine blood transfusion. Courtenay died of stomach cancer on November 22, 2012 at the age of 79. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

Series

Works by Bryce Courtenay

The Power of One (1989) 4,612 copies
Tandia (1992) 859 copies
The Potato Factory (1995) 822 copies
Jessica (1998) 662 copies
Tommo & Hawk (1997) 597 copies
April Fool's Day (1993) 562 copies
Solomon's Song (1999) 500 copies
Four Fires (2001) 461 copies
Matthew Flinders' Cat (2003) 426 copies
The Persimmon Tree (2007) 368 copies
Brother Fish (2004) 357 copies
Whitethorn (2005) 329 copies
Sylvia (2006) 316 copies
Fishing for Stars (2008) 208 copies
Smoky Joe's Cafe (1973) 188 copies

Associated Works

Yowies: Nap the Honeygum Yowie and the Fiery Flame-Fanning Grumkin (1895) — Illustrator, some editions — 16 copies

Tagged

20th century (45) adult (21) Africa (183) AIDS (21) apartheid (162) audible (27) audio (54) audiobook (32) Australia (232) Australian (99) Australian author (47) Australian fiction (49) Australian literature (36) biography (34) boxing (173) bryce courtenay (50) coming of age (90) drama (26) family (30) fiction (1,011) friendship (30) general fiction (46) hardcover (26) historical (52) historical fiction (320) history (44) inspirational (20) literature (29) non-fiction (35) novel (119) own (46) race relations (21) racism (86) read (84) romance (21) South Africa (339) to-read (374) unread (33) war (22) WWII (95)

Common Knowledge

Members

Reviews

Did I thoroughly enjoy a book where boxing is featured...remarkably yes. A boys journey from the horrors of boarding school to apartheid South Africa. With many stops in between that are worth the ride.
 
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77nanci | 108 other reviews | Nov 11, 2023 |
Fantastic novel. BIG novel. But, an easy read that's difficult to put down. If you loved [b:The Power of One|122|The Power of One (The Power of One, #1)|Bryce Courtenay|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388184360l/122._SX50_.jpg|649656], you'll love this one too. More adventures of PeeKay! And, Tandia is great in her own right.
 
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MickeyMole | 16 other reviews | Oct 2, 2023 |
My all-time favorite novel. Reading doesn't get much better than this. I could never forget Peekay. This novel develops so many memorial characters as well. I've read it twice, and plan to do a third reading. If you read this and enjoy it, be sure to read Courtney's "Tandia" for another great story and more of Peekay. Much thanks to Adam Silvers for giving me this book.
 
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MickeyMole | 108 other reviews | Oct 2, 2023 |
Here's what I wrote about this read in 2010: "Very nice. Story of a highly capable and determined boy English boy growing up on South Africa in the late 1930's through early 1950's. Witness the seeds of apartheid, and the ability of people to significantly touch and impact others."
 
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MGADMJK | 108 other reviews | Aug 18, 2023 |

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Statistics

Works
36
Also by
1
Members
12,437
Popularity
#1,888
Rating
4.0
Reviews
254
ISBNs
595
Languages
10
Favorited
24

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