Nelson Mandela as he has never been seen before. His life's sacrifices recounted in vivid detail by the prison guard with whom he became lifelong friends. On a desolate island off the coast of apartheid South Africa, an unlikely but enduring friendship formed between a young prison guard and his ward: the man who would change their country forever. Raised in a multi-ethnic farming community, Afrikanner Christo Brand was confused and saddened when, as a young man, he first confronted the realities of apartheid. Conscripted into the military at 18, Brand chose to serve as a prison guard rather than embrace the brutality and danger inherant in the work of soldiers and policemen. Assigned to the maximum security facility on remote Robben Island, Brand was given charge of the country's most infamous inmate: Nelson Mandela. For 12 years Brand watched Mandela scrub floors, empty his toilet bucket, grieve over the death of his mother and son and yet remain as strong as any freedom fighter in history. Won over by Madiba's charm and authentic concern for the well being of others, Brand became Mandela's confidant and accomplice, celebrating his prisoner's triumphs and suffering through his many setbacks, forming a bond that would endure until Mandela's death.

Told with candor and reverence, "Mandela: My Prisoner, My Friend "is both a personal story of enduring friendship and a moving testament to the dedication, determination and--most of all--humanity exuded by one of the world's great leaders.