Maya Angelou (Revised and Updated Edition): Adventurous Spirit

A revised and updated edition of a comprehensive biographical and critical reading of the works of American poet and memoirist Maya Angelou (1928-2014). Linda Wagner-Martin covers all six of Angelous autobiographies, as well as her essay and poetry collections, exploring Angelous life as an African American in the United States, her career as a stage and film performer, her thoughtful participation in the Civil Rights actions of the 1960s, and her travels abroad in Egypt, Africa, and Europe.

Format: Hardback
Length: 304 pages
Publication date: 14 January 2021
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

A comprehensive biographical and critical reading of the works of American poet and memoirist Maya Angelou (1928-2014) is presented in this revised and updated edition. Linda Wagner-Martin delves into the entirety of Angelou's autobiographies, along with her essay and poetry collections, while also exploring the various aspects of her life as an African American in the United States, her career as a stage and film performer, her thoughtful involvement in the Civil Rights actions of the 1960s, and her travels abroad to Egypt, Africa, and Europe. In her discussion of Angelou's methods of writing her stunning autobiography, which began with the 1970 publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Wagner-Martin explores the influences of the Harlem Writers Group (led by James Baldwin, Paule Marshall, and John O. Killens) as well as Angelou's significant friendships with Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, Jr., and other leaders from both international and African American United States cultures. Crucial concepts throughout include the role of oral traditions, song and dance, the spiritualism of art based on religious belief, Angelou's voiced rhythms, and her polished use of dialogue to convey more abstract "meaning." Wagner-Martin demonstrates that, viewing herself as a global citizen, Angelou never lost her spirit of adventure and discovery, as well as her ability to overcome. Named an Outstanding Academic Title of the Year by Choice in 2015, this new edition includes two new chapters on Angelou's connections to Africa and on her final years.

Weight: 516g
Dimension: 145 x 222 x 27 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781501365584
Edition number: 2 ed