This book looks at the moment Nelson Mandela was freed from prison after 27 years - a moment which had symbolic significance as the end to apartheid. The book explains the background to how and why Mandela became a political prisoner for so long and then goes on to look at the changes that went on in South Africa to make his release possible. It then goes on to examine the reactions of the rest of the world and whether Mandela succeeded in living up to the expectations of those people who had dreamed of his release for so long.