This is an excellent story about how Mandela brokered peace with the Afrikaner minority by encourging them to participate in the democratic elections instead of resorting to war. Mandela did this through diplomacy and negotiating with General Constand Viljoen, former chief of apartheid South Africa's military and the leader of South Africa's white nationalists.

If Mandela had not had the wisdom and foresight to do this, South Africa would have descended in to a bloodbath. Leaders like Nelson Mandela are incredibly scarce. Our world would be a different place if our leaders embraced the kind of leadership he practiced but it is easier said than done.

Credit must also be given to General Constand Viljoen because if he had chosen violence then Mandela could not have brokered peace. The General had the wisdom to see the truth.

This is a great story. I wasnt aware about this. I knew about the truth commissions but I didnt really know how South Africa managed to transition from apartheid to democracy. This is a really good graphic novel, although I think the artwork is a bit too dark for my liking. Having said this overall it is still an excellent story.

Copy recived vua Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

An excellent told story about Mandela and one of the comrades that he kept. I would highly recommend this for a social studies class.

3,5 stars

The author and journalist John Carlin followed the story of Mandela's journey from being prisoner to becoming president and have now teamed up with illustrator Oriol Malet to tell us the story mostly from General Viljoen's pov.

General Viljoen was considered Mandela's archenemy, but with South Africa in distress because of the apartheid and white and black people killing each other, Mandela and Viljoen meet in desperation to come to terms on how to end the bloodshed before it's gone too far.

With Carlin's informative storytelling and Malet's illustrations the story comes alive and teaches you both about the history, but also about how "hero" and "villain" sometimes have to work together for the better of the people.


*Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an e-copy in exchange of an honest review*

There so many books about Nelson Mandela, as this is the 100th anniversary of his birth, and for those of us that lived during the time that he was released, and then moved on to become president, we may not know all the things that happened, as this is such recent history.

And, as an American, I was even further removed from all the nuances of what happened.

This book follows how, once Nelson was released, the retired general, Constand Viljoen, former chief of apartheid South Africa’s military, came between Nelson and the white nationals who did not want to give of white rule. He was really wanted to be left out, but realized, once he was asked, that he had to stop what could have been a blood bath.

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Amazing story. Well written.

#MandelaAndTheGeneral #NetGalley

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

Mandela and the General is great introduction to learning about the end of apartheid. John Carlin does an excellent job of telling the story and explaining the history throughout the book. I think graphic novels like this are a great way to explain history and to get people interested in history. It definitely made me want to learn more about South African apartheid and Mandela.

An informative and simply yet beautifully illustrated graphic novel about something I didn't know much about. While I obviously knew who Mandela was, I had never heard of General Constand Viljoen. The book wasn't judgmental about either person and conveyed an important message about two sides coming together. Definitely aimed more towards people like myself who don't know this history. I can see this doing well in a school library for kids.

I LOVE that writers are using graphic novel format to share important stories from history. John Carlin's thoughtfully distills the complicated history of South African Apartheid by focusing on the relationship of two seemingly opposed leaders.
Oriel Malet's artwork is beautiful and fits perfectly with Carlin's words.
I appreciated the extra features throughout the book - asterisks that explained vocabulary and historical points that non-South African readers may not know, the visual timeline of events, and a couple of excerpts from newspaper articles. They add to the context and understanding.
I look forward to having a copy of this book in my classroom library!

Thank you, NetGalley and Plough Publishing for making it possible for teachers like me to preview great works before bringing them to our students.

My personal knowledge of Nelson Mandela is fairly limited. I equate him as being South Africa’s Martin Luther King, Jr, here in my country. Mandela and the General by journalist John Carlin with artist Oriol Malet brings to life this man, showing his passion and determination to bring a peaceful transition to the country even if that means to dance with the devil. What an enlightening graphic novel this is. Not only do we see Mandela’s pursue of peace but also General Constand Viljoen’s goals, someone I see as the villain in apartheid history. It is a thinking book for middle schoolers and up. Think of the symbolism and ethical decision discussions that could take place; this is just a start of the conversations this book could lead too.

The book is engaging, and inspirational. The art work is edgy which keeps the reader’s attention so that the information can be thoughtfully absorbed. It definitely brings history alive.

An ARC of the book was given to me by the publisher through Net Galley which I voluntarily chose to read and reviewed. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

“We must strive to find a political solution that reconciled White fears with black aspirations.”

I’ve found I really enjoy history told in graphic novel form. It’s informative while not being bogged down in superfluous detail and it makes history more engaging. I feel using this form of media would greatly help teaching children and teens and wish we could see more of it being used this way.

I read Nelson Mandela’s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, earlier this year and Mandela and the General is a great supplemental piece for it. This takes place after Mandela was released from prison when General Constand Viljoen led white nationalist against the new changes coming about due to the end of apartheid. Eventually the two meet and have discussions which lead to the first all South African elections being held peacefully.

Author John Carlin has the unique insight into this struggle between Mandela and Viljoen. He’s stationed in South Africa as an foreign news correspondent and meets both of the men. From this and countless other interviews he’s able to create this narrative while using illustrations to further help describe the events.

There were some really cool renderings in (what looked like) watercolor that portrayed the shadow of something as something else. I liked the symbolism it gave and felt it added to the story.

After reading his autobiography and this graphic novel, I have to add Mandela as one of the people in history I’d want to meet. His story is truly amazing and he selflessly accomplished and helped progress so much in South Africa. It’s truly seeing awing and inspirational.

An interesting biographical graphic novel about Mandela. Great art and color work. We'll definitely get this for our library.

I accidentally requested this when I received an email invitation. I wanted to find out more and didn't realize it automatically gets you a copy, lol.. I skimmed through the book and thought it was okay. Graphical novels either hook me or they don't. This one didn't capture my attention.

While I wouldn't recommend reading this as an e-book I think the physical graphic novel would be great! It did inform me about a period of South African history that I knew little about. Of course, I knew some history of Mandela, but this book has encouraged me to learn more. Written in an engaging style that did a good job presenting what was in the hearts and minds of the two main characters. I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I would recommend this book for people who like graphic novels.

I received a DIGITAL Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoy that people have been using graphic novels to tell history since a lot of these stories lend themselves well to the idea of action, adventure, and heroic people. This one was really well done about a difficult topic, the election of Mandela. I would suggest this to someone who has no idea about the history of the ANC, apartheid, or Mandela, but if you are interested you should definitely delve deeper into the story.

I enjoyed the minimalist style and colorations that were used for this book. With such an important story, using this simple style helps keep the attention on the story rather than the design of the art.

This was an interesting take on the battle that took place for the heart of South Africa. The story follows General Constand Viljoen and his conflicts as the leader of the white nationalist militias that have been bound as one upon Nelson Mandela’s release from prison. Mandela is gaining followers rapidly, causing fear to rise among white nationalists. Together, Mandela and the General form an alliance aimed toward achieving peace through nonviolent negotiations.

I enjoyed the illustrations, they were beautiful. I wasn’t expecting to be shown this story from the point of view of history’s villain. Through the eyes of his privilege, I could see how some of his decisions could make sense to him. It was an uncommon take that I’ve been seeing a few other novels move toward, as well. Overall, an interesting read.

This was very confusing. There were 2 different fonts used going back and forth without reason. Also there were drawn pictures. I think it might be good if it were a regular comic with the text in the correct boxes! Then it would be more understandable!

A very approachable format to an important man and time in history. Mandela was such a testament to the power of forgiveness.

Mandela and the General is a graphic novel about an intense time in South African as the country shifted ideologies and how the end of apartheid began.

It was a terrifying time in the country for both blacks and whites. There were violent extremist groups on both sides that were willing to kill and die for their ideals, with many others in the middle who just wanted the fighting to stop.

This book, while short, shows the emotional turmoil that the leaders of both parties went through and how their willingness to listen to each other led to a massive change in politics, ideologies, and everyday life for many people.

Mandela and the General were intelligent and learned men who could have easily fallen into emotional decisions and claimed that because they were “right,” they were correct in using violence. However, both men also saw that doing so would only lead to “peace in the graveyard.”

This is a fantastic read for not only children, but for adults as well. It gives a quick synopsis of the end of apartheid politically, but also shows the emotional upheaval that both parties, and both leaders, went through.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an advanced copy to read. All opinions are my own.

I've read a sizable amount on South Africa, the horrid apartheid system and its eventual end, but never have I heard of General Constand Viljoen before this graphic novel. Carlin does excellent work telling the fascinatingly true story of the former military commander, his change of heart during an enormous time of transition, and his contributions to keeping peace as a new South Africa was born.