Synopsis: In this first volume of her extraordinary autobiography, Maya Angelou beautifully evokes her childhood in the American South of the 1930s. She and her brother live with their grandmother, in Stamps, Arkansas, where Maya learns the power of the ‘whitefolks’ at the other end of town. A visit to her adored mother ends in tragedy when Maya is raped by her mother’s lover. But her extraordinary sense of wholeness emerges; she discovers the pleasures of dance and drama and gives birth to a treasured son.
Genre: Autobiography
Rating: @@@
Pages: 281
BCID: xxx-5398972
ISBN: 0-86068-511-x
Year: 1986
Format: Paperback
Comments: This was a good light read, and depicts the lives of African Americans in the pre-liberation era quite well. Having said that, this wasn’t really my cup of tea – I didn’t enjoy it as much as I thought I would.

A good read for those studying ‘Black History’ as well as those that really enjoy autobiographies.

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Categories: reviews

Tags: 3/5, African American, Black History, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Maya Angelou, memoir, non-fiction, Race Relations, review, slavery