Nelson Mandela's Granddaughter's New Book Talks Of Being Sexually Abused

The granddaughter of Nelson Mandela tells of the heartache at the death of her 13-year-old daughter in a car crash in June 2010 as well as her decade-long battle with addiction to drugs and alcohol and being diagnosed with breast cancer last year.

Zoleka Mandela, grand-daughter of Mandela says she was sexually abused as a child.

In her autobiography, 'When Hope Whispers' released on Monday, November 11, 2013, she narrates how she was sexually abused as a child, how her children died; she accused her family of neglect.

'From the time I was barely eight years old to the age of 14, I had been sexually abused by some of the adults who should have been looking after me.'

'For years I blamed her (her mother Zindzi Mandela) for the physical and sexual abuse I was subjected to as a child. My feeling was that if she had been there for me, she could have prevented it and I could have been protected. I have come to realise she probably did the best she could,' 33-year-old Zoleka wrote in her book.

She details her personal frustration at losing her children and battling with cancer. 'I felt like I was in a horror film, and I was finding it impossible to even comprehend. I'd had Zenani and Zenawe taken from me, and now there was the sudden reality that I may never again breast-feed or carry another pregnancy.'

Zoleke, a breast cancer survivor and road safety activist hopes that her life will inspire people to follow many of their dreams despite life's expected flows.

'When Hope Whispers' by Zoleka Mandela, reveals a childhood blighted by sexual abuse.