The Power of One

Honestly, I’m not much of a reader. I’ll read a novel for a class, but you normally couldn’t pay me to read a work of any literary value on my own. However, after reading The Power of One in my senior year lit class, I finally found a book that I will read time and time again on my own.

The Power of One, a novel by Bryce Courtney, has impacted my life significantly since reading it just about two years ago. The novel depicts the story of Peekay, a small, white South African child who was bullied quite a bit in elementary school. When he moves in with his mother, he meets a man named Hoppie who trains him to be a welterweight boxer. Against all odds, Peekay faces adversity and racism on the way to achieving his goal, becoming the welterweight champion of the world.

I could instantly relate to this novel. Until I got to high school, I was kinda like Peekay: an outcast, just trying to get through my day-to-day life. I wouldn’t say I was necessarily bullied like Peekay was, but I could definitely understand his struggles.  Also, I was really influenced by the idea of welterweight fighting. I’m no boxer, but I was able to gather that Peekay wasn’t exactly well built. Seeing my stature (pretty damn lanky), I found solace in a story that has a small guy succeeding. One of the greatest quotes in the book comes from Hoppie, when he is trying to teach Peekay how to fight larger opponents: “First with the head, then with the heart, you’ll be ahead from the start.” That quote means so much to me. Everything I do starts from within, with my mind and my passion. I know I can’t necessarily outmuscle anyone, so everything I do has to be meticulously planned out and with my whole heart. Sans the fighting, I think Peekay and I are really alike.

Since reading this novel, I have really thought differently about my life. I have come to terms about my lifestyle, and have started to embrace it. Before, I was always known as a pretty nervous, shy kid. But since I realized that you don’t need stature or bullying abilities to be confident, I have really put my best foot forward into forming my current personality. My senior year of high school and this year here at TCU have been completely different since coming out of that confidence “shell”, and I partly attribute this new me to seeing myself in Peekay.

The Power of One is by far the most influential novel I have ever read, and I have reread it a few times since. I know it’s just a book, but honestly this book helped me immensely in my growth and I’m so glad I read it. And its only just beginning. My power of one is just starting to grow.