Advantages: Deep feelings, empathy, sadness ; Everyone needs a little bit now and then
Disadvantages: No Illustrations other than the written word.

...I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SINGS.... The day that I picked this book up, I was around nineteen years old. I read the title and knew, yes knew, exactly why the caged bird sings --if he can find the voice to do so. At nineteen = my age then-- people had hardly heard of or knew of Maya Angelou. Yet there was something about this title that drew me to the book. Was my life filled with so much sadness in the past that whenever it called out to m e in book titles? I suspected the book was one of sadness & I'd not read any of the blurbs about it. So I came to this book unpredjudiced as far as deciding what this book would be or was about. Seems that lots of this book is about Maya . (She was raped in real life and she suffered tremendously), and I'm guessing that some of these writings have come from real... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Wonderful, Inspirational poetry.
Disadvantages: She does not use much of the technical forms or devices of poetry.

...I know why the caged bird sings. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The Complete Collected Poems of Maya Angelou. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ For those of you who have not heard of her,Maya Angelou is an inspirational poet, and universally acclaimed. She has the ability with her words, to cut through the race, class divide. Her poetry is elegant and fiery, her rhythms are captivating, and her words stunning and poignant. She reaches through to the very soul of the reader. Proud and strong, she tells of the bondage of the black race, of the need to be free, and to be heard. Her poetry is spiritually uplifting, and full of hope. It is also extremely motivational. An example of the trapped spirit of Maya longing for her freedom is to be seen in this Poem. This is one... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: It's a wonderful display of Maya's talent
Disadvantages: None

...Maya Angelou's versatility is evident in her CV: Mother, dancer, filmmaker, activist, editor, writer and friend of Oprah. Her poetry is rich and full, with incredible rhythm, and for want of another cliche, paints beautiful colours with her words. My favourate is 'A zorro man' which illustrates this: Here in this wombed room silk purple drapes flash a light as subtle as your hands before love making Here in the covered lens I catch a clitoral image of your general inhabitation This book is published by Virago (a publishing company run entirely by women and for women) and at £9.99 is an absolute bargain for so many poems. Maya Angelou has written a series of 5 autobiographical books about living as a black child and woman in America. In 'My Arkansas' she tells of the ignorance there: Today is yet to come in Arkansas... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Beautiful writing by a distinguished female voice
Disadvantages: Difficult story, incomplete biography

...I'd heard of Maya Angelou, of course, but had never read any of her work, other than a few poems here and there. I knew of her as a towering figure in American letters, a multi-faceted woman who excelled in both poetry and prose. So I picked up "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings," partly because I wanted to get a sense of her life and what shaped her, and partly because I was intrigued by the title. This book is simultaneously a gripper and a tough read. The author had a difficult life: Shuttled between her mother's home in St. Louis and her grandmother's in Stamps, Arkansas, at a time in American history when blatant racism was the order of the day, Marguerite Johnson, her given name, belonged nowhere. She and her brother Bailey, whom she adored, were too much for her mother to handle alone, so she shipped them off to Stamps... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: autobiographical account from a famous author, interesting read
Disadvantages: emotionally hard to read in places

...Growing up in 1930s America isn’t easy when you’re a young Black girl. Marguerite Johnson lives with her grandparents and older brother Bailey in the town of Stamps, a heavily Black-White segregated place where everybody knows their place. A brief stay with her mother results in Marguerite being raped by her Mother’s boyfriend. Returning to Stamps, her way of coping is retreat into a world of muteness. The book follows the next few years of Marguerite’s life as she comes to terms with what happened to her and the person that she becomes. The book is an autobiographical account of Maya Angelou’s childhood so the impact it makes is stronger as you know that every word is true. It is a short book as it only covers Marguerite’s life between the ages of three and sixteen but what struck me was that within this relatively short space... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: excellent read
Disadvantages: may not be everybody's taste

...'I know why the caged bird sings' is a fantastic book by Maya Angelou. It is on the A-Level reading list so I was forced to read it when I was 17. The book is an auto-biography written by an African American woman. This seemed like something I'd have little in common with so therefore would hate. However I was wrong. Angelou is an amazing writer, and can describe people and scenes in brilliant detail. The book begins with her as a small child, doing as she was told whilst adults cotton-picked. She is a good, law abiding girl who goes to church when she is told. She has the family problems you would expect from most who write an autobiography, but her life is particluarly difficult. She reached me with the way she portrayed her relationships with those around her, particularly her love for her brother, the only person she felt... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Fantastic interface, huge amount of tools, unsurpassed NURBS, gerat animation and rendering
Disadvantages: The price

...As an avid digital artist and animator I was very excited about the release of Maya 3 Unlimited but at the same time very dubious about whether it would be different enough from Alias Wavefront's previous incantations of the Maya series. However as soon as I began using the new version all my doubts vanished. The inerface has been made even simpler to use. With an absolutely huge toolset, unsurpassed NURBS and steady improvments across board it is now even easier to create and animate anything imaginable with Maya. The most attention has been paid to the animation and rendering functions. With extensive and very helpful documentation supporting it almost anything is possible. As for the rendering with a massive amount of options and variables not to mention lighting effects whether you are working on a supernatural alien... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Janet Jackson, Tupac Shakur, Great Poetry by Maya Angelou, Janet's Hat & Hairstyle.
Disadvantages: Some may be offended by the bad language.

...Wahey, Ciao have finally added my second favourite film ever to their database, so it's only fitting that I should write the first review! ** Technical Stuff. ** Year: 1993. Director: John Singleton. Time Running: 105 minutes. Certificate: 15. ** DVD Features. ** * Director's Commentary. * Director & Cast Filmographies. * Trailers. ** Cast. ** Justice - Janet Jackson. Lucky - Tupac Shakur. Iesha - Regina King. Chicago - Joe Torry. Jessie - Tyra Ferrell. Markell - Q-Tip. (from A Tribe Called Quest.) Poetry by Maya Angelou. ** Plot. ** The plot centers around Justice, a young Cosmetologist in South Central L.A, who see's her boyfriend Markell get shot and killed at the drive-in cinema one night. Justice escapes the rioting that is going on around her by writing poetry, but really she is lonely, living... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Escaping into another world
Disadvantages: Costs a lot of money, fickle little mare

...by her younger sister. It is very easy to read, and for this reason would be suitable for anyone over the age of 12. However, there are some harrowing incidents (violence & rape) that may make it more suitable for those over 16. I suppose it depends on how sensitive you are. ********************************************* 6. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings – Maya Angelou Despite her harrowing experiences, the strength of Maya Angelou’s character shines through in her autobiographies. I have read 3 of them but Caged Bird is undoubtedly the best. I studied this account of her childhood for A-level but I have read it twice since and wrote my university dissertation on it. Vibrant in her description of family relationships and racism in the South of the US, Caged Bird is a must read for everyone over 16. I wouldn’t recommend... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Best book ever, well written, challenging, didactic
Disadvantages: None

...“The perspectives are so labyrinthine that several possibilities must be kept open. If there is a Creator, what is he? And if there isn’t a Creator, what is this world?” (Gaarder 1999:37, Maya). Nothing is what it seems and Gaarder knows how to gamble with this. He is a mentor, a story teller and we are the student he’ll abandon far ahead in the journey to put our knowledge to the test. “Maya”, published in 1999 is my favourite book ever! If you read “Sophie’s World” you will find this one more intriguing, more complex and more challenging. If you have not read Gaarder’s international success “Sophie’s World” I suggest starting there before moving on to “Maya”. I read this book in record time and towards the end I admit my heart was racing because I wanted to get to the end; I could not figure how Gaarder would make sense... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful