Nelson Mandela

An immediate download for me for both myself and the kids. I always find these stories so inspirational and love sharing them with my littles. Always beautifully illustrated and written, these informative books are so brilliant for young growing minds.

Nelson Mandela is the newest lead in this latest edition of the Little People, BIG DREAMS series by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara. This series is such a delight and the perfect way to educate not just kids but everyone about historic and cultural icons.

Nelson Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, political leader and philanthropist who served as the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country's first black head of state and the first elected in a fully representative democratic election. The book follows Mandela as he fought for equal rights under apartheid.

Alison Hawkins illustrates this installment and does a fantastic job. Hawkins' art style was so captivating and her art definitely further helped tell Mandela's story. I love collecting these books and am so thrilled to add this one to the rest of my collection.

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Of course, I love the Little People, Big Ideas series. And whenever I see one on Netgalley to review, I immediately request it. But this one in particular, I read not only for my kiddos but also for me. I have always loved Nelson Mandela's story. And to read it in this style was fun. It is a perfect tidbit of an inspiring story for children read about such an inspirational man.

The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The ‘My First Little People, Big Dreams’ series provides informative and inspirational biographies about people who left a mark on this earth, no matter what difficulties they have encountered.
These stories are very short, but that’s because they’re books for children, so it’s totally understandable.
I think they are a very smart and wonderful way to introduce little children to such important figures.
This little book tells the story of Nelson Mandela, South Africa's first Black president. He spent his life fighting for equal rights, he's truly an inspirational figure. I'm happy children can find out about him this way.

I was thankful for an opportunity to read and review this book about South Africa’s first Black president, Nelson Mandela, as I regrettably didn’t know very much about this outstanding man.

First of all, what a great cover design! It has universal appeal, regardless of age.

Children will be swept away to South Africa and will learn about the racial segregation that resulted from apartheid, as well as learn about the man who protested about it, never giving up the fight for justice and equality, despite being arrested and imprisoned.

My niece and nephew were awestruck at learning how he got his name and that he was the first one in his family to go to school! The illustrations by Alison Hawkins are catalysts for great conversations.

Reading about how long Mandela kept his dream alive, will encourage young people. The two greatest messages I got from this book were that the greatest glory is rising every time we fall and that a winner is just a dreamer who never gives up.

South Africans refer to Mandela as the ‘Father of the Nation,’ but the world knows him as the man who never gave up on his dream and walked the long road to equality.

In this world of instant gratification, children need to know that sometimes it takes longer than we think to achieve what we want AND that we need to keep thinking about the dream and getting up each time we fall. Thank you, Little People BIG DREAMS, for this reminder.

I was gifted this book by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara, Quarto Publishing Group, Frances Lincoln Children’s Books and NetGalley and was under no obligation to provide a review.

I was expecting more facts in this one. Well, for the target audience the book is perfect I feel, in terms of the writing, the presentation and the illustrations.

Thank you, author/artist and the publisher, for the advance reading copy.

A wonderful addition to the series! I loved learning about the life of Nelson Mandela. Children will be inspired by his commitment to equality and justice.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing this ARC.

This is a great series. They are easy to read, are about people that there may not be any autobiographies about for children, and they manage to give an accurate accounting of the persons life without getting into details that would make them unsuitable for children.

Over the course of 2021 I have reviewed many books in this series. It seems appropriate somehow to close out the year with this title on a truly good man and inspiring figure. Hope it will also inspire you and the children in your life.

Nelson Mandela’s story is well and simply told here, from his early years, through his education and eventual arrest. Mandela’s “long walk to freedom” is noted. I love the last sentence of this book. It simply states “…a winner is just a dreamer who never gives up.”

As it always true in this series, there are supplemental materials at the end of the book. These offer additional information. Also, the illustrations enhance the text; their colors match the tone of the story.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

A timely book, given the recent deaths of other major South African political figures, is this just published Nelson Mandela by Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara - albeit a children’s book. As the father of the new South Africa, Mandela is well known. His achievements will inspire children, as this book acknowledges the spirit of the man. With colourful drawings and easily understood sentences, children of all ages will delight in this book and be given an insight to a significant figure of modern history. A four-star read rating and a tip – seek out other works in the series. With much thanks to Frances Lincoln Children's Books and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own and freely given.

Reading this left me both inspired and deeply sad, as nelson spent the majority of his life in prison, I cant help but think about what else he may have accomplished had he not been incarcerated.

"a winner is just a dreamer who never gives up"
That is the takeaway from the life story of this very remarkable man who was imprisoned so that all others in his country, South Africa, would be free instead of a select group of legal aliens. This book is perfect for reading with children and also for ESL. Well done!
I requested and received a free temporary ebook copy from Quarto Publishing Group/ Frances Lincoln Children's Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

I love all the books in this series. The illustrations are beautiful and the story is told in a child friendly, easy to understand manner. I do wish the story had delved a tad more into why NM was so prominent, especially before going to prison. I always love the “adult” blurb at the end. Thanks to NetGalley for the free preview in exchange for an honest review.

We love these books in our house. They are a great way to introduce your little ones to important and/or famous people without being too big or in depth (I.e. anything scandalous)

This was a wonderful book about a very great man. It is a good way to have an important conversation without overwhelming a young person.

The Little People, Big Dreams series is such a wonderful series of books! Beautifully illustrated, the illustrations alone tell a wonderful story and spark fabulous conversations! With clear and easy to read and easy to understand text, a facts section & a biographical time line. This book will prove to be interesting for a range of young readers as well as the adults reading with the youngest of those readers. Love this series ❤️

This is such a thoughtful book for young children. It touches on big issues like segregation, racism, and overcoming adversity in a nurturing way, to not overwhelm the children. It allows for conversations to take place, for more curious learning, and to learn and feel empathy. Not only will children learn of the history, but they will also learn about Nelson Mandela. The beauty of this series "Little People, Big Dreams" and of Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara is that these figures are shown in their innocence, the gift that it gives children is that they know they are capable of changing the world like the people they read about. Nelson Mandela was not only featured as a child or as an illustration, but Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara also includes timelines with actual photos of these historic figures, it allows for dreamers as the series intends, and I love that.

Nelson Mandela is a short picture book with charming illustrations about the life of Nelson Mandela and his accomplishments. Presented in a simple way with narrative illustrations, this book is perfect for teaching very young children about civil rights leader Nelson Mandela.

This is a very difficult, complex story to distill for early readers. The book handles the details of Mandela's life in a simple, matter-of-fact way that is accessible for young students but winds up feeling a tiny bit flat. This would probably be best used as a framework to start a discussion about Mandela and apartheid that could be supplemented with information from other sources. There are a lot of great topics and themes introduced (colonialism, systemic racism, incarceration, international activism, free elections, etc.), which is helpful, but readers could definitely benefit from more depth.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

I am a big fan of the Little People, Big Dreams Series. This one is all about Nelson Mandela, who is one of the most infamous people of the 20th century. These books are filled with great information that are easy for kids to understand and have great illustrations.

Thank you to netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

"A winner is just a dreamer who never gives up".

Nelson Mandela is another superb addition to the Little People Big Dreams series and is another of my favourites so far.
This short biography for children explains who Nelson Mandela was and how he made a difference on the world. Nelson Mandela was such an inspirational person and I'm so glad he's been given a spot in this series. So much is still to be done in the world today to rid the world of racism and division and this book helps children to see that chasing your dreams and standing up for what you believe in, can impact the world around us and make a change weather big or small.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and authors for providing me with an ARC of this book.
It was informative with great illustrations. I highly recommend it

This is a very basic and child friendly biography of Nelson Mandela. It is important to note that this is about Mandela, not apartheid. As I read this I originally thought it did not show how bad apartheid was, but it does share the story of young Nelson (aka Rolihlahla) and how he became involved in human rights in South Africa. Rolihlahla meant troublemaker in Xhosa, his native language. He was descended from a clan who had lived on the land for generations. Once it was taken over by white men, the black inhabitants became second class. When Nelson's father died he was sent to live at the "Great Place" and he was educated by the chief's family. He developed a sense of fairness and eventually began organizing peaceful protests to gain right for everyone. After several arrests, he was finally imprisoned for 27 years for trying to overthrow the government. People all over the world demanded his release and eventually President F. W. de Klerk released him in 1990. Again it doesn't mention the pressure from the world, nor the threat of civil war. It makes it sound like he did it because it was the right thing to do. This is a great introduction to Nelson Mandela and how his drive to promote equal rights and justice began as a young boy. Alison Hawkin's illustrations are stylized images and were a perfect companion to this book. The message of dreaming big and following those dreams is a great one for children.

I received an electronic ARC from Quarto Publishing Group – Frances Lincoln Children's Books through NetGalley.
One of the latest in the Little People, Big Dreams series. Sanchez Vegara is superb at capturing the essence of historical figures for younger readers. She shares the important pieces of Mandela's life at a level elementary students can comprehend. Her text offers connection points to their own experiences, and the books always end with encouragement for readers. The timeline provided at the end offers more facts and actual photos of Mandela.
I always look forward to seeing who she will write about next.

I am loving this series! I find the books extremely informative and at an understanding level for younger children (in my case, students). The illustrations are great, too…often depicting real events. These books would be helpful to start classroom discussions and even those hard conversations that often get overlooked. I definitely plan on purchasing this book and others in the series for my classroom!
Thanks @netgalley for the ARC!

Posted on my Instagram page @lizzies_little_library

"A winner is a dreamer who doesn't give up."

"Little people big dreams" have not disappointed me when it comes to learn about the lives of famous people for our young readers. Not just only basic and child-friendly biographies, this series always contained beautiful illustrations and an inspiring quote (such as the one above) at the end of the each book.
Similarly.  I enjoyed reading Nelson Mandela. The book portrays brief description of Mandela's life (and how he made a difference in the world) in a simplest language for young children to comprehend and engage to read further. Also, I love how simply the racial and political issues were explained for children to understand the hard work that Mandela had fought for.
Overall, it is a great book for a head start to learn about this inspiring man.

This book was amazing. I grew up learning about nelson mandela from books and my family. I never learned about it in school but i went into this book thinking i would know it all. I had never heard about his childhood and I’m shocked and pleased to be able to see what his upbringing was like before he was nelson mandela! This book shows and appreciates a great man. How could so much be told in a children’s book?!

I enjoyed this book more than I thought I would. So much to learn about the iconic Nelson Mandela! The book read smoothly with great illustrations regarding Mandelas life - both struggles and great accomplishes. What an amazing man who never deserved what happened to him. I’m so glad I picked this book!

I love this series and how each page has 4 lines. The illustrated part of the book gives essential information of the person's life and then there is a detailed 2 page spread at the back that gives even more information. All information is presented in a kid-friendly way. I can't wait to see what else this series has to offer.

I love this series of books, and this one did not disappoint! The book is super accessible for readers of all ages and has beautiful accompanying illustrations.

As always, this is another fantastic book from the Little People, Big Dreams series. Starting from his childhood, it gives a simple yet informational retelling of Nelson Mandela's life, highlighting the difficulties he faced in his quest for equal rights. This is definitely a book I would use in the classroom as part of a history topic. I was really pleased that it didn't skim over certain important elements, such as the time he spent in prison and reasons why, so it gives the complete picture. The illustrations are bright and colourful, attracting children's attention and small chunks of text on each page mean it isn't too overwhelming for kids to read independently.