Memoir Mondays and Banned Book Week... I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

"being aware of her displacement is the rust on

the razor..."

Today is Monday... and that means Memoir Monday! How would you feel if you poured out your soul, revealed painful secrets and someone decided your heartfelt words, in essence your life was "too graphic", "pornographic" and "objectionable"...

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings is the autobiography of Maya Angelou and describes her coming of age as a precocious but insecure black girl in the American South during the 1930s. Dealing with abandonment issues (her parents divorce when she's three & off she goes to live with a grandmother), racism, segregation, being brutally raped at 8, guilt & shame, an unwanted pregnancy and life as it came to a young black girl in the south, we get a picture of a hard and frightening life. These are hard issues to deal with and in Maya Angelou's lyrical prose and remarkable candor, she shows that racism is a product of ignorance and prejudice, and that she has found the strength to rise above her horrible circumstances. Courage is a word that come to mind along with part of the poem of the same name as her book and written by her...

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill

Of things unknown but longed for still

And his tune is heard on the distant hill for

The caged bird sings of freedom.

Interesting is the part of the book where Maya is introduced to the wonderful world of books and the power of words, all of which help Maya deal with her world...

I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings was nominated for a National Book Award in 1970 and remained on The New York Times paperback bestseller list for two years. It has been used in high schools & universities, and the book has been "celebrated for creating new literary avenues for the American memoir." It has been praised as an important piece of literature, and the New York Times Book Review calls Maya Angelou an author who "writes like a song, and like the truth."

What are you reading for Banned Books Week? Have you read I Know Why The Cage Bird Sings? Tell me what you think of the writing and the message...

*P.S. This book is Kindle Ready! For a Bargain Price of $6.99!