Inspired and Inspiring
From Amazon
Please read this book. It is not only the story of an inspired leader it inspires to make us makers of peace. You will be informed about Mandela, South Africa and rugby. You will cry all the way through the last third of the book so make sure to have alot of hankies nearby.
Mandela is a carismatic person who knows how to manipulate and inspire people to do better than their base instincts would have them do but he is also a cool calculator who knows how to capture the moment and turn it into a pivotal moment for the formation of his countrymen.
The author makes it clear in several passages that Mandela has a temper, that he does have deep resenments, he is not a bloodless saint but his conviction that revenge is not the way to forge a country and fix its problems and his self control make him the statesman and person he is. How easy it would have been for a man kept prisoner for so many years to take up the gun instead of the flag of national unity.
The proof of Mandela's theory has been watching South Africa play with a national team in the latest soccer championships held in South Africa. They almost won.
An absolute must read
From Amazon
I just finished Playing the Enemy. It was among the best I have ever read and left me wanting more. Uplifting as well as educational. Buy it.
An Inspiring read
From Amazon
This is a book that truly inspires. I think the author wants to deliberately focus on the Rugby World Cup of 1995 and the rapprochement that it wrought between ordinary black and white South Africans. He chooses to completely disregard the Inkatha-ANC violence in the context of a power shift and focuses on how Mandela won the white South Africans over to the idea of a "rainbow nation". Reading these books makes you want to cry out for the same sensibility in other societies torn by violence and hatred.
I think this group of folks who formed the first government of post-apartheid South Africa were an absolutely exceptional group. Walter Sisulu, Bishop Tutu, Cyril Ramaphosa, Uncle Thabo et al are very good folks compared to the surrounding statesmen of Africa. Of course, Mandiba Mandela's role was the key to the thaw in relations between the various white and black communities.
Back to the book at hand. It is a truly inspiring work that seeks to look at various personalities at all levels of society in South Africa and explains their transformation in their own words.
Read this and go to sleep dreaming better dreams. Tomorrow will look rosier...
The Human Factor
From Amazon
John Carlin's work is a thrilling, spine-tingling effort. Most of the book's protagonists can't recall their meetings with Nelson Mandela in regards to 1995's Rugby World Cup without breaking into tears. Carlin's genius is to make you see why this is the natural reaction. Here's a man who, as one player aptly puts it "spent 27 years in prison and came out with love and friendship. All that washed over me, that huge realization, and the tears just rolled down my face."
Though Mandela is as close as there is to a god walking this earth, it's his one-on-one people skills that take the day. His will is to win them over, one person at a time. That's why Clint Eastwood has named his upcoming film of this book "The Human Factor" (Morgan Freeman as Mandela, Matt Damon as Springbok captain Francois Pienaar).
An amazing account of an amazing man
From Amazon
As one who has studied South African politics and is well aware of the significance of the 2005 world cup, I was very eager to read this book. Needless to say, this book was incredible.
John Carlin gives a sort of intimacy in this book. He sets up the story, giving the background of Mandela's life. In addition, he also interviews those that had an effect on Mandela's life either in prison, politics, or sport. This 360 degree approach brings the reader to a fuller understanding of the actions taking place and the emotions that drive them.
Mandela has always been a personal hero of mine, and this book reinforces that. Though this is a (modern) historical account, the recapping of Mandela's struggle and the change he has brought to his nation also acts as a feel-good story of triumph.