Bryce Courtenay (1933-2012) was a South African born Australian writer who rose to fame with his first novel, 'The Power of One', which told of a young boy growing up under Apartheid in South Africa. After studying journalism in London and moving to Australia in the 1950's where he was emplyed in the advertising industry, Courtenay only began writing in his 50's. Despite this he has penned 21 books and sold more than 20 million copies globally during the course of his career. He died in November 2012 after battling stomach cancer at the age of 79.