In 1940s America, there was a famous author and cultural voice who was admired by many. One day she decided to tell her story—the messy part of it. This review is about that.
Artistry and Craft
As to be expected by Ms. Angelou, her writing is one that draws you in with its descriptions and cadence, surprisingly similar to the way she spoke. I read the second part of her biography, Gather Together In My Name, in under two days, and I couldn't seem to get myself to stop reading. Even though I didn't read the first part of her biography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, (I might venture one day to read it, and I wish I had read it beforehand.) But if it's anything like the second part of her biography, I know it will be moving with superior writing that is truly crafted with artistry. That being said, this book is her story, it's what she had experienced as a young woman growing up in a racialized and sexist America. Angelou gets herself into some pretty sticky predicaments from bad or morally wrong decisions she makes, as well as from difficult decisions or outright immoral behavior from those around her. Therefore, there are lots and lots of pages that…can be intense, quite a bit of those intense scenes I had to skip for my own well-being.
Her story isn't for those who can't stand discomfort—This book was written from a place of discomfort, by an adult looking back at her younger years; this book was not meant to be fully comforting, cozy, or warm. So if you're looking for a book that is an easy read emotionally, this may not be the book for you. Conversely, if you're looking for a book that displays messiness in a raw, defined, concrete way, and shows the process of a person coming back to innocence within themselves, then you may be interested in Ms. Angelou's biography.
Themes and Messages
Gather Together in My Name is about a girl who is in the messy process of finding herself, who gradually finds her identity, coming to the realization that she wants to be innocent. It's the story of a girl who stands on the precipice of falling to the wayside or getting back on the straight and narrow. She struggles with fantasizing, lusting, pride, arrogance, lying, and petty criminal behavior. Yet, despite all this, Maya Angelou is brave enough to go back into remembering and write a book on her life experiences, telling her story about a very dark period of her life.
She is generously honest in a story that simultaneously gives grace but doesn't avoid hard truths. As Ms. Angelou put it: "I wrote about my experiences because I thought too many people tell young folks, 'I never did anything wrong. Who, Moi? Never I. I have no skeletons in my closet. In fact, I have no closet.' They lie like that and then young people find themselves in situations and they think, 'Damn, I must be a pretty bad guy. My mom or dad never did anything wrong.' They can't forgive themselves and go on with their lives. So I wrote the book Gather Together in My Name."
Therefore, this is a book that is not only generously honest but generously brave, as it is a story that is meant to help others see that we, as humans, are not perfect. We can do better—so once we know better, we do better.
There is a heavy emphasis on the messiness of being young throughout these three years in young Ms. Angelou's life. We see her go through some pretty dark things—messy things, some things that are plainly wrong or mean that happened to her or that she does to others, and messy decisions that try to replace the right ones.
We see a young woman grappling for her place in the world, trying to find success and trying to find a place in mid-century America where racial tensions are high, and in certain parts, being the wrong color with the wrong attitude can get you murdered or violated and she experiences the effects of that in daunting ways.
Final Thoughts
Overall, it was a hard book to read, but a good book to read. Since this is a biography, I'll refrain from giving it a rating because this is somebody's life experience and their story. Instead, I'll give you my takeaway from it. As I stated before, this book is written to people who are grappling with and processing their own messiness. Maya Angelou comes alongside the reader and supports them in their own grief from their own miseries, as a colleague of a member of humanity, whether they brought it on themselves or somebody brought it onto them. This is a book that puts a magnifying glass on the human condition, human error, and human moral failing; it is a profoundly honest book that deserves respect and cultural humility as many of the readers have not had the same specific cultural experience. I am grateful that Maya Angelou created this book to dispel the illusions of perfect adults with neat and tidy pasts. I am thankful to Ms. Angelou that she was brave enough to create this book to not only help her own generation that suffered through similar pains of racialized, sexualized and sexist America, but later ones who suffer and grapple with the same human condition as the one she grappled with.
Content Discretions:
Drugs, alcohol, sexual assault, sexual innuendo, prostitution and prostitution themes, blood, mentions of lynching, death.
If you’d like to explore more of Maya Angelou' work, please check out one of the websites that is dedicated to keeping her legacy alive: Caged Bird Legacy.
That's all folks! If you enjoyed the review, feel free to share and or leave a comment below. If your mindset or perspective has changed over the past few years of your life was it because of your own first hand experiences or a second had experience, like reading someones elses soty, i'd love to hear your thoughts below!❤❤❤
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