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A Song Flung Up to Heaven Audiobook
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(4.00) - 689 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
The culmination of a unique achievement in modern American literature: the six volumes of autobiography that began more than thirty years ago with the appearance of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. A Song Flung Up to Heaven opens as Maya Angelou returns from Africa to the United States to work with Malcolm X. But first she has to journey to California to be reunited with her mother and brother. No sooner does she arrive there than she learns that Malcolm X has been assassinated. Devastated, she tries to put her life back together, working on the stage in local theaters and even conducting a door-to-door survey in Watts. Then Watts explodes in violence, a riot she describes firsthand. Subsequently, on a trip to New York, she meets Martin Luther King, Jr., who asks her to become his coordinator in the North, and she visits black churches all over America to help support King’s Poor People’s March. But once again tragedy strikes. King is assassinated, and this time Angelou completely withdraws from the world, unable to deal with this horrible event. Finally, James Baldwin forces her out of isolation and insists that she accompany him to a dinner party—where the idea for writing I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is born. In fact, A Song Flung Up to Heaven ends as Maya Angelou begins to write the first sentences of Caged Bird.
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"I think I liked each volume of Maya Angelou's autobiographies better than the previous, maybe because I grew to like Angelou better in each volume. Not to say that I didn't like her in I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, but just that her growth as a woman and a writer is clear in each succeeding volume. She shows a wonderful ability to capture her voice from each period in her life."
— Amy (4 out of 5 stars)
Awards
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Winner of the 2003 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album
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Winner of GRAMMY Awards (Best Spoken Word Album), 2003
A Song Flung Up to Heaven Listener Reviews
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" Maya Angelou's mother used to say, "Keep your eyes on the road, your hand on the plow, your finger in the dike, your shoulder to the wheel, and push like hell." "
— Angela, 2/17/2014 -
" The last of Angelou's biographical memoirs. I didn't always like what she was doing but I admire her resilience. "
— Debbe, 2/6/2014 -
" Not as gripping as her earlier years, but still interesting to read. "
— Jeanie, 2/5/2014 -
" A Song Flung Up to Heaven by Maya Angelou (2003) "
— Erotic, 1/25/2014 -
" Not as rich and detailed as her previous biographies...I felt like it rushed along to the conclusion. "
— Victoria, 1/21/2014 -
" Maya Angelou is a wonderful, inspirational writer. "
— Linda, 1/16/2014 -
" Brilliantly writen and an aamazing read "
— Aphiwe, 12/9/2013 -
" I hadn't read any of Maya Angelou's previous autobiographies; just her poetry. I found this book incredibly interesting as she expressed her views of the turbulent times in the racial uprisings of the 60's. "
— Linda, 12/9/2013 -
" I love Maya Angelou but found this book awkward and stilted. It jumped around without a clear direction just like she jotted some book ideas down on a piece of paper and fleshed out the stories without a real narrative. "
— Kewannah, 12/8/2013 -
" So it appears I did not read the books in order. I wanted a bit more, but perhaps reading all the others would help "
— Jae, 11/28/2013 -
" Her entire autobiographical work is amazing. An incredible woman. "
— Sadie, 9/19/2013
About Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou (1928–2014) was a singer, actress, dancer, activist, filmmaker, writer, and mother. In addition to her bestselling autobiographies she wrote several volumes of poetry, including “On the Pulse of the Morning” for the inauguration of President Clinton. She was given a lifetime appointment as Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University in North Carolina, and in 2010 President Barack Obama awarded her the Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor.