Maya Angelou
By
User:AllieCashel @timeAndDate(1278098857)
Known as one of America's most visible black female writers, Maya Angelou is famous for her series of autobiographies and for her beautiful poetry. Both Angelou's writing and Angelou herself had a major impact on the American Civil Rights Moment and continue to influence the mindsets of people every day. In her autobiographies, she focused on challenging the common structure of the autobiography and memoir by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre. Both her prose and poetry are shockingly honest and have a unique voice that has become a trademark of Angelou's work. Her exploration of themes like racism, identity and family have made Angelou into one of America's most beloved and talented authors.
Popular Works
'''''I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings''''' - Published in 1969, this is the first book in her autobiographical series, arguably the best and certainly the most influential. It's a coming of age story, illustrating how strength of character and love of literature helped Angelou overcome the racism and trauma of the first seventeen years of her life. She uses many fictional tools throughout the autobiography, which (I think at least) keeps it very interesting while also making sure that she sticks to the facts. Although there are very dark and heavy moments throughout the book, overall it is incredibly uplifting, beautifully written and should not be missed.
'''''Gather Together In My Name''''' 19) providing a much tighter and focused look into a section of her life. Although parts of the autobiography are very hard and sad, readers watch in awe as Angelou finds herself and her happiness even in the darkest moments.
'''''Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry Like Christmas''''' - The third book in her series was published in 1976 and depicts struggles to support her young son, form meaningful relationships, and forge a successful career in the entertainment world during her 20s. It examines many of the same themes and subject matter of her other books but, now told from a slightly older perspective, was very easy to relate to for more of her readers. As did the two before this one, it received mostly positive reviews upon publication and has grown to be one of the favorites of the series.
'''''The Heart of a Woman''''' - Published in 1981, this book continues to address her concerns regarding her relationship with her son and the men that come in and out of her life. It goes through her time as a head of the SCLC in New York and being on the road as an entertainer. Oprah chose this as one of her Book Club selections and it has increased tremendously in popularity since then.
'''''Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'Fore I Diiie''''' - This collection of poetry was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize in 1971, the year of its publication. It is split into two sections: the first addressing issues of love and nostalgic memory, the second addressing the confrontations inherent in a racist society. It's a touching, complex and self reflective collection that is often considered to be some of Angelou's best work.
Some of her other poplar works include
Still I Rise ''(1978).
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