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Io, Nelson Mandela. Conversazioni Con Me Stesso (2010)

by Nelson Mandela(Favorite Author)

3.88 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

8820049597 (ISBN13: 9788820049591)

languge

English

genre

Memoir & Autobiography

publisher

Sperling & Kupfer

review 1: This was a phenomenal book, and I suspect a good deal more compelling than Long Walk to Freedom (have not read that one). This is mainly because it is more of a collection of thoughts the man has had over his extraordinary life rather than a fact sheet or a list of events displayed flatly and chronologically. Specifically, it is a collection of notes he wrote while imprisoned and also of interviews (mainly with Richard Stengel). Of course, this means it's a good deal more disjoint, but it is also more real to me. It's less about the image and more about the man, who most definitely had flaws. He was just a man trying to do right by his country and his family. In fact, I greatly enjoyed this snippet from early in the book:“There is a stage in the life of every social ref... moreormer when he will thunder on platforms primarily to relieve himself of the scraps of undigested information that has accumulated in his head; an attempt to impress the crowds rather than to start a calm and simple exposition of principles and ideas whose universal truth is made evident by personal experience and deeper study. In this regard I am no exception and I have been victim of the weaknesses of my own generation not once but a hundred times. I must be frank and tell you that when I look back at some of my early writings and speeches I am appalled by their pedantry, artificiality and lack of originality. The urge to impress and advertise is clearly noticeable.”Another one is even more brutally honest: "I relied on arrogance in order to hide my weaknesses...one issue that deeply worried me in prison was the false image that I unwittingly projected to the outside world; of being regarded as a saint. I never was one, even on the basis of an earthly definition of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying."Such candor is refreshing coming from a politician, to be honest.What also fascinated me was the man's complicated stance on the use of violence. I'm sure you are aware, at least peripherally, that he was the first commander in chief of the armed wing of the ANC, Umkhonto we Sizwe, and was instrumental in pushing for the creation of it. When he was asked if it was “Christian” to use force under certain circumstances, he replied, “when the only way of making a forward movement, of solving problems, is the use of force: when peaceful methods become inadequate. That is a lesson of history, right down the centuries and...in every part of the world.” But then, there is a beautiful passage here in another interview where he laments running over a snake: “But just to kill an animal, an innocent reptile, that was what worried me. And especially seeing it through the rear-view mirror, struggling, you know, to be alive. You know, it was a deplorable act on my part.” And of course, it is obvious throughout the entire book that peace was his primary goal right alongside universal equality. But of course, “the means which are used by the oppressed to advance their struggle are determined by the oppressor himself.”There was also a fun little section that goes over a calendar he kept in his cell on Robin Island. It gets a little tedious of course, but it also gives you an idea of how he made the best of everything. This, to me, makes the man most fascinating: he spends years in a cell, and rather than becoming bitter, he turns his focus inward for self-improvement and reflection. Not only that, he also refuses to stop brainstorming about how to improve South Africa if and when he gets out. He can't even stop playing politics with the wardens and the other prisoners, which you just have to chuckle at. He was a remarkable man, and this is a great book to provide some insight into his thought process.
review 2: عندما ذهبتُ إلى المكتبة كانت النية كتاب "رحلتي الطويلة من أجل الحرية"، مع معرفتي بنُدرته وقلة وجوده. لكني وجدت هذا الكتاب. كانت سعادتي كبيرة حين رؤيته (لاهتمامي الشخصي بكتب السيَر والمذكرات) وسعادتي أكبر أثناء قراءته، وأكبر بعد الانتهاء منه. كتاب جميل جداً ورائع، يكشف لك عن قرب شخصية هذا الرجل المُلهم والصبور. يحتوي الكتاب على عدد من اللقاءات التي أجراها مانديلا مع صديقه المقرب والصحفي أحمد كاثرادا، والصحفي الأمريكي ريتشارد ستينغل، كما يحتوي على عدد من مسوّدات كتابه الشهير "مشوار طويل نحو الحرية" وتتمته، وكذلك بعض الملاحظات والمذكرات الخاصة التي كان يكتبها إما في السجن أو بعد خروجه منه. وكذلك أثناء الاجتماعات وغيرها. في الكتاب ستكتشف مانديلا عن قرب. ستعجب من صبره، ومن قوته وصلابته، كما في رسالته التي وجهها لمفوض السجن. وستندهش من عاطفته وإنسانيته كما في رسائله إلى زوجته وأحاديثه عن أصدقائه وعن الناس. عن بساطته وهو يكتب الملاحظات الدقيقة ذات السطر. كتاب سيُعجبك، ويُلهمك، وتحمله معك أينما ذهبت، كما كنت أفعل less

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