The Zondo Commission of Inquiry was one of the most important political developments in modern South African history. The commission sat for years, hearing the evidence of 300 witnesses and gathering a vast quantity of documents.

The result is a damning and sometimes searing account of the state take over: how the Gupta family found willing acolytes in the state, and set about systematically looting the country and destroying institutions of democracy. There is little doubt that understanding South Africa’s political history, its current malaise and its political future requires an understanding of the commission’s work. The commission’s final findings, however, run to over 5 000 pages. Reading all of this material is a daunting and overwhelming task for even the most dedicated citizen.

Zondo at your Fingertips solves this problem. In straightforward and accessible language, author Paul Holden sets out the work of the commission, its findings and recommendations. Holden is well placed to do so: he gave evidence before the Zondo Commission over multiple days, tracing the ways in which the Gupta family captured and looted.

Zondo at your Fingertips summarises concisely each volume of the commission’s final findings, and communicates the commission’s sometimes complex legal discussions clearly and candidly.

But Holden does not just summarise: he also evaluates the commission’s findings, highlighting the good, the bad and the ugly of it’s work. In so doing, he points to stones left unturned, leads that must be followed and warnings to heed.

At last! For those who didn’t know their corvettes from their counter-trade, this book’s timing is deadly accurate. The Arms Deal’s taint of corruption has hovered spectre–like over SA politics since Patricia de Lille’s document hit parliament in 1999, but the plethora of newspaper articles, court cases, conspiracy theories and counter-allegations surrounding the deal still leaves many scratching their heads.

The Arms Deal In Your Pocket starts at the roots and works its way to the present, telling the story in the simplest way possible. When the future of South African politics hangs in the balance, can you really afford not to understand why?

The questions, and the answers:

• What was bought, and why?
• Who was involved? The book gives a cast of characters, a guide to the maze of companies, and a timeline.
• What was covered up?
• What charges does Jacob Zuma face?

Although there is often opposition to individual wars, most people continue to believe that the arms industry is necessary in some form: to safeguard our security, provide jobs and stimulate the economy. Not only conservatives, but many progressives and liberals, support it for these reasons. Indefensible puts forward a devastating challenge to this conventional wisdom, which has normalised the existence of the most savage weapons of mass destruction ever known. It is the essential handbook for those who want to debunk the arguments of the industry and its supporters: deploying case studies, statistics and irrefutable evidence to demonstrate they are fundamentally flawed, both factually and logically. Far from protecting us, the book shows how the arms trade undermines our security by fanning the flames of war, terrorism and global instability. In countering these myths, the book points to ways in which we can combat the arms trade's malignant influence, reclaim our democracies and reshape our economies.

Of all the historical documents charting Worthing's past, few are more important than a wartime diary called 'Hotchpot', compiled with religious dedication by Broadwater resident C.F. Harriss. Mr Harriss was a retired lawyer who lived with his wife in Rectory Gardens throughout the Second World War, and his diary, now in the hands of West Sussex Library Service, charts in intimate detail the daily lives of people during this turbulent time. Mr Harriss hoped the giant tome, split into two volumes, would assist future historians attempting to probe through the mists of oblivion. He wrote, 'It was written at the time and so supplied an exact and vivid record of wartime life, a true and intimate example, in the colour of the moment, of what ordinary citizens felt, thought and said.' The diary is remarkable chiefly on account of Mr Harriss's literate and informed manner. As well as describing events in wartime Worthing, it provides what is almost certainly an accurate commentary on civilian morale as news of the progress of the war reaches a seaside town. _ e diarist is a 'character' and his personality inflects his account, but he is above all knowledgeable and articulate and his daily entries are a pleasure and an education to read.