An honest memoir that never steps back from putting the uncomfortable truths out there. It is a new edition of the earlier published book and I was extremely excited to get a chance to read this and rightly so. It's beautifully written and a must read.

Thank you Little, Brown Book Group UK and NetGalley for this e-arc in exchange of my unbiased review.

This is a beautiful and moving book and reminds one why Maya Angelou is such a wonderful writer. If it's your first time reading it, get ready to take an emotional journey with the author in this coming-of-age book everyone should read. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the book.

I'm not much into poetry but I doubt there's many people who haven't heard of Maya Angelou or I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. People have certainly been singing its praises for long enough.

This is a new edition of the stunning memoir that covers Angelou's life up to the age of 17. And what a start she had. Brought up by her grandmother and Uncle Willie in Stamps, Arkansas, she and her brother Bailey saw little of either of their parents until her grandmother returned the children to their father (who quickly passed them on to their mother). However the stay ended in terrible circumstances when Angelou was abused by her mother's boyfriend.

This memoir drops horrific happenings into the prose like hand grenades. You never see them coming at all and Maya Angelou treats all the parts of her life with the equanimity that her mother, Vivian ("... hoped for the best, prepared for the worst, so anything in between didn't come as a surprise") exuded.

I now understand what everyone was twittering on about. The prose is flawless, the story of her life enthralling and I'm a convert. I'll definitely read her other memoirs.

Thankyou to Netgalley and Little, Brown for the advance review copy. Most appreciated.

This book has been on my to read list for along time and I am so glad I have finally got to read it. Maya Angelou lived such an interesting life and retells it in a very matter of fact way. Its not a comfortable book to read as it is so honest.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings.

I didn't read a lot by Maya Angelou but this first book in autobiography made me want to read more of her works,
Honest, refreshing, it never shy away from serious topics and issues.
A book full of food for thought by a master storyteller.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This is a difficult book to review. Its hard to review and critique someones own personal life story.
This book has been on my TBR for a very long time - I feel like any reader knows about Maya Angelou and has either read or wants to read her literature.
I found the writing style of this book to be quite strange. It didn't really flow for me - it felt very staccato. I found Angelou's life to be fascinating - but I didn't particularly like the writing style.

Excellent book, a classic for a reason. Can't wait to reread this...Maya Angelou's writing is so visceral, it brought out a lot of emotions in me. Definitely going to be reading her other books.

I read this so long ago, I can't remember when, and on being offered the opportunity to revisit it, with a new edition coming out, I could not resist rereading the incredible Maya Angelou's classic, a powerful and hard hitting memoir that paints a detailed picture of growing up in 1930s and 1940s America. Harrowing, heartbreaking, honest, incisive, inspirational, poetic and insightful, you can cannot help but marvel at the endurance, emotional resilience, and Angelou's bravery in the face of the challenges that just kept on coming, the abandonment, pain, abuse, racism, terror, segregation, loneliness, and poverty. The love and strength of her relationship with her brother, Bailey, and living in Stamp, Arkansas, with her grandmother. A remarkable history of being black and a woman, a bleakness that is intertwined with joy, humanity, the love of books and Shakespeare, educational, informative and so impactful with issues that continue to resonate in contemporary American society. If you have never read this, I strongly urge you to do so. Highly recommended and such a rewarding reread. Many thanks to the publisher.