Nelson Mandela by Sean Connolly (Heinemann Profiles)

The book ‘Nelson Mandela’ by Sean Connolly is a very interesting book about Mandela that tells you the facts. This book has a very simple style of writing but gets the information into your head and simply tells the facts on the hardship and struggles that Mandela had to face, and overcome.

This book is a biography of Nelson Mandela, and as a biography, it takes you through Mandela’s life, giving information on what he did and how he became the great man that he is today. This book takes you through Mandela growing up, with the birth name of Rolihlaha before being given the name Nelson by a teacher thinking he would get on better in his life if the British rulers could pronounce his name, in the rural village Mvezo, before moving to Qunu with his mother. The regent of the royal family of Thembuland, who acted as Mandela’s guardian, gave Mandela the privilege of getting the best education that was available black Africans at the time, including the University College of Fort Hare in 1938, where he was expelled for trying to improve the school in the Student Representative Council. The book gives details on how Mandela was imprisoned for 27 years to do with being involved in groups such as the ANC (African National Congress), fighting for black Africans rights in South Africa, and went on in politics to become South Africa’s first black president.

This book is all fact. It is a detailed description of the life of Nelson Mandela, rather than the author giving inspirational quotes or giving their personal opinion on what type of man he is. This is not a book of judgment on what Mandela did throughout his life, nor does it waffle on about a particular time in Mandela’s life. This book tells the facts as they happened, in the third person.

If you are looking for information on Nelson Mandela, but do not want to spend too much time on the topic, and just want basic facts, this is the book for you. This is a small biography of 56 pages (including a timeline, glossary and index) that gives the information you need to have a good knowledge on Mandela’s life, without going too deep in detail. This book is easy to read, quite spaced out with pictures, colour and borders. The book is very easy on the eye, and although some may prefer a more complex text, it gives the information on Mandela’s life that does not leave you feeling bored.

All in all, I did enjoy reading this book as it was easy to read, with an appealing layout, and did not take too long, while still giving me a good knowledge on how Nelson Mandela became the man he is today.  

I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning about the life of Nelson Mandela. This book would be good for readers from early high school on, although many stronger readers may prefer a biography with more complex language.

I give this book 4/5 stars.