Overview
Nelson Mandela is a trailblazer. Born in 1918 as the son of a Thembu chief in South Africa, he grew into a world-respected and widely admired political activist and Nobel Prize-winning statesman. Jailed in 1962 for his political activities by the white-minority apartheid regime, he became a symbol of resistance to white oppression in South Africa. In 1994 he became the first president of the "new" South Africa under black-majority rule.A biography of the son of a Thembu chief who became a civil rights activist, political prisoner, and president of South Africa.
Synopsis
These high-interest, low reading level biographies chronicle the lives of inspiring individuals and use a vivid, graphic-novel format that will capture the attention of reluctant readers. The dazzling, full-color illustrations and easy-to-read text bring each person's life and times to life.
School Library Journal
Gr 2-4Two picture-book biographies. Holland begins with Mandela's childhood as the son of a Thembu chief and continues through his work for fair government for all people in South Africa, his imprisonment, to his release in 1990. There is little else about this world leader for this age group. Rosa Parks follows the same format: early life, civil rights work, imprisonment, and release. The information is much the same as in Eloise Greenfield's Rosa Parks (Crowell, 1973) and David A. Adler's A Picture Book of Rosa Parks (Holiday, 1993). Both of these books have a clear, direct writing style and are illustrated with colorful, attractive illustrations. Suitable additions.Anne Parker, Milton Public Library, MA