Shauwn 'Mamkhize' Mkhize is a larger than life personality who, like
her father and brother before her, is loved and misunderstood in equal
measure. Her combination of political and business acumen runs in her
family, and so is her ability to garner the sometimes-grudging
admiration of those who have followed her rise to fame and fortune in
the democratic dispensation. In her memoir, Mamkhize: My World, My Rules,
this remarkable businesswoman shares the details of her cloistered but
privileged childhood, which was torn asunder by the assassination of her
father and the subsequent quest by her brother to avenge his death. She
tells the story of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission from her
unique vantage point, as a family member of a victim.
As a young accounting graduate freshly returned from an overseas
experience, Shauwn lands what initially seems to be a dream job with the
multinational corporation that had sponsored her training abroad. It
soon dissipates into disappointment - work that receives insufficient
pay and she bravely ventures into business. In this book, she dispels
the urban legends about her wealth, family, marriage and subsequent
divorce. She reflects on the much-publicized story of her reinvention as
Mamkhize, the soccer boss, and shares the lessons that she has learned
from the experiences that life has given her. A woman with incredible
agency, Mamkhize allows the reader a glimpse into her family life and
her formative years. She illuminates how they have shaped the woman that
she is today. Not one to reveal every single trick of her trades (after
all, she is the business), Shauwn Mkhize manages to regale without
spoiling her aura of mystique. While touching the reader with her love
for her parents, siblings and children, this memoir displays the
dexterity with which she navigates modern life while striving to
maintain a sense of tradition that keeps her grounded.