A large  size book, maybe to reflect the size of the person described.

I bought this book in a windy village at the coast, when sought shelter from the biting wind. This way we ended up in a bookshop. What better place to find shelter?!

According to the subtitle this an authorised portrait. We follow Nelson Mandela from his early childhood till his post-presidential years. This book has been decorated by many pictures. Due to the lettertypes and the colour of the pages it is not always an easy read. And at times it is not easy to read because so many people who contribute to this book blow the trumpet.

The only one who blows a different tune is Desmond Tutu, who has the courage to say that Mandela protected his friends in the ANC far too long, when it became clear that they made serious mistakes in the post-apartheid days.

The two editorial advisors of this book are boardmembers of the ‘Nelson Mandela Foundation”.

Mandela. The authorized portrait – Auckland 2006