Z Pallo Jordan is the quintessential man of political letters on the one hand, and an astute literary historian in his own inimitable way, penning flowing observations, interspersed with pithy and yet colourful descriptions on the other hand – while cutting to the bone in analyses and breath-takinginsights, informed by meticulous reading amassed over nearly half a century of struggle. Letters to Friends and Comrades is the ultimate collection of his piercing and yet embraceable thoughts and inquiries.This treasure trove of the writings of Z Pallo Jordan could not have been more timely in this critical – or should we say unfortunate – period of the promise that was the New Democratic Republic of South Africa, and published as it is on the eve of the African National Congress's generalelective congress in December 2017, and interestingly in the aftermath of the watershed municipal elections of 3 August 2016.