The Mandela Files (Hardcover)

Drawing on Zapiro's astonishing range of cartoons of Madiba from the late 1980s to the present, this handsome book is Jonathan Shapiro's personal tribute to the great man of our times, whose life is recorded in these pages. In addition to the classic cartoons there are personal anecdotes about Zapiro's meetings with Madiba, commentary on the stories behind the cartoons, and the responses which Zapiro has had to his Madiba drawings. There are some colour drawings as well as black-and-white cartoons, and the book is beautifully presented in hardback.

Nelson Mandela is arguably the greatest man of our times; and Zapiro is arguably South Africa's greatest political cartoonist. The Mandela Files brings together these two giants, each 'shaping' the other. Since the late 1980s Zapiro has documented and commented, in pen and ink, on the dramatic political changes in this country, changes in which Mandela has played the lead role. In The Mandela Files, Zapiro has produced a chronological record of his cartoons of the great man and of the seismic shifts in South Africa's political landscape. While his cartoons reflect the admiration he has for Mandela, he has not shied away from the occasional criticism. What is striking about his personal anecdotes of his interactions with Mandela is that Mandela not only appreciates the cartoonist's humour, but supports the role of cartoonist as critic. Zapiro describes, too, the life of a political cartoonist, and provides commentary on the events and inspiration behind the cartoons, as well as the responses the images have evoked from people from all walks of life.

The Mandela Files quintessentially defines Zapiro, the cartooning legend, and his perspective of a colossus and the footprints he has left behind. It is also a remarkable record of how one man has captured the history, concerns and delights of a nation.