Rise!: From Caged Bird to Poet of the People, Maya Angelou
Illustrator: Tonya Engel
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, this beautiful biography of Maya Angelou describes how she rose above a childhood of trauma and emotional pain to become one of the most inspiring voices of our lifetime.
Writer, activist, trolley car conductor, dancer, mother, and humanitarian - Maya Angelou's life was marked by transformation and perseverence. In this comprehensive picture-book biography geared towards older readers, Bethan Hegedus lyrically trances Maya's life from her early days in Stamps, Arkansas through her work as a freedom fighter to her triumphant rise as a poet of the people.
Foreword by Colin Johnson. Time line with photographs. Author’s note with resources. Selected bibliography. Quotation sources. Full-color illustrations were rendered in acrylic and oil paint.
JLG Release: Sep 2019
Awards & Honors
Rise: A Feminist Book Project 2020 Top 10 List
Praise & Reviews
Starred or favorable reviews have been received from these periodicals:
Booklist, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, School Library Journal*, The Horn Book Magazine
School Library Journal
8 x 10
Level 4.9; Points: 0.5;
Scholastic Reading Counts
Level 6.2; Points: 3;
Lee & Low
Potentially Sensitive Areas
Discrimination: Racial Insensitivity/Racism, Violence: Sexual Assault/Rape, Violence: Mild Violence
Maya Angelou (1928–2014), African American women authors, The American South, Performing arts, Poets and poetry, Biography,