No comments about Celebrations: Rituals of Peace of Prayer.

5 comments about Celebrations: Rituals of Peace and Prayer.

1. Read Hilton Als' "New Yorker" profile of Angelou for a true glimpse.



2. This book is another example of the heart in Maya Angelou. Another "beautiful" set of her work. I highly recommend this book of prayers to all Maya Angelou's fans. A Must have for your collection...



3. Best book I've read in years. This book gave me a better understanding of Islam and how backward it's follwers are. Just as I beleived I found that the Muslims are still living in a past century and, are a this point unwilling an unable to progress to this century.
   Their faith in Muhmmad's teaching's about how to treat women brought tear's to my eyes. Ayann story of her life has put her life in grave danger for speaking out, but her struggle for human right's for Muslin women is nothing short of heroic.



4. I am a huge Maya fan but I felt that this was not her best stuff. I liked the poetry but it didn't compare to "Still I Rise" or "Phenomenal Woman". Again, I liked it because Maya doesn't write bad poetry but I wasn't as in love with this collection as I am with her other work.



5. A Pillar in life for our times...gracious, lovely and witty..
   She always makes you think and see a little clearer.

5 comments about Wouldn't Take Nothing For My Journey Now.

1. 
   
   Leaves the reader with the thought of what life is all about. Maya, a beautiful and renowned writer, in her usual way holds one spellbound with this piece.



2. This is almost like a daily affirmation book by poet Maya Angelou. It contains affirmations on every day life and issues that we all face as a human beings. My personal favorite is her mantra that when one cannot follow the way of the world, than he/she should create his/her own path. While doing that a person of real grace will accept God because God gives us purpose and God's love provides hope that there is something good for us out there. We all have to find our own way to get there. But that way we should still be a virtuous people with manners and respect towards others. Our unique style will make us a brand that will be attractive to the outside world, simply because we embrace it ourselves. While I understand Ms. Angelou's take on racism, I must add that racism in its exclusiveness, meanness and repulsion is no different from sexism, intolerance to people who are different in any way or are treated as a second class citizens due to their national origin. Wonderful book to keep in pocket and refer to in time of need for assurance and comfort. Simply written with wisdom of the woman who has seen, felt and experienced the world.



3. "Wouldn't take nothing for my journey now" is a series of short essays by Maya Angelou on a myriad of topics such as pregnancy, self-worth, style, death, friends, family, racism and many other topics.
   
   This books is amazing, I could not put it down. In a couple of hours I was done with the book, and by the end I felt so much better. It is both uplifting and full of wisdom and advice. It is the type of book that you read with a highlighter, make notes and show to friends. The type of book that you quote and say "But, of course" this makes sense.
   
   As another reviewer mentioned, some of the things she writes about are self-evident, but sometimes we need a reminder, something that tells us "go on". This book does just that.
   
   The essays are so varied that more than one is bound to hit close to home. Her advice in each essay is advice that comes from experience and the wisdom that has come from that experience. She writes like a woman who has lived a lot, pondered a lot and has resolved some basic things as her truth.
   
   When talking about womanhood, she borrows a bit from Shakespeare and says "A rose by any other name may smell as sweet," and then adds "but a woman called by a devaluing name will only be weakened by the misnomer" About death she writes that she "seems at peace with the idea that a day ill dawn when I will not longer be among those living in this valley of strange humors" and that she is capable of accepting this but "unable to accept the death of anyone else." She then launches onto a empathic discourse about the death of a loved one.
   
   Each essay is full of wisdom and advice and this is something that everyone should read. It is also a great present to give.



4. "I remind myself that it is sufficient that I know what I know and know that without believing that I will always know what I know or that what I know will always be true."
   
   Fortunately, the foregoing sentence from "Death and the Legacy" on page 48 of Angelou's book is not typical of the writing style in the rest of it, else I would never have labored through it nor have written this review. With very few exceptions, and the quoted sentence is by far the worst, Angelou's writing is clear, straightforward, and unlikely to send the reader scurrying off to find a dictionary. At times, she even waxes poetic, both literally and figuratively, and at those times she is a delight to read. For the rest, while I find the writing not particularly inspirational, neither do I find it stultifying or insulting to the reader's intelligence. It is, let us conclude, quite agreeable.
   
   This little book, of small dimensions and only 139 pages, is a collection of homilies and philosophical reveries. Except in the most general sense, none is connected to any other, so there is no thread, theme, or "story" in the book. Even the longest, most developed, essay requires a mere seven pages, and one is as brief as a single page, so this is hardly a book in which one can lose oneself or find much in the way of diversion.
   
   The book can easily be devoured in a single sitting, but that's probably the wrong way to approach it. If one really wants to savor and appreciate the observations, reactions, and "lessons" in these ruminations, it's better to take them one at a time, consider each one for a while, and only then read the next.
   
   The one thing that strikes me most forcefully about this book is that it reveals a much different Angelou than we find in her earlier, autobiographical writings. The angry young woman of the earlier books has become a more mature, gentle, understanding and almost forgiving person in this one. I say "almost" because the sections entitled "Voices of Respect"and "Brutality Is Definitely Not Acceptable" present a few things that Angelou is not yet prepared to forgive, and the angry, fierce young woman of Angelou's autobiographical writings comes close to reappearing. Yet, her extraordinarily gentle and understanding treatment of racism in "Our Boys" portrays a graciousness not often observed in her earlier books, and her poem in that section is nothing short of inspirational:
   
   I note the obvious differences
   between each sort and type,
   but we are more alike, my friends,
   than we are unalike.
   
   To see the full poem, by all means do read the book, particularly if you have read Angelou's autobiographical works. This one will show another side of this literary lady.



5. I loved this book. It consists of short essays on life lessons and meaning.
   
   I especially appreciated 'New Directions' which my daughter read out loud to me at a time when I was dealing with my own life changes. The essay was comforting and hopeful.
   
   'Living Well Living Good' is an essay about how riends, family, closeness, and fun are all necessary in order to be happy.
   
   I think everyone needs to read 'A Day Away' to appreciate the gifts that solitude and seclusion bring us. We can learn to give ourselves permission to accept this gift.
   
   I highly recommend this book.

No comments about Letter to My Daughter [Unabridged CD-Set] (AUDIO CD/AUDIO BOOK).

5 comments about Hallelujah! The Welcome Table: A Lifetime of Memories.

1. I love this cookbook. I have already tried some recipes from it. Almost three weeks passed, however, before I received it. I am very satisfied with it.



2. A wonderful mix of story and recipe.
   As I try these wonderful southern dishes I recall her stories and I can sense the history of the dish.
   the caramel cake is worth 10x the price of the book alone.



3. None comes better. The recipes are honest and measure up to the quality of the author! Props to Sister Angelou !



4. I was so disappointed in this book. Not because it was a horrible book but because it ended. I was reading the memories she had of each recipe and throughly enjoying myself when I realized that the next page that I turned was the index. I didn't want it to be over so soon. I really felt a sense of deep disappointment. I was surprised at my reaction because it was after all only a recipe book. This book pulls you in and takes you on a journey both of her life and her culinary expertise. You will get wrapped up in it as you laugh and imagine the flavors of the dishes. I think that she should write another recipe book. I'm sure that these are not the only recipes she knows. I admire Dr. Angelou both as a poet, writer, woman, and cook.



5. I'm famous for haunting thrifts, looking for cookbooks from days gone by, but I bought this one new in New Orleans. I picked it up, intending only to leaf through it, then put it back. But I opened the book on page 145, saw the recipe for Decca's Chicken Drunkard Style and thought, "That's pretty gosh darned simple." And I immediately knew how it would taste. I have a pretty good memory. I could have made my own variation without any problems, but I bought the book.
   
   And though there are a few things here I'd never make, Liver and Onions and the Tripe recipes, for example, there is plenty in here to enjoy, like the Roasted Turkey on page 117. And as an added bonus you get a lifetime of Maya Angelou's memories, written down as only she can write them. Wonderful recipes and Ms. Angelou's delicious writing. What more could you ask of a cookbook?
   
   Review submitted by Captain Katie Osborne

1 comments about Celebrations Book/CD Gift Set: Rituals of Peace and Prayer.

1. Sometimes you just forget about Maya Angelou and the way her writings make your heart sing. With this Celebrations gift set it lets you remember her and all of the good pieces that are ours as a result of her. If you want to bless someone who is going through this is a wonderful gift.

5 comments about A Song Flung Up to Heaven.

1. This is one of the six autobiographical works by Maya Angelou.
   
   Here, Maya Angelou returns to the U.S. after living in Ghana working with Malcolm X.
   
   When she gets back to her home, she finds out Malcolm X has been assassinated. This saddens and upsets her but confuses her too, since a black man has killed him. Eventually, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. asks Maya to go around to black churches to try to gain support for the Poor People's March. But he too gets assassinated.
   
   This work is full of depth and words that will help you delve into yourself and your feelings.
   
   If you like this book, you may like to read I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings which follows this.



2. This is one of my favorite books of the last 200 years for the simple reason that my sister, Nancy, was walking down a street in New York and she heard a commotion from within a Manhattan bookstore, and when she poked her head in, who to her wondering eyes did appear but regal, imperious, humorous poet Maya Angelou reading from what was then (2004) her very latest autobiography. With trepidation, Nancy entered the store and managed to strike up a brief conversation with the author, and when she told Dr. Angelou that her brother, Kevin, was a poet in the Bay Area, the good Doctor grabbed a sharpie and scrawled my name on the title page, with a special message just for me--"Joy." Later I found out that this was not the most joyful time (personally speaking) for Dr. Angelou and that private trials and tribulations were wracking her soul and conscience--but she had the show business stance of, "give your audience what they deserve"and so she was able to impart her words of joy (or one word) to me once the book was wrapped and sitting underneath my Christmas tree. I shook it and held it to my ear, never guessing it was a book, never guessing that every word might have been written directly to be whispered into my ear.
   
   I enjoyed finding out what Malcolm X and Dr., King were like, not as political figures per se, but as friends. We all know their history and the huge place they filled in the civil rights struggle here in America, but in this book, volume 6 of her autobiography, we find out how they (and also Nichelle Nichols from the original STAR TREK) fit into the colorful and florid pattern of Dr. Angelou;s voyage. We are present when she is trying to keep body and soul together by scraping out radio jingles and topical songs based on Philip Roth's PORTNOY'S COMPLAINT. (By the way, when is that fugitive track going to appear on the long-awaited boxed set collection of Dr. Angelou's songwriting genius? We were promised this by Rhino over seven years ago!) She brings us to the intimate home life of the beautiful Abbey Lincoln and also Rosa Guy, both of them welcoming spirits who made a place in their homes for the wandering soul of rolling stone Maya Angelou. Is there any place that has not been blessed with a visit from the author?
   
   At bottom the book is sad, because, despite everything, she was in Ghana for much of the period exploring her African roots and the humid tendrils of her sexuality, and therefore she missed seeing firsthand what went down in the Audubon ballroom, a story she has often told. You don't really get a good sense of her relationships with people here, other than Guy a little bit. I think she was too mournful and driven to write this book with the same care as her previous books, but subsequent work both in Hallmark cards and other forms of writing, have seen a triumphant return. I wish her one word-- "Joy." Thanks, Nancy!



3. To write from the heart and build a lasting connection with a reader is Maya's gift. The story is written concisely, but with depth. A must read for any Angelou fan or those seeking a personal glimpse at a tumultuous period in American history.



4. The seller sent this book in great condition. I read through it about 1 year after I bought it. I recommend the seller but not the book.



5. This book is funny, sad, educational, loving but above all inspiring. This book made me reflect about many aspects of my life, has made me appreciate all the little things in life. You can feel love through every single chapter. She is a wonderful writer, a wonderful women and inspiring in every single way. Teaches you that there is more to life, you just need to learn to pick up the pieces and get ready for a new day to come.

5 comments about Letter to My Daughter.

1. Just 82 pages of text makes this "book" practically an essay. I enjoyed the content (thank you Maya) but was a little disappointed that there was not more. All 28 chapters are proceeded by 2-3 blank pages. For $15 I can't help but feel a little jipped. Might be the book to borrow from the library- a few hours and you are through it.



2. 
   My experience when reading any of Maya Angelou's work,is always
   
   good. This book is short and sweet. Filled with lots of information
   
   in reference to Ms Angelou's life. I recommend ( 5 stars )this book.



3. Letters to my daughter was a great read and i enjoyed reading with my youn daughter and we both got a lot from it. i am a big fan of hers and she never lets me down. She is a living Legend. I also love " why do caged birds sing".



4. Ok I wanted more from this book it could have been so much better seller was good



5. I was disappointed there was not a daughter, but premise is okay.
   Interesting background of author-pretty horrible a couple times.
   I admire her tenacity, maybe got some of that from her mother. Still,
   she was odd. It would have probably have answered questions that arouse
   during the reading, if the author explained her mothers behavior more.
   A lack of responsibility bothered me a little. The poetry section was
   good. Angelou's preachy tendencies were less apparent than in other books.
   All in all it was okay.

5 comments about And Still I Rise: A Selection of Poems Read by the Author.

1. This audiobook arrived in about a week and was in the condition advertised. Overall, I was satisfied with the transaction and would purchase from this seller again.



2. Maya Angelou's reading of poetry is moving to the point ot tears and laughter. I highly recommend it.



3. Maya Angelou's poetry is so phenomenal. And the power of her voice reading her own words, is really moving.



4. I bought this as a present for a good friend and she really enjoyed it.



5. This audiobook holds a precious collection of poems by a remarkable woman. The poems are read by Maya Angelou herself and gives more insight in the meaning and depth of her work. The listener will be left wanting to hear more. Luckily there are several (written) collections available and with a little imagination one can hear the author read the poems in one's head.
   
   If you want to hear more, the autobiography is also available on audiobook.

5 comments about I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (Abridged Audio Edition).

1. I had hoped that I would get through life without having to read anything from the queen of self-importance, Maya Angelou. Unfortunately fate intervened and I was required to read this in a college history class. I can summarize it as follows: self-indulgent tripe.
   
   I was amazed at how white people could do nothing right. When the police rode to the house to warn the family to protect the uncle, all she has is criticism. Yes, I guess it would have been better for him to sit by and do nothing.
   
   She complains about how poor and mistreated she was, but everything in the book indicates that her family was a lot better off than most white and black people at the time. Her grandmother had enough means to make loans and help others financially. Yeah, poor Maya. She had to go without for a few months. Oh the humanity!
   
   The only redemption I found in the book is when I threw it in the recycling bin. At least it will end up as something useful. Toilet paper might be most fitting.
   
   If you want to read a profound, thoughtful, life-changing memoir and analysis of racism, check out Catfish and Mandala. Leave this one alone.



2. I bought this as a gift for my sister - she had requested it - she hasn't commented on how she likes it



3. The delivery has been really good! The book arrived earlier that the date that was shown on here.
   
   I bought the book for a university work and I really want to finish it! haha =)
   
   Maya Angelou describes things in such a sweet way! She describes a dress like if it was cotton candy and makes you feel hungry! hahaha



4. Maya Angelo's story is about how people live in the different parts of North America. As a child in the Deep South, she lives in an all-Black enclave, where her grandmother, a storekeeper, is the neighborhood matriarch. There may be no money, but they do have a loving community.
   
   Then the story turns dark. Her mother takes her and her brother to St. Louis, and there's no love in the city. Life is fast and cheap, and you'd better move fast or be stepped on. She's molested by her mother's live-in boyfriend, who later turns up dead.
   
   Back to the South, onward to San Diego, California. North to San Francisco, down to Los Angeles. "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" is alll about travel and survival. Each part of the USA is different. In each part of the USA, you have to live as the others do, or you'll be taken advantage of.



5. Hi
   
   I just read "I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings" and loved it. I understand that this is the first part of six books but I can't find a list of those books. Can someone tell me in order what the other 5 autobiographical titles are?
   
   Thanks!