Bryce Courtenay

Set in South Africa during World War II, where a large segment of the Boer population had pro-Nazi sympathies, it tells the story of Peekay, an English boy whose valiant odyssey through a land of tribal superstition and modern prejudice makes him a symbol of belief in oneself to black and white alike. -- From dust jacket.

A big sweeping saga, set among the Pacific Islands and in the Indian Ocean. In the style of Jame Clavell and Jame Michener, it tells the very personal and often romantic stories of men and women caught up in much larger events - in this case starting with the Japanese invasion of Java and the Dutch exodus of the region.