Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.45 AVERAGE
4.45 AVERAGE
challenging
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
How can a 625 page autobiography be THIS good? I do not know.
challenging
dark
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
When I started this book I loved it! The writing is well done and the stories are very detailed. My only problem was 2/3 of the way through it started to get really long. I had a hard time finishing it but I think that it is a great book for everyone to read!
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
hopeful
informative
reflective
slow-paced
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
I learned so much and it was incredibly interesting throughout the entire book. It stretched my perspective. Even sometimes just the phrases he used like "mainland Europe" made me question the assumptions that go into only using the word "mainland" when talking about China and that I'd never heard it used about Europe before. It was comforting while reading about dangerous situations he was in, to know that he did live a very long life, got out of prison, and achieved voting rights for everyone in South Africa. I did not know much about the Freedom Struggle in South Africa beyond those basics, and I found the discussions about political convictions, strategies, tactics, and coalition building fascinating.
I don’t even know what to say, i urge everyone to read this book, the perspectives found here are- i don’t wanna say life changing- but they’re pretty damn close to it. the last few pages of this book might be the best thing i have ever read. i’m gonna quote a whole page right now so if you wanna get there for yourself stop reading!!
“The policy of apartheid created a deep and lasting wound in my country and my people. All of us will spend many years, if not generations, recovering from that profound hurt. But the decades of oppression and brutality had another, unintended effect, and that was that it produced the Oliver Tambos, the Walter Sisulus, the Chief Luthulis, the Yusuf Dadoos, the Bram Fischers, the Robert Sobukwes of our time - men of such extraordinary courage, wisdom, and generosity that their like may never be known again.
Perhaps it requires such depth of oppression to create such heights of character. My country is rich in the minerals and gems that lie beneath its soil, but I have always known that its greatest wealth is its people, finer and truer than the purest diamonds.
It is from these comrades in the struggle that I learned the meaning of courage. Time and again, I have seen men and women risk and give their lives for an idea. I have seen men stand up to attacks and torture without breaking, showing a strength and resiliency that defies the imagination. I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. I felt fear myself more times than I can remember, but I hid it behind a mask of boldness. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that
fear.
I never lost hope that this great transformation would occur. Not only because of the great heroes I have already cited, but because of the courage of the ordinary men and women of my country. I always knew that deep down in every human heart, there is mercy and generosity. No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than it’s opposite. Even in the grimmest times in prison, when my comrades and I were pushed to our limits, I would see a glimmer of humanity in one of the guards, perhaps for only a second, but it was enough to reassure me and keep going. Mans goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished.”
“The policy of apartheid created a deep and lasting wound in my country and my people. All of us will spend many years, if not generations, recovering from that profound hurt. But the decades of oppression and brutality had another, unintended effect, and that was that it produced the Oliver Tambos, the Walter Sisulus, the Chief Luthulis, the Yusuf Dadoos, the Bram Fischers, the Robert Sobukwes of our time - men of such extraordinary courage, wisdom, and generosity that their like may never be known again.
Perhaps it requires such depth of oppression to create such heights of character. My country is rich in the minerals and gems that lie beneath its soil, but I have always known that its greatest wealth is its people, finer and truer than the purest diamonds.
It is from these comrades in the struggle that I learned the meaning of courage. Time and again, I have seen men and women risk and give their lives for an idea. I have seen men stand up to attacks and torture without breaking, showing a strength and resiliency that defies the imagination. I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. I felt fear myself more times than I can remember, but I hid it behind a mask of boldness. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that
fear.
I never lost hope that this great transformation would occur. Not only because of the great heroes I have already cited, but because of the courage of the ordinary men and women of my country. I always knew that deep down in every human heart, there is mercy and generosity. No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than it’s opposite. Even in the grimmest times in prison, when my comrades and I were pushed to our limits, I would see a glimmer of humanity in one of the guards, perhaps for only a second, but it was enough to reassure me and keep going. Mans goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished.”
Took me almost an entire year to finish this 600+ page book, astounded by his courage and selflessness and sacrifice for his country.
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced