Listen to yourself and in that quietude you might hear the voice of God.
— Maya Angelou (@DrMayaAngelou) May 23, 2014◼ The news that Maya Angelou has died at the age of 86 reminds me of how deeply impressed I was when I read her book I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings when it first came out in 1969. - Neoneocon
Those who read it now probably can’t quite imagine how fresh and powerful it was at that time. In the interim, coming-of-age memoirs by women—including by black or other minority women—have become far more commonplace, as have descriptions of childhood sexual abuse. Those things were part of Angelou’s book back in a time when they were unusual to read about, and that was arresting. But a lot of other things about her book remain extraordinary, and they are the reason I read it and found it memorable.
The first is the power of her unique and lyric voice, which was (and remains) utterly arresting and utterly engaging....
