I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou -Starting August 3rd 2018

[Selma]

[Gabi]

Just started! Chapter 5.

(view spoiler)[ I am loving Maya's writing! It reminds of Little House On The Prairie but with more detail. (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

End chapter 3!
(view spoiler)[ I really love how Angelou is broaching these very heavy topics from a child's perspective. With the arrival of "the boys" we can begin to sense the struggles of being black in the south; but, it also shows the attitude that the other whites have towards the KKK. By giving them such an unassuming name that it almost seems as if some young kids are just coming over for tea.I really think that is a very interesting way of writing and revealing of the cultural setting of the book. (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

Gabi wrote: "Just started! Chapter 5.

[spoilers removed]"
I totally agree, it is a very easy style to read.

[Selma]

End chapter 4
(view spoiler)[ I love how young Maya is unable to see white people as human; because, it kind of mimics their view and inability to see her as human. And we also see it as a result of the severe segregation in Stamps that causes the two races to have practically no interactions with each other, and thus, no way to humanise each other. (hide spoiler)]

[Gabi]

Selma wrote: "End chapter 4
[spoilers removed]"

You worded it perfectly! I was confused about "the boys" bit until I realized what it meant, and the way they called it that, making it sound way less terrifying than it really was, just made it more terrifying.

Chapter 7.
(view spoiler)[ I like Uncle Willie and especially the grandmother, but the way children were disciplined back then was harsh. I knew it was harsh but reading it just makes it more real. I mean, she would wait until they fell asleep, and then check their feet to make sure they were clean enough, and if they weren't, she'd wake them with a switch? (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

End Chapter 11
(view spoiler)[ Oh my god, I did not see that coming. I can't even fully express what I feel. Maya is so young. It is such a vile thing to do. I honestly hope something really bad happens to Mr. Freeman before he is able to rape her again. And of course, she is just a young kid who doesn't;t understand what is going on, and that is what makes it so much worse. The way Angelou once again incorporates the childlike innocence to make the whole ordeal much more harrowing for the reader, not letting us forget how young she is. (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

End Chapter 13

(view spoiler)[ I feel so bad for Maya, what poisonous thing to think that you are the cause of someones death at such a young age, and to bear that responsibility alone none the less. I think it is interesting the weight that she puts on words, believing that her speaking would have the power to kill, giving her almost god like powers. This makes sense with her future career choice as an author who fully appreciates the value of words. But, I think as a child it may have been her way to feel like she had control over something, having lost control - by being raped - and feeling like it is her fault that man was murdered, she might have been seeking some form of control. (hide spoiler)]

[Gabi]

End of Chapter 10

(view spoiler)[ I didn't think she and her brother would move so soon! The Stamps was a harsh place to live but it felt more genuine there than living with her father and mother, but we just met them so I don't have much to think about them yet. Still, I really wonder why they sent Bailey and Maya away if they seem to live a more prospering lifestyle than Momma and Uncle Willie? (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

End chapter 16
(view spoiler)[ It is very interesting how Maya despises being called Mary for Mrs. C's connivence, I think it speaks to a lot of the racial climate at the time wherein Mrs. C didn't even see Maya as worthy of having a name for herself. (hide spoiler)]

End chapter 24
(view spoiler)[ I hate dentist Lincoln so much! Stamps is in the middle of no where, there is no black dentist for her to go to in the area. He starts off being slightly racist and then turns to blatant racism, this just goes to show that despite level of education most people in the south were racist and abided to the Jim Crow Laws. (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

Gabi wrote: "End of Chapter 10

[spoilers removed]"

(view spoiler)[ I think the reason why they sent them away is because the South was not a safe place for black people, and it may have been an attempt at sending them somewhere where they had better chances of leading a good life. (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

End chapter 25
(view spoiler)[ "he asked Uncle Willie what coloured people had done to white people in the first place" (196). Bailey is so young and had to witness something so gruesome, and of course he doesn't understand it which makes it all so much worse. (hide spoiler)]

End chapter 27
(view spoiler)[ Again I think it is really interesting how Angelou incorporates historical details without putting to much weight on them, s they did not affect her life at the time. For example, with the "dwindling asian population" she is referring to Japanese internment camps in such a subtle manner. (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

Done
(view spoiler)[ I really loved this book! With Maya getting her baby which is something that she truly loves entirely and unconditionally, I think hat was a nice ending. Of course I now want to google what else happened in her life. I am also really happy that she in the en began to overcome some of the race struggles she had faced her whole life by becoming the first black female conductor in San Francisco. I think that victory gave her a small escape from the "cage" of racism, and gives you hope for the future. (hide spoiler)]

[Gabi]

Oh wow, that was fast! I just finished my other book so I should be able to read this one more quickly =)

Did you like it?

[Selma]

Gabi wrote: "Oh wow, that was fast! I just finished my other book so I should be able to read this one more quickly =)

Did you like it?"

I really loved it, it was such a great read! I am excited to discuss it further with you!

[Gabi]

Page 100 (forgot which chapter!)

(view spoiler)[ I had no idea prior to reading the book that that had happened to Maya in her lifetime, what Mr. Freeman did to her, and at the age of eight. Then Maya believes it was her fault, and people became angry and even punished her because she refused to speak to anyone but Bailey. That's been weighing heavily on my mind since I read it...

I also see what you mean by the "value of words", and then later in the book, Mrs. Flowers even explains how powerful words can be both spoken and written. It's like you called it! (hide spoiler)]

(view spoiler)[ I LOVE Mrs. Flowers to bits. She reminds me of Miss Honey from Matilda, right down to their sweet names! How she took Maya aside, how she could tell Maya was uncomfortable when her grandmother started undoing her dress (HOW did Momma not notice how upset this made Maya?), the cookies and the tea and the poetry...only for the happy moment to unravel when she gets home and says "by the way". I can understand why her grandmother was horrified by this, but doesn't Momma know that Maya would never do that if she knew how bad it was? I was so upset I wanted to strike the sun chair I was lying on. (hide spoiler)]

[Selma]

Gabi wrote: "Page 100 (forgot which chapter!)

(view spoiler)[ I totally agree with you that Momma handled that situation wrong. I saw it very much as a bi-product of her own upbringing and the importance she puts on religion and the ways that she believes that God has helped her in her life. And will help her after. To me it almost seemed like she wanted that for Maya too, for her to be in his good graces because as a black person in America there really wasn't much room for error. Idk, it's just a theory. (hide spoiler)]

[Gabi]

Selma wrote: "Gabi wrote: "Page 100 (forgot which chapter!)

[spoilers removed]"

I agree with your theory! After I was done feeling upset, I had to remind myself of her grandmother's upbringing, and that she was likely treated the same way when she was Maya's age.

At the end of Chapter 30!
(view spoiler)[ Things are finally (finally) looking brighter for Maya! She seems to have put that terrible past behind her, and she's starting to see the wonderful aspects of her personality and believe in her talents (I love how she says she could write better poems for Valentine's day in her sleep). Still, after reading most of the book, I'm constantly suspicious, kind of like how Maya felt in her life. Always expecting the worst. The only one I really trust is Bailey, and sometimes he's not always there (not that I blame him, he is only a 14 year-old boy...) (hide spoiler)]

[Gabi]

Selma wrote: "End chapter 25
[spoilers removed]

End chapter 27
[spoilers removed]"

I noticed that and thought the same thing! Maya is so brutally honest when she writes the memories of her life. The moment she starting saying (view spoiler)[ that the Asian population was disappearing in her city, but her family took no notice of it, I knew immediately what she was talking about. The subtlety of it all made the whole situation feel worst. (hide spoiler)]

[Gabi]

Selma wrote: "Done
[spoilers removed]"

I finished it! And when I did, I was pretty upset because I was hoping for a couple more chapters. Maybe she has another autobiography that tells the next portion of her life, and if she does, I'm going to have to read it!

(view spoiler)[ The last quarter of the book was my favorite. After all the awful things she endured, it was clear that she became such a strong and solid person. I was so happy when she got that job with all her determination, and the part with the baby shocked me, but it was such a sweet ending. (hide spoiler)]

[Gabi]

I found out that there's 7 autobiographies total! Just in case you're interested, the next one is Gather Together in My Name. I'm going to have to read it because I must know what happens next.

Thank you so much for reading the first book with me!