In 1652, a small group of Dutch farmers landed on the southernmost tip of Africa. Sent by the powerful Dutch India Company, their mission was simply to grow vegetables and supply ships rounding the cape. The colonists, however, were convinced by their strict Calvinist faith that they were among God's "elect," chosen to rule over the continent. Their bloody, ferocious, and fervent saga would culminate three centuries later in one of the greatest tragedies of history: the establishment of a racist regime in which a white minority would subjugate and victimize millions of blacks--apartheid. This poisonous system would only end with the liberation of one of the moral giants of our time, Nelson Mandela.

An international bestseller that has been praised throughout Europe, A Rainbow in the Night is Dominique Lapierre's epic account of South Africa's tragic history and the heroic men and women--famous and obscure, white and black, European and African--who have, with their blood and tears, brought to life the country that is today known as the Rainbow Nation.