WTF: Capturing Zuma – A Cartoonist’s Tale, the new book from Zapiro, is out now from Jacana Media.

WTF is renowned cartoonist Zapiro’s account of the Zuma years in 400 brilliant cartoons and the stories behind them.

It is much more than a collection of cartoons, it’s also a definitive personal record from a man uniquely positioned to reflect the serious craziness and the crazy seriousness of this bewildering time in our history.

Zapiro’s career has been tightly entwined with the tale of Jacob Zuma for more than twenty years. He has sharply charted his rise and fall, and everything in between, including the corrupting presence of the Guptas and the destructive cancer of state capture. And he created the iconic showerhead which has become a nationally known symbol of Zuma.

Zapiro was served with two law suits by Zuma, totalling R22m, claiming cartoons had invaded his dignity. And many times the cartoonist has been threatened in other ways by senior political figures because of his caustic and brilliant work.

WTF recounts these experiences and gives a unique insight into how Zapiro goes about creating his cartoons.

WTF will make you laugh and cry. Zapiro’s cartoons stand as an essential, bitter-sweet testimonial which captures Jacob Zuma and the wild ride he took the nation on. It also reflects and explains the significant presence Zuma still has in our politics.

About the author

Zapiro is Jonathan Shapiro. Born in 1958, he went through architecture at UCT, conscription, activism, detention and a Fulbright scholarship to New York before establishing himself as South Africa’s best-known cartoonist. He works as the editorial cartoonist for Daily Maverick. Previously, he was editorial cartoonist for The Sunday Times (1998–2018), Mail & Guardian (1994–2016),  The Times (2009–2016), Sowetan (1994–2005), Cape Argus (1996–1997), and Cape Times, The Star, The Mercury and Pretoria News (2005–2008). He has published 22 best-selling annuals as well as The Mandela Files, Vuvuzela Nation (a collection of his sporting cartoons) and Democrazy (a collection of his cartoons spanning the 20 years of SA’s democracy).

Categories Non-fiction South Africa South African Current Affairs

Tags Jacana Media WTF Zapiro