Letter to My Daughter

I just saw this book appear in my library one day (after checking I found out my girlfriend got it) and it looked short enough so I thought... What the heck? To say I was impressed would be a massive understatement. If I never thought Maya Angelou was an icon before, I would know now. Her insight, humility and wisdom is something that cannot be bought and it's not something that only experience can teach. It takes something more... something that Maya Angelou clearly has. She speaks of both her shortcomings and triumphs in a great way, I often have to really just stop whatever am doing to replay a portion of book so I can really absorb what she has to say.

I first thought the book would be geared specifically for women, and maybe it is in some way that my limited insight cannot perceive. But I would suggest this book to anyone... Black... White... Mixed... Asian... Indian... male... female... whoever you are. The wisdom in this book is something that is just great to say the least, narration by Maya Angelou was a heaven sent.

Truly an EPIC piece!

Maya Angelou has a voice like warm butter. If she read it aloud, she could make her grocery list sound wise and sensual and beautiful. When listening to her, I just want to nod my head and agree, grateful that she's sharing her thoughts with me. In this book, she recounts many of her personal experiences across eight decades of life. It's honest and sincere, and I was touched that she generously shared some of her own most embarrassing mistakes and what she learned about herself and the world through them.

After finishing this book, which only took a couple of hours, I reflected back on her lessons and can't say that I can embrace them all, perhaps because my experiences are not hers. But I'm nonetheless grateful that she's shared the insight she's gained through her remarkable life, and in her own voice.

I am a very big fan of the author and try to get as many of her publications as possible. I am not quite finished with this book but finding it very interesting as it holds my attention with every word. And for me that is very important. Recommendation for this book A Must Have and/or Read. A+

A dose of Maya Angelou's typical wisdom. Shorter than I had expected but a wonderful listen nevertheless.

What a delightful surprise to find out that Maya Angelou herself was the narrator. I felt like I was sitting at the feet of a sage, soaking in wisdom. This is a book I may end up picking up - that is the hardcopy - in order to easily reference the pearls of wisdom she graciously shares with her audience. My only criticism, is that towards the end, the stories became a bit impersonal, and seemed as if they were added as an afterthought. Didn't seem to fit with the idea of writing personal letters to a daughter. It sounded more like recycled speeches presented at other venues and hastily added towards the end of the book. This is why I gave the overall review 4 stars instead of 5.

The stories seemed to jump all over the place...just little snippets of writing. Not a feel good book.