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Mandela: The Authorized Portrait
'What makes Mandela so special is that he's a real human being. . . . He's got a real life. And the fact that he is so flesh-and-blood real makes his greatness and his sacrifice and his wisdom and his courage in the face of all that has happened to him even more remarkable."-From the foreword by President Bill ClintonNamed one of Time magazine's 100 Most Important People of the 20th Century, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela has dedicated his life to fighting racism, segregation, oppression, and exploitation-and championing democracy, equality, and education.
Mandela: The Authorized Portrait celebrates the courage, determination, and remarkable humanity of a great man and chronicles his extraordinary contribution to humankind.
Much of the story in Mandela: The Authorized Portrait is told by those whose very lives he has touched. Drawing on 60 original and extensive interviews with family members, close friends, colleagues, and many of the world's leading figures in politics and entertainment, Mandela: The Authorized Portrait tells the inspirational story of an incredible man-from his birth and early childhood in rural South Africa and his involvement with and eventual leadership of the African National Congress through his 27-year imprisonment and eventual emergence as one of the world's notable leaders and most active agents for change.
This richly designed portrait features a foreword by former U.S. president Bill Clinton and an introduction by Archbishop Desmond Tutu. It is illustrated with 250 images and features material taken from private collections as well as the Nelson Mandela Foundation archive-some of it published here for the first time. Mandela: The Authorized Portrait features artifacts and facsimiles of Mandela's voluminous writings and correspondence-written records of his negotiations with the prison authorities, intimate letters to his family and friends during his imprisonment, and material from Mandela's personal diaries and calendars.
Mandela: The Authorized Portrait is one of the most lavishly illustrated and comprehensive tributes to Nelson Mandela's life and work ever produced.
Mandela: The Authorized Portrait celebrates the courage, determination, and remarkable humanity of a great man and chronicles his extraordinary contribution to humankind.
Much of the story in Mandela: The Authorized Portrait is told by those whose very lives he has touched. Drawing on 60 original and extensive interviews with family members, close friends, colleagues, and many of the world's leading figures in politics and entertainment, Mandela: The Authorized Portrait tells the inspirational story of an incredible man-from his birth and early childhood in rural South Africa and his involvement with and eventual leadership of the African National Congress through his 27-year imprisonment and eventual emergence as one of the world's notable leaders and most active agents for change.
This richly designed portrait features a foreword by former U.S. president Bill Clinton and an introduction by Archbishop Desmond Tutu. It is illustrated with 250 images and features material taken from private collections as well as the Nelson Mandela Foundation archive-some of it published here for the first time. Mandela: The Authorized Portrait features artifacts and facsimiles of Mandela's voluminous writings and correspondence-written records of his negotiations with the prison authorities, intimate letters to his family and friends during his imprisonment, and material from Mandela's personal diaries and calendars.
Mandela: The Authorized Portrait is one of the most lavishly illustrated and comprehensive tributes to Nelson Mandela's life and work ever produced.
356 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 18, 2012
I am currently visiting South Africa and after booking a day tour to Soweto and the Apartheid museum I picked up the updated version of this (following his 90th birthday a few years ago) along with "Long Walk to Freedom". This book was excellent for orienting myself in preparation for the places mentioned in it that I was to visit the next day. I was infinitely more knowledgable about all the events outlined on the tour as a result, such as the significance of Mandela's home in Soweto (which I then visited), his tribal heritage, the complicated relationship he had with his second wife Winnie, who still lives in Soweto (we were shown her house). Mac Maharaj had a close relationship with Mandela from his time in prison and the updated version has really quite definitive accounts of the interpersonal relationships people who knew him had over the years, from his law firm secretaries as a young lawyer and activist to those from much later in his life such as Bono from U2. An all-encompassing, politely honest but unexposing and non-scandalous grounding of the significance of Nelson Mandela in African and indeed international politics.
March 18, 2017
Esta biografia autorizada de Nelson Mandela, coordenada por, entre outros, dois dos seus companheiros de cativeiro em Robben Island, aparece-nos numa edição interessante, com motivos de relevo no que diz respeito ao acervo fotográfico e documental e construída como um documentário para televisão: a narrativa dos factos é nos apresentada intercalada com testemunhos directos de um sem número de pessoas que de perto privaram com o Homem. De Bill Clinton a Desmond Tutu, que assina o prefácio, é um desfile de textos mais ou menos convergentes no reconhecimento da grandeza de Nelson Mandela. O livro perde-se aí: é tremendamente hagiográfico, tem por objectivo único e último a exaltação e santificação de Mandela. Não é imerecido, Mandela é uma das figuras maiores do século XX, um herói da democracia e da inclusão, um homem de carácter - de quantos políticos podemos nós dizer isto?
Mas é, de facto, um livro de louvor, não tem objectividade histórica. Tive a oportunidade de ler a autobiografia de Mandela, esse sim um livro extraordinariamente interessante, cuja objectividade não desmerece por ser escrita na primeira pessoa, é um documento histórico de incalculável valor, até pela história que está associada à sua escrita.
Ainda assim, há dados interessantes a reter deste livro. A coragem de Mandela não precisa de ser demonstrada por testemunhos, é a História que a fixa, escrita na pedra. A atitude de Mandela durante o julgamento de Rivonia, em que enfrentava um sério risco de condenação à morte, mostra para lá de qualquer dúvida, a têmpera deste homem. Não, o que sobressai deste livro, e que é para mim fascinante, é o comportamento público habitual de Nelson Mandela, descrito unanimemente como o de um homem de extrema cortesia e delicadeza, não adaptando as suas maneiras à categoria do seu interlocutor, antes tratando todos por igual. Ser cortês e gentil é, nos dias que correm, considerado um sinal de fraqueza. Numa música dos The Smiths, o Morrisey canta que "it takes guts to be gentle and kind" e eu não posso estar mais de acordo. Pelo menos tanta coragem como estar disposto a morrer por aquilo em que se acredita. Mandela tinha coragem para ambas as coisas e por isso foi o extraordinário farol que guiou e inspirou milhões de pessoas de todas as cores e todos os credos no mundo inteiro.
p.s. - leio este texto e apercebo-me de que, pelo tom, podia fazer parte deste livro, o que também quer dizer que entendo perfeitamente a dificuldade que reside em escrever sobre Mandela sem se ser hiperbólico. Bom, bem vistas as coisas, a culpa nem é nossa: é dele.
Mas é, de facto, um livro de louvor, não tem objectividade histórica. Tive a oportunidade de ler a autobiografia de Mandela, esse sim um livro extraordinariamente interessante, cuja objectividade não desmerece por ser escrita na primeira pessoa, é um documento histórico de incalculável valor, até pela história que está associada à sua escrita.
Ainda assim, há dados interessantes a reter deste livro. A coragem de Mandela não precisa de ser demonstrada por testemunhos, é a História que a fixa, escrita na pedra. A atitude de Mandela durante o julgamento de Rivonia, em que enfrentava um sério risco de condenação à morte, mostra para lá de qualquer dúvida, a têmpera deste homem. Não, o que sobressai deste livro, e que é para mim fascinante, é o comportamento público habitual de Nelson Mandela, descrito unanimemente como o de um homem de extrema cortesia e delicadeza, não adaptando as suas maneiras à categoria do seu interlocutor, antes tratando todos por igual. Ser cortês e gentil é, nos dias que correm, considerado um sinal de fraqueza. Numa música dos The Smiths, o Morrisey canta que "it takes guts to be gentle and kind" e eu não posso estar mais de acordo. Pelo menos tanta coragem como estar disposto a morrer por aquilo em que se acredita. Mandela tinha coragem para ambas as coisas e por isso foi o extraordinário farol que guiou e inspirou milhões de pessoas de todas as cores e todos os credos no mundo inteiro.
p.s. - leio este texto e apercebo-me de que, pelo tom, podia fazer parte deste livro, o que também quer dizer que entendo perfeitamente a dificuldade que reside em escrever sobre Mandela sem se ser hiperbólico. Bom, bem vistas as coisas, a culpa nem é nossa: é dele.
January 23, 2008
I have not finished this book yet but the story is amazing. From an amazing man you get nothing more than an amazing life. This book is for those who appreciate the man Mandela is. If you are in the mood for a biography, this is a great book to choose! There is even a little history in it, something I love!
March 15, 2021
I read this for the Book Riot Read Harder Challenge category of a a book about a world leader outside the US and Europe. I had always wanted to learn about Mandela and wanted to read his autobiography but we had this large coffee table sized book in our house and I decided to read it when my library hold request for the autobiography did not arrive. The portrait of Mandela based on accounts from friends, foes, and contemporaries is compelling and interesting--I learned a lot about his early schooling (he was named Nelson after Lord Nelson at the British school he attended), his growing activism, his personal life and then the brutality of his imprisonment, followed by his release and election as President. The book tracked Mandela's life chronologically but with so many different accounts it was disjointed and assumed knowledge about South African history and leaders. Still--what an inspiring story even if the book was not well-constructed--I will read more. And here is an inspiring Mandela quote; "In judging our progress as individuals, we tend to concentrate on external factors such as one's social position, influence, and popularity, wealth and standard of education...but internal factors may be even more crucial in assessing one's development as a human being: honesty, sincerity, simplicity, humility, purity, generosity, absence of vanity, readiness to serve your fellow men--qualities within the reach of every soul." And that just about described Mandela's life and the character that allowed him to suffer through 27 years of imprisonment and emerge without outward bitterness
November 14, 2007
Beautiful photography and a good introduction to Mandela's life.
January 20, 2013
This book is a tribute to Mandela and as such you learn a lot about this powerful man. He changed not only his country, but the entire world. l
January 3, 2015
Enormously interesting, beautiful book with magnificent pictures. A great archive and I learned a lot.
September 4, 2016
This is an excellent book that really looks at this great mans personal history and his impact on South Africa and the world. We have lost a great man with his death.
May 24, 2016
Beautifully written. He is one of the most important people of the 20th century. The photos are all amazing. The book itself is high quality.
May 21, 2026
Et fremragende portræt af Madiba. Bogen er dels en historisk udredning af Nelsons Mandelas liv og så en lang række historier fortalt af folk omkring Madiba. Historier som giver et nuanceret og dybt indblik i, hvem dette store menneske var. Hvad der drev ham? Hvad der formede ham? Hvad der ændrede ham?
Madiba var en priviligeret sort i sin opvækst i et racistisk samfund, der udviklede sig imod ekstremerne. Han var søn af en høvding og hans mor havde været en del af krigen imod de hvide, som en af de uudtalte helte. Rigtig ofte glemmer vi hans og hans kampfællers oprindelse, når vi her i vesten skal beskrive deres politiske filosofi. Oftest kommer vi til, at kalde dem marxister eller enddog kommunister. Men det er en fejlagtig tolkning. Madiba og den øvrige fængslede ledelse af ANC var ikke marxister eller kommunister selvom de aktivt var i alliance med disse. Alliancen primære indhold for de fængslede var støtten til deres kamp for et andet Sydafrika i særdeleshed og Afrika i almindelighed. De var loyale overfor dem, der støttede deres kamp.
Hvis man skal forstå 'ideologien' bag ANC og Madibas virke, så skal man forstå den afrikanske kultur i almindelighed og Ubuntu i særdeleshed. Derudover skal man forstå, at de sad fængslet i mere end 27 år, hvor de alle uddannede sig løbende i forskellige emner, underviste hinanden i det de lærte og herigennem udviklede de en kritisk tilgang til egne standpunkter. Madiba var i udpræget grad misogryn inden sin fængsling, men igennem sin lange fængsling, så ændrede han standpunkt og fandt det historiske afrikanske bidrag, at kvinder kan være ligeså gode ledere som mænd. At kvinder på alle punkter er mænd ligeværdige og vice versa. Ingen rolle er større end en anden. Intet menneske er mere værd end et andet.
Jeg havde selv fornøjelsen af, at bo i Sydafrika i 1993 og oplevede spændingerne, volden, frygten og håbet på nærmeste hold. Jeg var blandt andet få kilometer fra det sted, hvor Chris Hani blev likvideret den 10. april 1993. Af en polsk immigrant og modstander af demokratiseringsprocessen.
Når jeg læser om Madibas liv, så kan jeg ikke lade være med at tænke på Sokrates og Seneca. Folk der var villige til at møde deres endeligt med oprejst pande, da de vidste, at de var på den rigtige side af sandheden.
Når man læser portrættet, så er der ved mig et par sætninger og ordvekslinger, der hænger ved. Her er et eksempel fra et brev fra Nelson Mandela til Winnie Mandela:
Det minder jo nærmest som noget skrevet af Marcus Aurelius.
Et andet eksempel er i en udtalelse fra Gordon Brown:
Jeg kan varmt anbefale denne og også Vejen til frihed. En selvbiografi, som oprindeligt blev skrevet på Robben Island, men som først udkom 18 år efter, at den blev smuglet ud af Fængslet.
Madiba var en priviligeret sort i sin opvækst i et racistisk samfund, der udviklede sig imod ekstremerne. Han var søn af en høvding og hans mor havde været en del af krigen imod de hvide, som en af de uudtalte helte. Rigtig ofte glemmer vi hans og hans kampfællers oprindelse, når vi her i vesten skal beskrive deres politiske filosofi. Oftest kommer vi til, at kalde dem marxister eller enddog kommunister. Men det er en fejlagtig tolkning. Madiba og den øvrige fængslede ledelse af ANC var ikke marxister eller kommunister selvom de aktivt var i alliance med disse. Alliancen primære indhold for de fængslede var støtten til deres kamp for et andet Sydafrika i særdeleshed og Afrika i almindelighed. De var loyale overfor dem, der støttede deres kamp.
Hvis man skal forstå 'ideologien' bag ANC og Madibas virke, så skal man forstå den afrikanske kultur i almindelighed og Ubuntu i særdeleshed. Derudover skal man forstå, at de sad fængslet i mere end 27 år, hvor de alle uddannede sig løbende i forskellige emner, underviste hinanden i det de lærte og herigennem udviklede de en kritisk tilgang til egne standpunkter. Madiba var i udpræget grad misogryn inden sin fængsling, men igennem sin lange fængsling, så ændrede han standpunkt og fandt det historiske afrikanske bidrag, at kvinder kan være ligeså gode ledere som mænd. At kvinder på alle punkter er mænd ligeværdige og vice versa. Ingen rolle er større end en anden. Intet menneske er mere værd end et andet.
Jeg havde selv fornøjelsen af, at bo i Sydafrika i 1993 og oplevede spændingerne, volden, frygten og håbet på nærmeste hold. Jeg var blandt andet få kilometer fra det sted, hvor Chris Hani blev likvideret den 10. april 1993. Af en polsk immigrant og modstander af demokratiseringsprocessen.
Når jeg læser om Madibas liv, så kan jeg ikke lade være med at tænke på Sokrates og Seneca. Folk der var villige til at møde deres endeligt med oprejst pande, da de vidste, at de var på den rigtige side af sandheden.
Når man læser portrættet, så er der ved mig et par sætninger og ordvekslinger, der hænger ved. Her er et eksempel fra et brev fra Nelson Mandela til Winnie Mandela:
Når vi bedømmer vore fremskridt som enkeltpersoner, er vi tilbøjelige til at fokusere på ydre faktorer som for eksempel social status, indflydelse og popularitet, rigdom og uddannelsesniveau... Men indre faktorer kan måske være endnu mere afgørende, når man skal vurdere sin udvikling som menneske: ærlighed, oprigtighed, ligefremhed, ydmyghed, renhed, generøsitet, mangel på forfængelighed, villighed til at gøre noget for andre, Det er egenskaber, der ligger inden for ethvert menneskes rækkevidde.
Det minder jo nærmest som noget skrevet af Marcus Aurelius.
Et andet eksempel er i en udtalelse fra Gordon Brown:
Han var nød til at at genopdage den afrikanske kultur. Der er et afrikansk ord for det: Ubuntu. Mandela er orienteret imod fællesskabet. Selve hans person vidner om betydningen af altruisme, følelsen af, at der er noget, der er større end én selv, sansen for at kunne føle andres smerte.
Jeg kan varmt anbefale denne og også Vejen til frihed. En selvbiografi, som oprindeligt blev skrevet på Robben Island, men som først udkom 18 år efter, at den blev smuglet ud af Fængslet.
June 30, 2025
Book:Mandela - The Authorised Portrait
Author: Ros Coward, Professor Tim Couzens, and Amina Frense.
Genre: Biography.
Price: 2995/-.
Pages: 356.
Rate: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths;
The valiant never taste of death but once.
Of all the wonders that I yet have heard,
It seems to me most strange that men should fear;
Seeing that death, a necessary end, will come when it will come."
Nelson Mandela! Everyone is well aware of this name. And I think the above passage from Julius Caesar is 100% suitable for him.
Mandela - The Authorised Portrait is the biography which was published in 2006.
This book is divided into three different parts which show the three different phases of Mandela's life with the portraits.
I love the way of narratives that how they beautifully explained the life of Mandela. I definitely advise to biography lovers to read this beautiful and amazing book of an amazing leader.
#bookrecommendations #bookstagram #booklover
Author: Ros Coward, Professor Tim Couzens, and Amina Frense.
Genre: Biography.
Price: 2995/-.
Pages: 356.
Rate: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟.
"Cowards die many times before their deaths;
The valiant never taste of death but once.
Of all the wonders that I yet have heard,
It seems to me most strange that men should fear;
Seeing that death, a necessary end, will come when it will come."
Nelson Mandela! Everyone is well aware of this name. And I think the above passage from Julius Caesar is 100% suitable for him.
Mandela - The Authorised Portrait is the biography which was published in 2006.
This book is divided into three different parts which show the three different phases of Mandela's life with the portraits.
I love the way of narratives that how they beautifully explained the life of Mandela. I definitely advise to biography lovers to read this beautiful and amazing book of an amazing leader.
#bookrecommendations #bookstagram #booklover
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews