Pocket Bios: Nelson Mandela

Pocket Bios

by Al Berenger

A colorfully illustrated, pocket-size picture book biography of activist, philanthropist, and South African President Nelson Mandela.

Nelson Mandela was a South African revolutionary, activist, politician, and philanthropist who opposed apartheid and served as the president of South Africa as the country's first black head of state and the first representative elected democratically. He devoted much of his time in office to dismantling apartheid law and battling institutionalized racism in South Africa. He is the recipient of more than 250 honors worldwide, including the Nobel Peace Prize.

Pocket Bios are full of personality, introducing readers to fascinating figures from history with simple storytelling and cheerful illustrations. Titles include men and women from history, exploration, the sciences, the arts, the ancient world, and more.

Genres: Biography

32 pages, Hardcover

Published July 17, 2018

Reviews

[Deborah]

A nugget of information on the life of Nelson Mandela for children.

[Ro Menendez]

The Pocket Bio Series should not be mistaken for a very young reader's beginner's biography because of it's physical dimensions and cartoon-style illustrations. Its word count is much higher and events such as racism, suicide, and loss of life through war and violence are mentioned as part of the story of the subject's life, when applicable. Each spread has a title and text on the left side, including the years the events detailed on the page took place, and a related illustration on the right side. Four interesting and useful sections are at the end of each biography: a Timeline with added events not necessarily mentioned in the text, a map that details the locations of important events with a Map Key and a short description of why the location was included, and most interesting of all a People to Know section that explores the idea that the subject of the biography did not live, work and achieve in isolation, the last section, Did You Know? offers interesting facts not discussed in the main text. A few of Mandela's Pocket Bio events worth mentioning: he was part of a peaceful protest against apartheid where the police killed 69 protestors this led Mandela to give up on peaceful protesting which ended in him being incarcerated for 27 years, he was freed by Frederik de Klerk the new president of South Africa and together they worked tirelessly and in a peaceful manner to end apartheid, Mandela became president of South Africa in 1994. This biography gives readers, grades 2 and up, enough information to decide if they wish to pursue a more in depth study of the subject's life.

[Barbara]

Another important entry in the diminutive Pocket Bios series originally published in France, this one focuses on the civil rights activist who spent 27 years of his life in prison for fighting against apartheid in South Africa. Upon his release, he was elected president of the country. The book highlights important moments in the life of Nelson Mandela, and no matter their ages, readers won't be able to keep from being impressed by his stamina and persistence, continuing to lead the fight for fair practices even while imprisoned. The inclusion of dates at the bottom of every other page allows readers to have some sense of time, just as the inclusion of a map featuring six different places of significance to Mandela and thumbnail sketches of four individuals who were important to him affords readers a sense of context and historical significance. The book is small, but it offers quite a lot of information about this important man, and may spur curious readers to look for more books about him.

[Baby Bookworm]

This review was originally written for The Baby Bookworm. Visit us for new picture books reviews daily!

Hello, friends! Our books today are from the Pocket Bio series by Al Berenger, specifically three notable figures in civil rights: Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Each book gives the reader a brief history of the subject’s early life, their influences, their actions, and their legacies. Mandela’s focuses on his imprisonment and triumphant election as president of South Africa after his release – the first election he was able to vote in – and touches briefly on his Nobel win and the 1995 Rugby World Cup. Parks’s includes her famous bus ride, and King’s looks at his involvement in the Montgomery bus boycott, the Selma march, and his “I Have A Dream” speech.

As early-learner primers for these historical figures, these aren’t terrible. King’s is the most informative, making note of his early influences (Jim Crow south, his father’s religious work, his study of Ghandi, etc.) and even his courtship with Coretta Scott. His murder is mentioned (though not depicted), and the book ends on a note of surprising honesty, noting that racism is still a problem that needs to be fought, but King’s work made great strides and encourages us to make more. Mandela’s book is serviceable, delving into the racist policies of Apartheid and mentioning the violent, often deadly protests that took place, but glossing over the reformation years pretty heavily. Most disappointing is Parks’s book, which relies almost solely on her arrest; the bus boycott that follows is made to seem entirely the idea of MLK (Parks volunteered to be the face of the boycott at great personal risk and sacrifice), and her work as a secretary and investigator with the NCAAP gets zero mention. Likewise, the bobble-headed illustrations are just okay – engaging for younger readers but occasionally at odds with the tone of the subject matter (a scene depicting a meeting of Mandela’s Spear of the Nation militant group is laughable). The length is fine, the backmatter – maps, timelines, etc – is a nice addition, and JJ enjoyed them for the most part. Somewhat uneven, and definitely only a jumping-off point, but worth a browse. Baby Bookworm approved!

(Note: Copies of these books were provided to The Baby Bookworm by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.)

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