When I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings was published to widespread acclaim in 1969, Maya Angelou garnered the attention of an international audience with the triumphs and tragedies of her childhood in the American South. This soul-baring memoir launched a six-book epic spanning the sweep of the author's incredible life. Dedicated fans and newcomers alike can follow the continually absorbing chronicle of Angelou's life: her formative childhood in Stamps, Arkansas; the birth of her son, Guy, at the end of World War II; her adventures travelling abroad with the famed cast of Porgy and Bess; her experience of living in a black expatriate 'colony' in Ghana; her intense involvement with the civil rights movement, including her association with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X; and, finally, the beginning of her writing career. Angelou has chronicled her remarkable journey and inspired people of every generation and nationality to embrace life with commitment and passion.