American author Maya Angelou is known for her poetry, autobiography, and novels that lyrically articulate the experience of Africans Americans and give a voice to black pride and heritage. Angelou's works, however, have appealed to all races with their strong messages of hope and strength. She served as a coordinator for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in the 1960s and published the first volume of her autobiography, the acclaimed I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, in 1970. Despite her distinguished career, she did not become a major public figure until after her moving delivery of a poem at President Bill Clinton's 1992 inauguration. A performer before her career in letters, Angelou has also written, directed, and starred in a number of television programs and movies.

Further Reading:

Angelou, Maya. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. New York, Random House, 1970.

Bloom, Lynn Z. "Maya Angelou." Dictionary of Literary Biography, Volume 38: Afro-American Writers after 1955: Dramatists and Prose Writers. Thadious M. Davis and Trudier Harris, editors. Detroit, Gale Research, 1985.