My review of this book is it was a good book and it showed me how one afican american woman in the united state can do so much with her life and. I will like to see more that she show words that will make you fell them and think about what she is saying this book showed me alot of things and show me what I can do things in life even though the bad times and the good times.

This biography on Maya Angelou shows how various trials and accomplishments have shaped her life. What has it shaped her into? More than a poet. Maya is more than a poet and yet human, down to earth. Maya has a very diverse background and diverse accomplishments that many students would be able to relate to. The obstacles she has faced include prejudice, sexual abuse, teenage pregnancy, and failed marriages. She is an accomplished writer, poet, playwright, activist, and performer. More Than a Poet moves chronologically throughout her life, showing important events that have made her an influential figure in today's society.

We would recommend this book because of its in-depth and realistic perspective on Angelou's life. We feel that the true-to-life depiction of Angelou's life and accomplishments would bring readers young and old to connect with Angelou as a human being. We would use the book in the sixth grade classroom as it has some mature content (well-handled) and its use of language would be well suited to the sixth grade reader. Perhaps the most effective use of this book would be in a biographical unit, including the study of victories in the face of hardships.

This book could be an inspiring collection of poems for one who likes them, and takes them in deeply. I don't understand some of them very well, but this collection of poems was well put together, making it easy for just about anyone to relate to. This collection show us her talent to make a rhythmical story outof her past, and present life. This is a book that you will remember because of its good choices of words to use and pointers it hands out about expiriences in life and how to handle them. It is a collection of thirty-six poems celebrating all that she has lived through expressing her love, hatred, unleashing her memories and thoughts and putting them down on paper and making it sound beautiful. It shows you what the african american life was like without so many words and not so boring. Some are so greatly detailed you can make out photographic pictures of what you think it could have been like in the situations she has written down in her book.This is a great book and I would recommend it to everyone that reads poetry.

I am a resident of Charleston Southcarolina.I have read other books by Mya Angelou, she is an amazing poet and I would oneday be exactly like her.This is a great book and I enjoy reading it.I am currently writing my poetry book and I am so inspired by her words and how she elegantly put them together.How she expresses her feelings in her poetry, it almost make you feel that you are in her poetry.Only a true authur can make you feel that way.i express my thoughts this way in an purpose that when you read this review,that you would know that Mya Angelou has made an impact on my life that no matter what I do or say it is of great knowledge that I have to keep on keeping on.

In the 10th book in the Bailey School Kids series, the usual gang is on it's way down to the new gym to take gymnastics. Funny thing, though, it's totally black, spiders spin webs all over the place, there's a black cat, a broom that seems to move by itself, and the instructor keeps saying all these strange rhymes, like she's casting a spell or something... She couldn't be a witch, could she??

The Bailey School Kids series is a fast-paced one full of wisecracking 3rd graders who find themselves investigating some of the strangest people in their town (the titles like "Vampires Don't Wear Polka Dots" should clue you in!!). This time, their odd gym instructor says these weird rhymes that seem to somehow come true: a girl who couldn't tumble or do a cartwheel to save her life suddenly is a pro at them. A broom seems to move by itself and there's this giant gingerbread house in the kitchen of the gym... Hmmm... how mysterious!!

Kudos go to the authors for avoiding the stereotypical green-faced, pointed hat witch of the movies and old children's stories. To do so would be insulting to REAL witches and would only make the story goofballish, not the creepy what's-going-on sort of book it is.

Most adults can make their way through a Bailey School Kids book in half an hour or less. Because their so short and fast paced, they're easy books for beginning-to-intermediate readers to sink their teeth into... Metaphorically speaking, of course!!

My personal opinion of the book is that it's a very entertaining book, funny, mysterious, and fun to read because it keeps you wanting to know what is going to happen next. I gave this book five stars because it is a very good book. I hope you like it!!!

This book is about 4 kids who just started gymnastics,but could the gym teacher realy be a whitch. These kids are going to find out. I think this is a wonderful book beacuse it leaves you in suspense as the kids try to figerout the strange things happening in the so called witches house.

In book six of her autobiography series, "A Song Flung Up to Heaven",Maya Angelou vividly recounts the many memorable occurrences taking place between the years of 1964 through 1968. Angelou's first hand experience of the riot in Watts invokes images of the burning frustrations of the people of that area and time. The opportunities of working alongside historic figures such as Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. were short lived and a sour subject of intense pain for her.

Maya tells of her trip from Africa to Los Angeles and then to
New York. During this time she experiences the absence of her son, who stayed in Africa to continue his education, and the lost love of her African spouse. With the help of family and friends Maya gains the strength to rise again. The story ends at the beginning of her first book in this bio series.

In this reader's opinion, a song flung up to heaven is a silent prayer for the strength to go on in this life, and the prayer always returns with the needed relief through the thoughtfulness of those around us. The joy of this book was listening to the author read it in her own voice through recorded books.

A Song Flung Up To Heaven is a continuation of the experiences of Maya Angelou. If you've read any of her previous memoirs, you will know that Dr. Angelou has lead and continues to led a rich and full life - something that cannot be covered in one or two books.

This sixth memoir starts with Dr. Angelou's return to the U.S. from Ghana, West Africa. It ends with the time she was about to write her first memoir, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. In between, the book is filled with her encounters with various people and her experience during some disturbing times in American history - the murder of Malcolm X, Dr. Martin Luther King, and the Watts riots in California.

I most enjoyed reading about my favorite personalities from Dr. Angelou's past memoirs - Vus Make, her handsome, intelligent, charismatic African husband; Bailey Johnson, her older, caring big brother; Guy Johnson, her intelligent, independent son and Vivian Baxter, her smart mother.

Reading Dr. Angelou's continued memoir is like sitting with an old, trusted and respected friend; there's a treasured feeling as you listen to her stories as they come one after the other.

Fafa Demasio

"A Song Flung Up to Heaven" is the continuation of Maya Angelou's series of autobiographical narratives. This volume opens in the mid 1960s as Angelou returns to the United States from Africa with the intention of working with Malcolm X. The narrative follows Maya's life in Hawaii, California, and New York.

Maya reflects on her work as a stage performer and aspiring writer, and reminisces about her relationships with her son, her mother, and her friends. The book is really fascinating as it tells of her relationships and encounters with many noteworthy people: Martin Luther King Jr., Nichelle Nichols, Rosa Guy, and others. The author paints a particularly warm and moving portrait of the great writer and activist James Baldwin.

"Song" continues to explore many of the important themes of her other books, such as the relationship between Africans and African-Americans. Angelou does a good job of capturing intimate human relationships and placing them in the context of great movements in history. The book also looks at the genesis of her celebrated book "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings."

This is a well-written, very engaging book; I read all 212 pages in literally a single evening. I recommend as companion texts to this wonderful book the following: the previous volumes of Angelou's autobiography, the essays of James Baldwin, the autobiography of Malcolm X, Audre Lorde's "Zami," and any good collection of King's essays and speeches.

I've just finished reading this book as a summer reading assignment for school, and to my surprise, I found myself actually enjoying it. I went into the reading of this book with reluctance. I've read THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD, and while I enjoyed that book at first, I was always frustrated that the main character had to find herself through dependence on men, namely Tea Cake, whom I despised because of his controlling nature and ultimate betrayal. However, despite my prejudices against it, this book managed to grab my attention.

That is, in the last three chapters. I did not think this book was mostly an account of the other books Hurston has written, as some other readers have stated. Hurston only focused one or two chapters toward the middle of the book on other works, but even then it was only to list when she wrote which book, not to go in depth on the process and motivation. However, it seemed to me that it was an account of Hurston's journey through life, including details on her childhood in Eatonville. This is all well and good, except, especially as Hurston gets into the adult years, she tends to gloss over much of the details, omitting names, and mentioning events which obviously impacted her life yet for some personal reason or another, refusing to describe to the reader these events for fear of who knows what.

This was only the first confusing element. I also had a difficulty with Hurston's writing style. She tends to jump from one anecdote in the middle of another with no explanation before returning to her original story, which left me as the reader, feeling befuddled. The sequence of the chapters, out of her childhood, also does not really seem to follow a sequential storyline.

I was also bothered with Hurston's portrayal of herself, especially her childhood self. She seems to portray herself as the only child there ever was with an active imagination. Perhaps I am actually a member of the privileged minority, but I know that I told myself stories and had imaginary friends when I was a child. I was also very devoted to literature, and reading, as I still am, though Hurston's individualities in that area are more understandable, perhaps, considering the circumstances.

Despite all this, I walked away from this book with a respect for Hurston that I hadn't felt before because of the last three or so chapters in the book where Hurston discusses her thoughts and feelings on her race, and the inter-racial strife which hurt the African-American Civil Rights movement. I also enjoyed the appendix in which the reader is allowed a glimpse at Hurston's more controversial writing.

I don't hold a grudge against Hurston's perhaps unorthodox method of writing an autobiography, far from it. In fact, I think this book would have benefited greatly if Hurston had included more of her personal view points on the world as she did in the last few chapters. Hurston was often criticized for writing African-American literature that was not a rousing cry for Civil Rights, in this book, Hurston finally explains WHY. It also would have been helpful if Hurston either would have detailed the events in her life which were so groundbreaking, or simply not mentioned them at all, instead of saying "Then this happened and it changed my life and for that I will be forever grateful, but I'm not going to tell you anything about what it was." The strange presence of such passages was much more disquieting then their absence would have been.

So in conclusion, I'm glad this book included an appendix, and I do feel Hurston deserves some plaudits for writing what was eventually a stimulating autobiography.

The autobiography of Zora Neale Hurston, "Dust Tracks on the Road", proved to be an incredibly interesting book. This book shows the hardships that Zora underwent during her rise from childhood poverty in the rural south to a prominent place among the leading artists and intellectuals of the Harlem Renaissance. One part of the book that really caught my attention is how Zora manages to give her reader glimpses of a character that is a very public and privet artist, writer, and companion of black heritage. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to deepen as well as straighten their knowledge of the African American Heritige.

This autobiography of Zora Neale Hurston was very fascinating. She talks about her childhood on to her others works. I found this very humorous. I recommend this book for anyone wanting a interseting read.

I used this book as a guide for a presentation I was doing. My topic dealt with poetry, literature, and other forms of art that addressed social issues. By reading this book, I was able to see the reasoning behind some of the issues that Ms. Angelou focused on in her various works. I was also able to see common threads that tied her work together. This book truly helped me to appreciate her work more. The more familiar I became with it, the more I enjoyed reading her works.

Let's get one thing straight right off the bat, Sisters of the Extreme is a "reissue" of 1982's Shaman Woman, Mainline Lady -- cut, streamlined and reformatted beyond all recognition. Evidently, the authors took the edge off their book for a more "conservative" era -- either that, or they assume their reader's minds have been so numbed by drugs that we NEED heavy edits and People Magazine-inspired "look" to hold our limited attention.

Sure, there are a couple of new excerpts worth reading (the one from Mary Woronov's "The Mole People is revealing), but for the most part, Sisters of the Extreme seems to be pandering to old YUPPIES who need a little stimulation. I swear that if I read ANYTHING by Carrie Fisher ever again, it will be too soon -- enough of the "I went to rehab and got a bad haircut" trip. Get over it.

In the introduction, the authors do say that they edited some excerpts for space and deleted others all together. When I got out the two editions and compared them almost line for line, I discovered a disturbing trend -- whereas Shaman Woman, Mainline Lady allowed one to take the writings at face value, Sisters of the Extreme has definite agenda. Sisters of the Extreme doesn't LIKE drugs. It doesn't want ME to like drugs. It wants me to be TITILATED by the writings. The difference is clear.

Sisters of the Extreme is a product of the times. It's been dumbed down and punched up. Sure, the authors include a couple of writings on sex magick and a few counter culture cartoons, but the overall smell of political correctness is stupifying.

The gist of my review is this: if don't already own a copy of Shaman Woman, Mainline Lady, go ahead and buy Sisters of the Extreme. Then, go on a quest for the Real Thing.

In the meantime, the use bibliography in Sisters of the Extreme to find and read the original sourced writings. You'll be glad you did.

Being on the fringe of consensual reality and yet being able to take some notes of the journeys beyond, is an awesome gift. The stories in SISTERS OF THE EXTREME are such gifts of the God-Us. I have the original SHAMAN WOMAN, MAINLINE LADY and went through my contribution, line for line, and the only difference noted was my photo had shrunk in this new, revised edition. (This is consistent as now, being in my fifties, I notice that I am shrinking some also.) The tone not only is consistent from the first edition but vividly expansive. (I was somewhat embarrassed being in the first edition, with the stereotypic cover -- yet in this new volume, I am honored not only for the outrageous company kept and new sisters included but engaging graphics.)

As the God-Us dances about the universe, skirt swirling the galaxies, being on the fringes gives the wildest ride. This book is a travelogue by explorers of multi-dimensional realities written in white ink, from the heart of our Sisters-in-the-Clan-of-Encouragement: this book is a major herstoric contribution to the sext of human consciousness.

Jeannine Parvati (Baker) Author HYGIEIA: A WOMAN'S HERBAL

Sisters Of The Extreme is an informative and engaging presentation of famous female authors who write about the drug experience includes a variety of works from such notables as Bronte, Alcott, Di Prima, and more. Writings from historical works through modern times are gathered in Sisters Of The Extreme, a fine survey of the lives and experiences of women who have had their lives changed by drugs.

Recently I have read Journey of the Heart by Jane Pettit. I have found it to be a wondorously enchanting novel about the life and hardships of the great poet Maya Angelou. It was extraordinary, reading the book was almost like watching a movie. The author was so descriptive that I could see little photographs in my head of what was happening at the time. In conclusion I would have to say that this is one of the greatest books that I have ever read.

I've never read Maya Angelou before and I was really impressed by her style. I've enjoyed this book because although it describes in a very detailed way the very sad aspects of racism; it also describes certain situations with a good sense of humour. It also portrays the values and richness of the African American Culture. The book is full of different "feelings" which make you laugh, cry and let you be part of the different stages in which Maya goes through. I like the way she clarifies different situations in which the African American way of dealing with things is described, because this let you see the situation from their point of view and at the same time introduces you to their culture. I enjoy the detailed narration of the sad and the happy moments of her life. It is also very easy to perceive her relationship with the different people in her life. This book is one of those which you don't want to finish, so I'm looking forward to reading the following titles of her autobiography because I really want to know more about the way her life has developed and to be treated again by her powerful narrative style. What a wonderful woman she must be!

A quick review by Michelle A. Bejar.......I first read this book in my English class in the University I am currently attending. It became one of my favorites, that I will have in my own library of books. I know why the caged bird sings, is the biography about Maya Angelou herself, a book that helps understand the struggles of a little girl and her brother Bailey. They both had a hard life, living between Arkansas and California, but both overcame those issues in such a young age. Both children in their young age were not living with their parents due to the divorce, but rather were staying with their grandmother in Arkansas. The grandmother took on the father and mother figure for them, they later had begun to call her Mama too. After moving with their grandmother, the children were facing racial discrimination against them. I think that we can all learn from these issues to make life itself easier. Some readers might not realize this, but I feel that this book teaches us the hard facts about racial issues in life. In Maya's life racism was not the only issue she had to deal with. Once she moved back with her mother, she was raped by her mothers boyfriend at a young age. This is another way she shows the reader how she dealt with hard situations in her young life. I personally recommend this book to adolescent readers, it deals with issues that need to be learned at a young age. I feel that the book will help the majority of the readers to cross giant walls of cultures, race and people. It will help us to learn how to treat and learn about others who might not be the same way as we are. At the end, I think that it will strengthen the race relations between people for the better. In conclusion I would like to add that this book can be funny at time, but also heart breaking at other times. It is the genuine story of a girl, where at times we can relate too.

Maya Angelou can write, there is no question about that. Her descriptions in this book are so vivid and expressive that I feel, in a small way, I know what it might have been like to live in Arkansas during the 1940s.

I found in the reviews that there seemed to be 2 reasons that people didn't like this book:

1) kids forced to read it for school - I'm not surprised. If I was 14, I probably would have hated it too. Kids want books with action and a story.

2) suggestions that Maya Angelou is a racist - this book is told through the eyes of a young black girl who rarely met a white person and those she met treated her in ways that stripped her of her dignity and her personhood. Any negative feelings she had are entirely understandable.

Maya writes with honesty and such feeling that at times it is almost painful to read but I'm glad I did. I'll never know what it feels like to be black and the target of bigotry but Maya has helped me understand just a little by letting me walk a while in her shoes.

While the book is filled with its "cute" moments, I can't get past the author to enjoy the book. All I have to say to you is learn about the author before you read the book. The "H" for H. Beecher Hicks does not stand for HUMILITY or HONESTY. Besides, Maya Angelou did not co-author this book as the presentaiton would suggest. She merely contributed the foreward.

In the continuing excellence of Dr.Hicks' contributions to the cause of Christ, this is yet another expression of inspiration and encouragement to parishioners and pastors. Every church library should have it,(as well as the other Hicks offerings) on the shelf and on their lips so they can tell their children! The same Bridge that brought Hicks over, is the same one that will carry us through. Each challenge we encounter is but another opportunity to Sing! **another Hicks quote from (Hamel & Prahalad's)Competing for the Future - Destiny is no matter of chance, it is a matter of choice: It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved...we CAN achieve much! Look where He brought us from!

Dr. Hicks' ministry has blessed the Louisville, Kentucky area for many years and we thank him for allowing God to use him for His glory!

As with all of his books, and his ministry, Dr. Hicks was a blessing. I find him to be without peer as far as preaching and writing. He is a true inspiration to the faith community. Oh that I could "sit at his feet." The book was inspirational.