Nelson Mandela: A Biography

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Surprisingly, Meredith chooses to begin his tale of Mandela in the present, with a glance looking ahead to the years after his reign as president of his postapartheid country. The author, understanding that very few personal details of the black South African leader's life remain unknown following the flood of international publicity after his historic release from prison, takes a close measure of the intensely personal man, noting his obsession for neatness and order. Mandela has few close friends but he values them mightily, only allowing them to glimpse his unguarded self. Possibly the most interesting part of this biography is the clinically detailed demise of the relationship between Nelson and Winnie Mandela, which began during his incarceration. Meredith has written the most comprehensive biography of Nelson Mandela to date, the perfect companion to the aging statesman's inspiring autobiography, Long Walk To Freedom.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Meredith (In the Name of Apartheid) can't match the inimitable voice of Mandela's 1994 autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom. But this book is a welcome complement to that work, as the author capably synthesizes a broad range of written sources and interviews, providing a more judiciousif less heartfeltportrait of Mandela's rich life. All the eventstrials, protests, prison negotiationsare here. But Meredith's broader mission allows him to provide more perspective and background on Mandela's comrades in the African National Congress (ANC). He also gives a greater glimpse of the personal Mandela; a harsh disciplinarian toward his children who has nevertheless been indulgent toward his second wife, Winnie, whose imperiousness and suspected criminal behavior he refused to criticize after his release from prison in 1990. Moreover, on the weakest area in Mandela's own book (the time since his release from prison), Meredith has the advantage. He can portray President Mandela's mix of stately wisdom, indecisiveness, indulgence toward comrades and stirring symbolic leadership. This biography may prove to be less interpretive than future ones, but Meredith rightly praises Mandela for laying the foundations for a new society in a land riven by poverty. Photos. (Feb.)

Library Journal

Meredith's (In the Name of Apartheid, 1988) excellent analysis of Mandela's life within the context of 20th-century South African history results in a skillfully drawn portrait of an intense thinker and a tough-minded political activist. Despite the segregated and racist realities in South Africa during the 1940s, Mandela, a law student and an intern, mentioned to a white colleague, "One day I'm going to be prime minister of South Africa." On May 9, 1994, after spending 27 years in jail, Mandela was elected president of the Republic of South Africa. The author draws on deep and wide-ranging research in this biography, important because Meredith illuminates the dynamics and controversy of Mandela's relationships with South Africans of different and competing political strategies. The book also provides previously unpublished direct testimonies, court statements, speeches, and interviews from Mandela, revealing an unusually sane, courageous, and sincere man. This biography, written with Mandela's cooperation, is an invaluable resource for Mandela scholars and other readers interested in South African history.Edward G. McCormack, Univ. of Southern Mississippi Gulf Coast Lib., Long Beach