When Zazi and Ziwelene were playing at their Grandma’s house
one day, they found a picture of someone they’d never met,
and they asked Grandma Zindzi to tell them about the man in
the photo. He was Grandad Mandela, Grandma Zindzi’s father.
The story was a familiar one; they’d heard it before, but
there were parts of it that they loved hearing again. Zazi
always asked why Grandad Mandela went to jail, and Grandma
Zindzi answered that Grandad went to jail “because he was
fighting against apartheid… a law in South Africa that
separated black people and white people.”
Grandad Mandela hated that law. He hated it enough to
be imprisoned for his beliefs, and that was “hard” for his
family. Grandma Zindzi was just a little girl then, and she
had to be sent away to school, for her own safety. Being
away from her mother, Big Mummy, was especially difficult
but it made Grandma Zindzi stronger.
Ziwelene asked where Grandad Mandela went to school, and
Grandma Zindzi told the children so much more about him. His
need for justice in South Africa started very early; even as
a boy, he was a champion of equality and many people around
the world agreed with Grandad that apartheid was “evil.” He
was willing to be jailed to end apartheid, and he was glad
to know that “people were pushing harder… for him to be
free.”
That meant a lot, so Grandad waited patiently until
eventually, he was freed. Later, he became President of
South Africa and this year, the 100th anniversary
of his birth, there is one big way that children everywhere
can honor him…
Grandad Mandela
may be a lot for your child to take in.
Don’t be mistaken: the story that Zazi, Ziwelene & Zindzi
Mandela, with Sean Qualls, tells is an important – almost
essential – one that young children may not know. It’s
absolutely a great way to start teaching about Mandela’s
legacy. But the narrative for this book is long, perhaps too
long for squirmy picture-book connoisseurs, and it contains
a lot of big words that kids may not quite grasp. Also,
while Qualls’ illustrations set the tone for this book
perfectly, they may not be colorful enough for youngsters
who are used to the flash usually found in other
age-appropriate books.
Even so, as we near what would have been Mandela’s 100th
birthday, here’s a great book to have around – especially if
your child is patient or a little past the picture-book age.
Five-to-eight-year olds might like Grandad Mandela a
lot; for younger children, that may be a different story.
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