Nelson Mandela’s private diaries auctioned

Author Reviews, Book ReviewsTags: Diary, Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela by Sue Dickinson

15th Oct 2009

“Virtually every major territory” was bidding for the hottest book in Frankfurt, Nelson Mandela’s private diaries. US rights were sold on Wednesday afternoon (14th) to Jonathan Galassi at Macmillan US’ Farrar, Straus and Giroux via Sloan Harris at ICM, with deals also in Portugal, France and Denmark, auctions in Brazil, Sweden and Holland and offers in from Germany, Israel and Italy.

“What is so amazing is that he wrote virtually every day of his life and kept all his notes,” said Geller. “The book shows the personal side of this icon, his amazing humanity and wisdom.” Geller is handling worldwide rights to the book on behalf of New Zealand-based packager PQ Blackwell, a previous publisher of Mandela, who approached Geller to agent the book after Mandela bestowed his entire archive to the Nelson Mandela Foundation.

(Extracted and adapted from The Bookseller)

In his famous autobiography The Long Walk to Freedom which won the Alan Paton Award in 1995, Nelson Mandela describes his 27 years in prison. From Mandela’s private diaries we can expect further details of his tenure there. The book The Long Walk to Freedom will be adapted to a movie directed by Tom Hooper this year.

List of book available by Nelson Mandela:

• Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela