Synopses & Reviews
For a world of devoted readers, a much-awaited new volume of absorbing stories and inspirational wisdom from one of our best-loved writers.
Dedicated to the daughter she never had but sees all around her, Letter to My Daughter reveals Maya Angelou's path to living well and living a life with meaning. Told in her own inimitable style, this book transcends genres and categories: guidebook, memoir, poetry, and pure delight.
Here in short spellbinding essays are glimpses of the tumultuous life that led Angelou to an exalted place in American letters and taught her lessons in compassion and fortitude: how she was brought up by her indomitable grandmother in segregated Arkansas, taken in at thirteen by her more worldly and less religious mother, and grew to be an awkward, six-foot-tall teenager whose first experience of loveless sex paradoxically left her with her greatest gift, a son.
Whether she is recalling such lost friends as Coretta Scott King and Ossie Davis, extolling honesty, decrying vulgarity, explaining why becoming a Christian is a "lifelong endeavor," or simply singing the praises of a meal of red rice, Maya Angelou writes from the heart to millions of women she considers her extended family.
Like the rest of her remarkable work, Letter to My Daughter entertains and teaches; it is a book to cherish, savor, re-read, and share.
"I gave birth to one child, a son, but I have thousands of daughters. You are Black and White, Jewish and Muslim, Asian, Spanish speaking, Native Americans and Aleut. You are fat and thin and pretty and plain, gay and straight, educated and unlettered, and I am speaking to you all. Here is my offering to you." from Letter to My Daughter
Synopsis
"Letter to My Daughter" is Angelou's first original collection in 10 years. Combining personal experiences with the distilled knowledge of a lifetime, these short but spellbinding essays take the reader on an inspirational journey that explores ideas from a well-lived life.
Synopsis
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - Maya Angelou shares her path to living well and with meaning in this absorbing book of personal essays, which makes a powerful gift for Mother's Day or for graduation. Dedicated to the daughter she never had but sees all around her, Letter to My Daughter transcends genres and categories: guidebook, memoir, poetry, and pure delight.
Here in short spellbinding essays are glimpses of the tumultuous life that led Angelou to an exalted place in American letters and taught her lessons in compassion and fortitude: how she was brought up by her indomitable grandmother in segregated Arkansas, taken in at thirteen by her more worldly and less religious mother, and grew to be an awkward, six-foot-tall teenager whose first experience of loveless sex paradoxically left her with her greatest gift, a son.
Whether she is recalling such lost friends as Coretta Scott King and Ossie Davis, extolling honesty, decrying vulgarity, explaining why becoming a Christian is a "lifelong endeavor," or simply singing the praises of a meal of red rice-Maya Angelou writes from the heart to millions of women she considers her extended family.
Like the rest of her remarkable work, Letter to My Daughter entertains and teaches; it is a book to cherish, savor, re-read, and share.
"I gave birth to one child, a son, but I have thousands of daughters. You are Black and White, Jewish and Muslim, Asian, Spanish speaking, Native Americans and Aleut. You are fat and thin and pretty and plain, gay and straight, educated and unlettered, and I am speaking to you all. Here is my offering to you."--from Letter to My Daughter
Synopsis
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - Maya Angelou shares her path to living well and with meaning in this absorbing book of personal essays. Dedicated to the daughter she never had but sees all around her, Letter to My Daughter transcends genres and categories: guidebook, memoir, poetry, and pure delight.
Here in short spellbinding essays are glimpses of the tumultuous life that led Angelou to an exalted place in American letters and taught her lessons in compassion and fortitude: how she was brought up by her indomitable grandmother in segregated Arkansas, taken in at thirteen by her more worldly and less religious mother, and grew to be an awkward, six-foot-tall teenager whose first experience of loveless sex paradoxically left her with her greatest gift, a son.
Whether she is recalling such lost friends as Coretta Scott King and Ossie Davis, extolling honesty, decrying vulgarity, explaining why becoming a Christian is a "lifelong endeavor," or simply singing the praises of a meal of red rice-Maya Angelou writes from the heart to millions of women she considers her extended family.
Like the rest of her remarkable work, Letter to My Daughter entertains and teaches; it is a book to cherish, savor, re-read, and share.
"I gave birth to one child, a son, but I have thousands of daughters. You are Black and White, Jewish and Muslim, Asian, Spanish speaking, Native Americans and Aleut. You are fat and thin and pretty and plain, gay and straight, educated and unlettered, and I am speaking to you all. Here is my offering to you."--from Letter to My Daughter
Synopsis
A completely new volume of distilled wisdom from Angelou contains short but spellbinding essays that invite one along on an inspirational journey that explores ideas garnered from a well-lived life.
Synopsis
One of America's most admired and decorated singers tells her inspiring life story, from theand#160;segregated south to the world's greatest stages.and#160;
Synopsis
Jessye Norman is not only one of the worldand#8217;s most admired and beloved opera starsand#8212;she is an American icon whose life story is as moving and inspiring as the fictional plot triumphs she sang onstage.
Born and raised in Augusta, Georgia, a descendant of many generations of hardworking slave and free ancestors, she grew up amid the challenges of Jim Crow racism with the civil rights movement just beginning to awaken. Nurtured by a close family and tight-knit community centered on the local church, Jessye sang songs and spirituals constantly, never dreaming that it might lead to a career.and#160;Only when she watched a documentary about the legendary Marian Anderson did she first realize that singing could be a profession. Decades later, after a meteoric rise at the Berlin Opera, a long-delayed debut at the Metropolitan Opera, and forays into spirituals, blues, jazz, and other roots music, she has become one of Americaand#8217;s cultural treasures.and#160;Standand#160;Up Straight and Sing!and#160;is an inspiring womanand#8217;s account of an astonishing life.
Synopsis
Maya Angelou was raised in Stamps, Arkansas. In addition to her bestselling autobiographies, including I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and The Heart of a Woman, she wrote numerous volumes of poetry, among them Phenomenal Woman, And Still I Rise, On the Pulse of Morning, and Mother. Maya Angelou died in 2014.
About the Author
Poet, writer, performer, teacher, and director, Maya Angelou was raised in Stamps, Arkansas, then moved to San Francisco. In addition to her bestselling autobiographies, beginning with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, she has also written a cookbook, Hallelujah! The Welcome Table, and five poetry collections, including I Shall Not Be Moved and Shaker, Why Dont You Sing?
Table of Contents
Preludeand#160;and#160;and#160;xi
1.and#160;In the Beginningand#8212;and#8220;Great day!and#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;1
2.and#160;A Motherand#8217;s Joyand#8212;and#8220;I want two wingsand#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;15
3.and#160;A Fatherand#8217;s Prideand#8212;and#8220;Evand#8217;ry time I feel the Spiritand#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;35
4.and#160;Church, Spirituals, and Spiritand#8212; and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; and#8220;There is a balm in Gileadand#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;57
5.and#160;Racism as It Lives and Breathesand#8212;
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; and#8220;Sometimes I feel like a motherless childand#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;95
Interlude: Marian Andersonand#8212; and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; and#8220;My Lord, what a morningand#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;135
6.and#160;Growing Up in Germanyand#8212;and#8220;On my journey, nowand#8221; and#160;and#160;and#160;147
7.and#160;The Singing Craft as Art Formand#8212;and#8220;Oh, Glory!and#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;180
8.and#160;The Song, the Craft, the Spirit, and the Joy!and#8212;
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; and#8220;The Lordand#8217;s Prayerand#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;197
9.and#160;Woman, Life, Singerand#8212;and#8220;Ride on, King Jesusand#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;221
10.and#160;And the Journey Continuesand#8212;
and#160;and#160;and#160;and#160; and#8220;Heand#8217;s got the whole world in His handand#8221;and#160;and#160;and#160;258
Postludeand#160;and#160;and#160;280
Codaand#160;and#160;and#160;285
Indexand#160;and#160;and#160;289