Beyond the Miracle: Inside the New South Africa - Hardcover

Sparks, Allister

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0226768589 ISBN 13: 9780226768588

Publisher: Univ of Chicago Pr, 2003

Synopsis

"Beyond the Miracle" offers a comprehensive and moving account of the years in South Africa since the 1994 election of a democratic government - a defining moment in twentieth-century political life. Written by Allister Sparks, one of South Africa's most distinguished living journalists, "Beyond the Miracle" covers both the proud achievements and disappointing failures of the administrations and then looks to the future, asking whether this nation can overcome its history and current global trends to create a truly nonracial, multicultural, and multiparty democracy. Sparks unflinchingly examines the obstacles that the new, democratic South Africa faces: an increasingly wide gap between rich and poor, the disastrous long-term effects of civil conflicts, and the devastating impact of HIV/AIDS. Drawing on decades of experience as a journalist, as well as his recent insider access to key figures in the liberation government, Sparks takes stock of where South Africa has been, where it's going, and why the rest of the world should not turn away from this country where the First and Third Worlds meet. "Beyond the Miracle" includes interviews with presidents Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki, as well as with less widely known individuals, such as Afrikaner Helena Dolny, the widow of anti-apartheid activist Joe Slovo. A brilliant analysis of political life since South Africa's "bloodless revolution," "Beyond the Miracle" persuasively argues that achieving Mandela's vision of a peaceful "rainbow nation" is crucial not just for the salvation of Africa, but also for the world.

About this title

Review

"Sparks, a grandfather of South African journalism, has fired one of the first volleys in the 10-year assessment.... It is an even-handed work, almost encyclopedic in its breadth. Sparks traverses all the important political terrain." - Mail & Guardian "It is as good a guide to the new South Africa as any." - Economist"

About the Author

Allister Sparks has been the editor of the Sunday Express and the Rand Daily Mail, as well as South Africa correspondent for the Washington Post, Observer, Economist, and Holland's NRC Handelsblad. He is the author of The Mind of South Africa and Tomorrow Is Another Country: The Inside Story of South Africa's Road to Change, the latter published by the University of Chicago Press.

About this edition

• Publisher: Univ of Chicago Pr
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0226768589
• ISBN 13: 9780226768588
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 288