The Power of One is a book telling the tale of Peekay, an English boy who lives in the country of South Africa. He presides in a boarding school amongst other boys that aren’t that friendly. Peekay’s only true companion is Granpa Chook, a chicken that he thinks is able to understand what he’s saying.
Peekay and The Judge have a very… violent relationship. The Judge’s anger towards Peekay stems from the fact that he is not African, he is English. Which can lead to a few problems living in the most racially divided country on Earth. The Judge constantly humiliates Peekay through the entire book, like making fun of his somewhat different ‘acorn’ relentlessly. A verbal example is when The Judge states ‘If I don’t pass, I’ll kill you first and then I’ll run away’. But in hindsight, nearing the very end of the novel, The Judge got what he arguably deserved.
Peekay’s growth throughout the book is fairly noticeable. He begins as a poor, lonely boy stricken with racial prejudice from the other boys as an English child living in South Africa and ends with a more confident and narratively pleasing character who has found the coveted ‘Power Of One’. Personality arcs in storytelling are incredibly important. They are used to show the learning and growth of a character throughout the story. The novel begins with Peekay being The Judge’s prey and it ends with him being Peekay’s diamond driller in the mines. That is a great way of showing cognition between the parts of the book and a great arc between the many pages. ‘As he sat there in his own vomit a small child’s voice cried out from somewhere deep inside my body, ‘You killed Granpa Chook!’ This is a perfect example of Peekay’s development throughout the novel and an excellent reflection on his past.
Granpa Chook’s death was an extremely important part of not just the novel but Peekay’s entire character and life. This somewhat traumatising event was what kicked off Peekay’s change of personality and character growth in the book. In his final torture session at school, The Judge tries to feed Peekay fecal matter, however, Granpa Chook deficates into the bully’s mouth. Setting The Judge off, he angrily pelted the poor chicken to death. These were the events that lead to Granpa Chook’s death.
Overall, The Power Of One is a somewhat divisive book from my standpoint. It has a lot of good aspects that are very intriguing, but it isn’t really my kind of book. But I can see why people like it. Things reflect and react against each other. It’s a real page turner, for some readers. But in general terms, it was… Pleasant.
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