I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

I was fifteen years old when I discovered I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. It was, at the time, something like an inspiration, because although I had been a voracious reader since the third grade, no book had ever addressed the self within me so worthily as this one did. I was astonished then, how could this author, Maya Angelou, have lived the very life I had lived, in all its details? How could she grasp the feelings, longings and imaginings of a wretched girl from Mississippi like me? I am overwhelmed with joy, and I know that joy overwhelms her now too, because the new generation of readers will be able to know Maya Angelou's story, and will be able to draw from it enough strength to discover themselves. Whether you are reading one of her works for the first time, as I did years ago, or returning to her to drop in on an old friend, which is what I feel every time I return to the pages of this book, you will notice that Maya, through this book in particular, managed to create her distinctive style, which came to be present in all her speeches, poems and works. Maya spoke with sincerity and courage when she said: "We are more alike than we are unalike," and it seems that this truth is what makes us feel a thrill, and makes our hearts beat when the caged bird sings. By Oprah Winfrey American media figure