If courage goes: My twenty years in South African politics by Taylor, Catherine
If Courage Goes: My Twenty Years in South African Politics By Catherine Taylor (Collectible First Edition)
A Seminal Political Autobiography of Parliamentary Resistance and Opposition with a Foreword by Alan Paton
A Seminal Political Autobiography of Parliamentary Resistance and Opposition with a Foreword by Alan Paton
Bibliographic Specifications
- Title: If Courage Goes: My Twenty Years in South African Politics
- Author: Catherine Taylor
- Foreword: Alan Paton
- Publisher: Macmillan South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Johannesburg
- Publication Date: 1976
- ISBN-10: 0869540270
- ISBN-13: 9780869540275
- Edition Details: First Edition, Standard Hardcover Release (Collectible Copy)
- Binding: Original publisher's premium cloth boards, complete with original illustrated dust jacket, now preserved inside a clear Cellophane archival cover.
- Physical Format: Octavo (8vo), xii, 316 pages. Enhanced with central historical photographic plates documenting key moments in mid-20th-century South African legislative history.
- Language: English
Official Condition Report
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The Book: Very Good (VG)
- Exterior / Boards: The original publisher's cloth binding remains remarkably firm, true, and sharp-cornered. The spine text is bold and undamaged, with crisp head and tail bands showing no signs of shelf-bumping.
- Interior: The text block is robust, tight, and highly sound. Internal pages and photographic inserts are crisp, beautifully preserved, and completely clean. Free from standard user annotations, highlighting, owner nameplates, or dog-ears.
- Preservation: Meticulously looked after and now completely housed in a protective Cellophane sleeve to maintain its current excellent state.
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The Dust Jacket: Very Good Plus (VG+)
- Condition: An exceptionally beautiful jacket example that remains vibrant, clean, and structurally sound. Minimal edge-rubbing entirely consistent with careful long-term shelf storage. Safely stabilized and showcased beautifully beneath the clear archival Cellophane wrap.
Synopsis & Political Value
Published in 1976, If Courage Goes is a profound, front-row autobiographical account of Catherine Taylor’s twenty highly turbulent years at the coalface of South African parliamentary politics. Armed with a foreword by legendary activist and author Alan Paton, the memoir charts Taylor's journey as the United Party Member of Parliament for Wynberg from 1953 until her high-profile resignation in 1974. Serving as the Shadow Minister of Education and Shadow Secretary for Coloured Affairs, Taylor provides a razor-sharp critique of the inner workings of legislative opposition during the height of the apartheid regime. Her narrative captures the immense ethical tightropes, internal caucus divisions, and the broader socio-political fractures that defined the era. It stands as a vital cornerstone volume for collectors of political memoirs, mid-century Africana, and anti-apartheid historical records.
Author Profile: Catherine Taylor
Catherine Dorothea Taylor (1914–1992) was a formidable British-born South African politician, intellectual, and author. The daughter of an Anglican archdeacon, she read philosophy, languages, psychology, and history at Bristol University before moving to South Africa and marrying Lance Gordon Taylor on the eve of the Second World War. As an outspoken Member of Parliament, she earned widespread respect for her fierce articulation of civil liberties, educational equity, and human rights. Her sharp intellectual training and unrelenting parliamentary principles positioned her as one of the most prominent women in South Africa's mid-century legislative arena.
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