"MANDELA: The Man, the Smuggle, the Triumph"

A character study of this century's most famous political prisoner. Beginning with Mandela's youth (his middle name, Rolihlahla, means ""stirring up trouble"") and early legal career, the authors show how the South African government's consistent brutality forced him to work with groups that advocated violence, an association that led to his conviction for treason. Prison weakened neither his spirit nor his reputation; since Mandela's release in 1990, he has been working to quell black-against-black warfare in South Africa, to keep the new generation of radicals under control until the ANC's goals can be realized. This account can be read as a follow-up to the authors' Nelson and Winnie Mandela (1987); there is less detail here about history and social conditions but more analysis of past and recent (through mid-1991) events. Winnie Mandela doesn't come off well, especially in light of her involvement in the death of a supposed police informer. Source notes; bibliography; b&w photos & index not seen.