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Ronald Kasrils

The Unlikely Secret Agent Paperback – Illustrated, June 1, 2012

by Ronnie Kasrils (Author)

19 ratings

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Winner of South Africa’s top literary prize, the Alan Paton Award, The Unlikely
Secret Agent tells the thrilling true story of one woman’s struggle against the
apartheid system. It is 1963. South Africa is in crisis and the white state is
under siege. One August 19th, the dreaded Security Police descended
on Griggs bookstore in downtown Durban and arrest Eleanor, the white daughter
of the manager. They threaten to “break her or hang her” if she does not lead
them to her lover, “Red” Ronnie Kasrils, who is wanted on suspicion of
involvement in recent acts of sabotage, including the toppling of electricity
pylons and explosions at a Security Police office in Durban.

But Eleanor has her own secret to conceal: she is, like Ronnie, a
clandestine agent for the underground ANC and must protect her handlers and
Ronnie at all costs. Astutely, she convinces the police that she is on the
verge of a nervous breakdown and, still a prisoner, is relocated to a mental
hospital in Pietermaritzburg for assessment. It is here that she plots her
escape.

This remarkable story of a young woman’s courage and daring at a time
of increasing repression in apartheid South Africa is told here for the first
time with great verve and élan by Eleanor’s husband, Ronnie Kasrils, who
eventually became South Africa’s Minister of Intelligence Services in 2004.

Print length

192 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Monthly Review Press
Publication date

June 1, 2012
Dimensions

6 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches
ISBN-10

158367277X
ISBN-13

978-1583672778
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Monthly Review Press; Illustrated edition (June 1, 2012)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 158367277X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1583672778
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.75 x 8.25 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,656,288 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,184 in South African History
- #1,492 in Historical African Biographies (Books)
- #3,710 in African Politics

Customer Reviews:
19 ratings

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Carlos Ramos Mattei

Not exactly what you expect from the title

Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2013

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From the title and the endorsements I thought I was going to read about the exploits of an "unlikely secret agent", an everyday woman thrust into a particular direction in life. There is some of that in the book, yes, but it is dedicated mostly to her incarceration, and some references to her previous role without many details. In his narrative the author also presupposes a background knowledge about certain people and events which many people don't have.

4 people found this helpful

Helpful

Manfred Teichler

As a South African, who grew up in Botswana ...

Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2017

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As a South African, who grew up in Botswana and SA, I was most fascinated by this well-written story! I will pass it on to my children to read
Manfred Teichler

Helpful

Glenn Miller

The Unlikely Secret Agent

Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2013

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I found the book incredibly interesting. Growing up as a youngster at the time of these happenings, I was completely oblivious to what was happening around me. Hats off to a very brave lady. Once again it just goes to show that too much power is never a good thing, especially when it is abused.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

keetmom

Love and sacrifice

Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2014

This short book, written long after the events, is a powerful love story. Ronnie Kasrils records the story of the young woman who later became his wife, whom he recruited into the underground struggle against apartheid. Eleanor is drawn into ever more dangerous missions to assist would-be saboteurs and is arrested. She faces her police interrogators with remarkable courage and determination. She outplays them totally and with striking ingenuity plans her escape from the mental hospital where she is placed under observation. "The Unlikely Secret Agent" is a true story that captures the mood of the politically explosive 1960s in South Africa. Thirty years later, Kasrils returned home, became a cabinet minister in the early years of democracy and remains a vocal critic of current practices he decries as contradicting the principles for which he and Eleanor fought.

Helpful

C. Wilson

A Cute Story

Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2013

If a person wants to learn if Eleanor's husband Ronnie loved her and thought highly of her then read this book. The answer is yes. Little else will be learned from reading this book.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

donald j. munro

A little known heroic struggle

Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2013

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I knew few details about the struggle in South
Africa before reading this book. The heroine is remarkable, s is her underground role.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

merle

Wonderful book

Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2012

Kasrils' book about his wife's activities in fighting against apartheid reads like a novel. It is fast paced, insightful and very moving. A must read book!

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

leo

So good, too short - If only there were many, many more pages!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 22, 2014

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Ronnie Kasrils is astonishing character, a man of exceptional integrity, bravery and love. He was at the heart of South Africa's struggle for freedom from Apartheid and has been rightly hailed as a hero.
And he can't half write too! In a deceptively simple, pot-boiler style he tells perhaps his most important story yet. In his life Kasrils was involved in countless hair-raising episodes - enough to put James Bond to shame. (Read his amazing autobiography for an insight into the realities of the fight against Apartheid, called Armed and Dangerous). But this story is one from the heart, the story of his wife and comrade, with whom he was clearly desperately in love.
Eleanor was an amazing woman, seemingly every bit Kasrils equal, and this story is a beautiful kind of homage to her. Really, it's the stuff of a movie and if she and Kasrils hadn't been avowed revolutionaries then Hollywood would have made it by now.

3 people found this helpful

Simon out of Africa

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 1, 2015

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Great book

One person found this helpful

Helene P

An unassuming woman who did great things

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 29, 2012

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I happen to have known Eleanor Kasrils, an amazing woman and warm friend. This book is her husband Ronnie's loving hommage to the courage of his life-long companion through hard times of struggle, exile, forced separation and insecurity. The book reads like a John Le Carré novel and gives a very lively description of the South African liberation struggle in the early years of the underground after the banning of the African National Congress in 1960. It also reminds the role of women of all colours throughout the struggle, especially those who shunned the stage lights. Eleanore herself told the story with lots of laughs, typically downplaying her suffering, ingenuity, tremendous courage, and more in general the important role she played. Fascinating to get the real story now. Indeed, she looked like an "unlikely secret agent" as the title says, but of course those are the best! A very good read for anyone interested in an unassuming woman who did great things.

10 people found this helpful

Siusaidh

The importance of individuals

Reviewed in Canada on December 1, 2012

Verified Purchase

My only criticism of this book is that it is too short, that it does not cover enough of the life of this interesting woman. It should be read by anyone interested in the South African struggle against Apartheid, and anyone concerned about the role of thinking women of principle anywhere in the world.

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