Gather Together in My Name (1974) is a memoir by African-American writer
and poet Maya Angelou, the second of her seven autobiographies. The
narrative follows Rita (Angelou) from the age of 17 to 19 as she becomes
closer to her mother and tries to provide for her young son, but
ultimately descends into a life of crime and misery. It expands on many
of the themes from I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, including motherhood
and family, race and racism, identity, and education and literacy. Like
many of Angelou's autobiographies, Gather Together describes her ongoing
self-education. Though not as critically acclaimed as her first
autobiography, it is considered better written and received mostly
positive reviews. The book's title comes from the Bible, Matthew
18:19–20, and is meant to evoke loving relationships, in which adults
can be honest with their children about their past. Consisting of a
series of episodes loosely tied together by theme and content, the book
intentionally parallels the chaos of adolescence; some critics found
this structure unsatisfactory.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gather_Together_in_My_Name>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1377:
Pope Gregory XI entered Rome after a four-month journey from
Avignon, returning the Papacy to its original city and effectively
becoming the last Avignon Pope.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Gregory_XI>
1524:
Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano set sail westward from
Madeira to find a sea route to the Pacific Ocean.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giovanni_da_Verrazzano>
1946:
The United Nations Security Council, the organ of the United
Nations charged with the maintenance of international peace and
security, held its first meeting at Church House in London.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Security_Council>
1966:
A US Air Force B-52 Stratofortress collided with a KC-135
Stratotanker during aerial refueling over the Mediterranean Sea,
dropping three hydrogen bombs on land near Palomares, Spain, and a
fourth one into the sea.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_Palomares_B-52_crash>
1991:
Harald V, the current King of Norway, succeeded to the throne
upon the death of his father Olav V.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harald_V_of_Norway>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
slug:
1. Any of many terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusks, having no (or only
a rudimentary) shell. […]
2. (journalism) A title, name or header, a catchline, a short phrase or
title to indicate the content of a newspaper or magazine story for
editing use. […]
3. (web design) The last part of a clean URL, the displayed resource name,
similar to a filename.
4. (obsolete) A hindrance, an obstruction. […]
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/slug>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
As we enjoy great Advantages from the Inventions of Others, we
should be glad of an Opportunity to serve others by any Invention of
ours, and this we should do freely and generously.
--Benjamin Franklin
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin>