Maya Angelou’s Followers (14,604)

Add New
Videos

7 comments

3 comments

Maya Angelou

Born

in St. Louis, Missouri, The United States

April 04, 1928

Died

May 28, 2014

Website

http://www.mayaangelou.com/

Twitter

DrMayaAngelou

Genre

Biographies & Memoirs, Poetry

Influences

Robert Burns ...more

edit data

Maya Angelou was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. Angelou's series of seven autobiographies focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her life up to the age of 17 and brought her international recognition and acclaim.
She became a poet and writer after a string of odd jobs during her young adulthood. These included fry cook, sex worker, nightclub performer, Porgy and Bess cast member, Southern Christian Leadership Maya Angelou was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. Angelou's series of seven autobiographies focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her life up to the age of 17 and brought her international recognition and acclaim.
She became a poet and writer after a string of odd jobs during her young adulthood. These included fry cook, sex worker, nightclub performer, Porgy and Bess cast member, Southern Christian Leadership Conference coordinator, and correspondent in Egypt and Ghana during the decolonization of Africa. Angelou was also an actress, writer, director, and producer of plays, movies, and public television programs. In 1982, she was named the first Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Angelou was active in the Civil Rights Movement and worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Beginning in the 1990s, she made approximately 80 appearances a year on the lecture circuit, something she continued into her eighties. In 1993, Angelou recited her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" (1993) at the first inauguration of Bill Clinton, making her the first poet to make an inaugural recitation since Robert Frost at the inauguration of John F. Kennedy in 1961.
With the publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou publicly discussed aspects of her personal life. She was respected as a spokesperson for Black people and women, and her works have been considered a defense of Black culture. Her works are widely used in schools and universities worldwide, although attempts have been made to ban her books from some U.S. libraries. Angelou's most celebrated works have been labeled as autobiographical fiction, but many critics consider them to be autobiographies. She made a deliberate attempt to challenge the common structure of the autobiography by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre. Her books center on themes that include racism, identity, family, and travel.
...more

Combine Editions
Maya Angelou’s books

Average rating: 4.29 · 788,710 ratings · 35,719 reviews · 294 distinct works • Similar authors

	I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Maya Angelou's Autobiography, #1) 4.30 avg rating — 580,794 ratings — published 1969 — 266 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Letter to My Daughter 4.09 avg rating — 34,841 ratings — published 1987 — 65 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Mom & Me & Mom 4.22 avg rating — 27,083 ratings — published 2013 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Heart of a Woman (Maya Angelou's Autobiography #4) 4.23 avg rating — 24,990 ratings — published 1981 — 77 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Gather Together in My Name 4.32 avg rating — 18,473 ratings — published 1974 — 44 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Complete Collected Poems 4.44 avg rating — 14,012 ratings — published 1994 — 47 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	And Still I Rise 4.39 avg rating — 10,981 ratings — published 1978 — 40 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now 4.30 avg rating — 10,960 ratings — published 1993 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry Like Christmas (Maya Angelou's Autobiography, #3) 4.25 avg rating — 9,705 ratings — published 1976 — 45 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes 4.29 avg rating — 8,089 ratings — published 1986 — 50 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Maya Angelou…

Series by Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou's Autobiography (7 books)
by

Maya Angelou

4.29 avg rating — 673,716 ratings

Maya's World (5 books)
by

Maya Angelou,

Lizzy Rockwell (Illustrations)

4.03 avg rating — 150 ratings

Luvvie Ajayi Jones—author, cultural critic, digital entrepreneur—might be best described as a professional truthteller. Her crazily popular...

Polls

November 2020 Revisit the Shelf Poll

The Color Purple by Alice Walker pub 1982, 295 pp.

56 votes, 20.5%

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry pub. 1986, 960 pp.

43 votes, 15.8%

The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli pub 1532, 149 pp.

40 votes, 14.7%

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou pub 1969, 289 pp.

35 votes, 12.8%

Candide by Voltaire pub. 1759, 129 pp.

35 votes, 12.8%

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by F. Scott Fitzgerald pub. 1922, 64 pp.

33 votes, 12.1%

Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison pub. 1952, 581 pp.

31 votes, 11.4%

273 total votes

comments and details

More...

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Literary Fiction ...: Inaugural Poet Elizabeth Alexander	8	52	Jan 28, 2009 07:14PM
The Write Vision: * Celebrating Black History Month	32	6	Feb 27, 2010 07:24PM
The Next Best Boo...: Quotes in bed	48	602	May 06, 2010 02:56PM
THE JAMES MASON C...: * AUTHOR FORUM- VANESSA RICHARDSON	19	77	Jun 15, 2010 07:03PM
The Next Best Boo...: September's Group Reads ARE.....	78	355	Sep 23, 2010 10:51AM
Peace, Love, and....: Author Game	180	116	Oct 25, 2010 04:36PM

More…

Maya Angelou’s Followers (14,604)

Add NewVideos

Maya Angelou

Combine EditionsMaya Angelou’s books

Series by Maya Angelou

Related News

Polls

Topics Mentioning This Author

Add New
Videos

Combine Editions
Maya Angelou’s books