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Celebrations: Rituals of Peace and Prayer
Grace, dignity, and eloquence have long been hallmarks of Maya Angelou's poetry. Her measured verses have stirred our souls, energized our minds, and healed our hearts. Whether offering hope in the darkest of nights or expressing sincere joy at the extraordinariness of the everyday, Maya Angelou has served as our common voice.
"Celebrations "is a collection of timely and timeless poems that are an integral part of the global fabric. Several works have become nearly as iconic as Angelou herself: the inspiring "On the Pulse of Morning," read at President William Jefferson Clinton's 1993 inauguration; the heartening "Amazing Peace," presented at the 2005 lighting of the National Christmas Tree at the White House; "A Brave and Startling Truth," which marked the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations; and "Mother," which beautifully honors the first woman in our lives. Angelou writes of celebrations public and private, a bar mitzvah wish to her nephew, a birthday greeting to Oprah Winfrey, and a memorial tribute to the late Luther Vandross and Barry White.
More than a writer, Angelou is a chronicler of history, an advocate for peace, and a champion for the planet, as well as a patriot, a mentor, and a friend. To be shared and cherished, the wisdom and poetry of Maya Angelou proves there is always cause for celebration. "From the Hardcover edition."
"Celebrations "is a collection of timely and timeless poems that are an integral part of the global fabric. Several works have become nearly as iconic as Angelou herself: the inspiring "On the Pulse of Morning," read at President William Jefferson Clinton's 1993 inauguration; the heartening "Amazing Peace," presented at the 2005 lighting of the National Christmas Tree at the White House; "A Brave and Startling Truth," which marked the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations; and "Mother," which beautifully honors the first woman in our lives. Angelou writes of celebrations public and private, a bar mitzvah wish to her nephew, a birthday greeting to Oprah Winfrey, and a memorial tribute to the late Luther Vandross and Barry White.
More than a writer, Angelou is a chronicler of history, an advocate for peace, and a champion for the planet, as well as a patriot, a mentor, and a friend. To be shared and cherished, the wisdom and poetry of Maya Angelou proves there is always cause for celebration. "From the Hardcover edition."
1 pages, Audible Audio
First published January 1, 2006
74 people are currently reading
1854 people want to read
About the author
Maya Angelou
296 books14.6k followersMaya Angelou was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows spanning over 50 years. She received dozens of awards and more than 50 honorary degrees. Angelou's series of seven autobiographies focus on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her life up to the age of 17 and brought her international recognition and acclaim.
She became a poet and writer after a string of odd jobs during her young adulthood. These included fry cook, sex worker, nightclub performer, Porgy and Bess cast member, Southern Christian Leadership Conference coordinator, and correspondent in Egypt and Ghana during the decolonization of Africa. Angelou was also an actress, writer, director, and producer of plays, movies, and public television programs. In 1982, she was named the first Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Angelou was active in the Civil Rights Movement and worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Beginning in the 1990s, she made approximately 80 appearances a year on the lecture circuit, something she continued into her eighties. In 1993, Angelou recited her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" (1993) at the first inauguration of Bill Clinton, making her the first poet to make an inaugural recitation since Robert Frost at the inauguration of John F. Kennedy in 1961.
With the publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou publicly discussed aspects of her personal life. She was respected as a spokesperson for Black people and women, and her works have been considered a defense of Black culture. Her works are widely used in schools and universities worldwide, although attempts have been made to ban her books from some U.S. libraries. Angelou's most celebrated works have been labeled as autobiographical fiction, but many critics consider them to be autobiographies. She made a deliberate attempt to challenge the common structure of the autobiography by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre. Her books center on themes that include racism, identity, family, and travel.
She became a poet and writer after a string of odd jobs during her young adulthood. These included fry cook, sex worker, nightclub performer, Porgy and Bess cast member, Southern Christian Leadership Conference coordinator, and correspondent in Egypt and Ghana during the decolonization of Africa. Angelou was also an actress, writer, director, and producer of plays, movies, and public television programs. In 1982, she was named the first Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Angelou was active in the Civil Rights Movement and worked with Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. Beginning in the 1990s, she made approximately 80 appearances a year on the lecture circuit, something she continued into her eighties. In 1993, Angelou recited her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" (1993) at the first inauguration of Bill Clinton, making her the first poet to make an inaugural recitation since Robert Frost at the inauguration of John F. Kennedy in 1961.
With the publication of I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, Angelou publicly discussed aspects of her personal life. She was respected as a spokesperson for Black people and women, and her works have been considered a defense of Black culture. Her works are widely used in schools and universities worldwide, although attempts have been made to ban her books from some U.S. libraries. Angelou's most celebrated works have been labeled as autobiographical fiction, but many critics consider them to be autobiographies. She made a deliberate attempt to challenge the common structure of the autobiography by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre. Her books center on themes that include racism, identity, family, and travel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 287 reviews
February 22, 2025
I found CELEBRATIONS by Maya Angelou on the Libby app. Check for your local library on the app and read great books for free!📚
This is a beautiful and very short chapbook of spiritual poems from Maya Angelou. I listened to it on Audiobook, read by the author, and I highly recommend this format. Her voice is so rich, like honey sweetened warm tea. To hear such applied to her own affirmations of faith and joy is a true pleasure.
Even as I jotted these words in order to share them here, I felt them wilt from the version I had heard. And yet still, here are a few lines from my favorite piece in the chapbook, "Million Man March:"
Clap hands, because we have survived. We have thrived with passion, compassion, humor, and style.
The nights were long.
The wounds were deep.
The pit has been dark, its walls were steep.
Now, clap hands! Celebrate! We deserve it. Celebrate!
The audiobook is a bit short, but you won't notice because the poems are timeless.
Rating: 👏👏👏👏.5 / 5 clapping hands
Recommend? Definitely!
Finished: June 2 2023
Format: Audiobook, Libby
This is a beautiful and very short chapbook of spiritual poems from Maya Angelou. I listened to it on Audiobook, read by the author, and I highly recommend this format. Her voice is so rich, like honey sweetened warm tea. To hear such applied to her own affirmations of faith and joy is a true pleasure.
Even as I jotted these words in order to share them here, I felt them wilt from the version I had heard. And yet still, here are a few lines from my favorite piece in the chapbook, "Million Man March:"
Clap hands, because we have survived. We have thrived with passion, compassion, humor, and style.
The nights were long.
The wounds were deep.
The pit has been dark, its walls were steep.
Now, clap hands! Celebrate! We deserve it. Celebrate!
The audiobook is a bit short, but you won't notice because the poems are timeless.
Rating: 👏👏👏👏.5 / 5 clapping hands
Recommend? Definitely!
Finished: June 2 2023
Format: Audiobook, Libby
December 14, 2021
Thunder rumbles in the mountain passes And lightning rattles the eaves of our houses. Floodwaters await in our avenues.
Snow falls upon snow, falls upon snow to avalanche Over unprotected villages. The sky slips low and gray and threatening.
We question ourselves. What have we done to so affront nature? We interrogate and worry God.
Are you there? Are you there, really? Does the covenant you made with us still hold?
Into this climate of fear and apprehension, Christmas enters, Streaming lights of joy, ringing bells of hope And singing carols of forgiveness high up in the bright air.
The world is encouraged to come away from rancor, Come the way of friendship.
It is the Glad Season. Thunder ebbs to silence and lightning sleeps quietly in the corner.
Floodwaters recede into memory. Snow becomes a yielding cushion to aid us As we make our way to higher ground.
Hope is born again in the faces of children.
It rides on the shoulders of our aged as they walk into their sunsets. Hope spreads around the earth, brightening all things, Even hate, which crouches breeding in dark corridors.
In our joy, we think we hear a whisper. At first it is too soft. Then only half heard. We listen carefully as it gathers strength. We hear a sweetness.
The word is Peace. It is loud now. Louder than the explosion of bombs.
We tremble at the sound. We are thrilled by it’s presence. It is that for which we have hungered. Not just the absence of war. But true Peace. A harmony of spirit, a comfort of courtesies. Security for our beloveds and their beloveds.
We clap hands and welcome the Peace of Christmas.
We beckon this good season to wait awhile with us. We, Baptist and Buddhist, Methodist and Muslim, say come. Peace. Come and fill us and our world with your majesty. We, the Jew and the Jainist, the Catholic and the Confucian, Implore you to stay awhile with us So we may learn by your shimmering light How to look beyond complexion and see community.
It is Christmas time, a halting of hate time.’
There is more to this poem, more to this collection by Maya Angelou, but this one spoke to me as perhaps even more appropriate, needed, given the recent years we have lived through.
On the back cover is a quote from another of her included poems ’When Great Trees Fall’, which, while dedicated to Bernice Johnson Reagan, seems an appropriate tribute to Maya Angelou -
’And when great souls die, after a period peace blooms,
slowly and always irregularly. Spaces fill
with a kind of
soothing electric vibration,
Our senses, restored, never
to be the same, whisper to us,
They existed. They existed.
We can be. Be and be
better. For they existed.’
Snow falls upon snow, falls upon snow to avalanche Over unprotected villages. The sky slips low and gray and threatening.
We question ourselves. What have we done to so affront nature? We interrogate and worry God.
Are you there? Are you there, really? Does the covenant you made with us still hold?
Into this climate of fear and apprehension, Christmas enters, Streaming lights of joy, ringing bells of hope And singing carols of forgiveness high up in the bright air.
The world is encouraged to come away from rancor, Come the way of friendship.
It is the Glad Season. Thunder ebbs to silence and lightning sleeps quietly in the corner.
Floodwaters recede into memory. Snow becomes a yielding cushion to aid us As we make our way to higher ground.
Hope is born again in the faces of children.
It rides on the shoulders of our aged as they walk into their sunsets. Hope spreads around the earth, brightening all things, Even hate, which crouches breeding in dark corridors.
In our joy, we think we hear a whisper. At first it is too soft. Then only half heard. We listen carefully as it gathers strength. We hear a sweetness.
The word is Peace. It is loud now. Louder than the explosion of bombs.
We tremble at the sound. We are thrilled by it’s presence. It is that for which we have hungered. Not just the absence of war. But true Peace. A harmony of spirit, a comfort of courtesies. Security for our beloveds and their beloveds.
We clap hands and welcome the Peace of Christmas.
We beckon this good season to wait awhile with us. We, Baptist and Buddhist, Methodist and Muslim, say come. Peace. Come and fill us and our world with your majesty. We, the Jew and the Jainist, the Catholic and the Confucian, Implore you to stay awhile with us So we may learn by your shimmering light How to look beyond complexion and see community.
It is Christmas time, a halting of hate time.’
There is more to this poem, more to this collection by Maya Angelou, but this one spoke to me as perhaps even more appropriate, needed, given the recent years we have lived through.
On the back cover is a quote from another of her included poems ’When Great Trees Fall’, which, while dedicated to Bernice Johnson Reagan, seems an appropriate tribute to Maya Angelou -
’And when great souls die, after a period peace blooms,
slowly and always irregularly. Spaces fill
with a kind of
soothing electric vibration,
Our senses, restored, never
to be the same, whisper to us,
They existed. They existed.
We can be. Be and be
better. For they existed.’
January 24, 2019
The poems in Maya Angelou's collection, "Celebrations" were associated with important public and private events. Most of the works have a message of peace and healing, and encourage an atmosphere where all people are treated as equals. Other poems celebrate particular individuals such as the birthday poem, "Continue", for Oprah Winfrey. Angelou was also an accomplished speaker so it's no surprise that she was asked to read her poems at important events.
Angelou read "On the Pulse of Morning" at the 1993 inauguration of President Clinton. She was a spokesperson for African-Americans in her poem, "A Black Woman Speaks to Black Manhood", which she read at the Million Man March in 1995.
For the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations, Angelou's "A Brave and Startling Truth" is dedicated to the hope for peace and "A climate where every man and every woman/ Can live freely without sanctimonious piety/ Without crippling fear".
Angelou read "On the Pulse of Morning" at the 1993 inauguration of President Clinton. She was a spokesperson for African-Americans in her poem, "A Black Woman Speaks to Black Manhood", which she read at the Million Man March in 1995.
For the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations, Angelou's "A Brave and Startling Truth" is dedicated to the hope for peace and "A climate where every man and every woman/ Can live freely without sanctimonious piety/ Without crippling fear".
December 8, 2020
CELEBRATIONS: Rituals of Peace and Prayer by Maya Angelou is a collection of 'timely and timeless poems', one of which Angelou read at President Clinton's 1993 inauguration, one of which she read at the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nation, one to celebrate her nephew's Bar Mitzvah, one to celebrate her mother on Mother's Day, and so many more. On the back cover, it says that Angelou is a chronicler of history, an advocate of peace, and a champion for the planet and I couldn't have said it any better than this since all of these descriptions fit so well. I loved every single poem, was mesmerised by Angelou's graceful, dignified and elongated style and her use of poetic devices. I'm rating this book with ★★★★★
July 5, 2023
4-4.25 stars
This was a nice introduction to Maya Angelou’s writing for me. It was a small volume of poems and letters she wrote for special events she was asked to speak at or to speak about people she knew. I can definitely see myself picking up more of her writings in the future.
This was a nice introduction to Maya Angelou’s writing for me. It was a small volume of poems and letters she wrote for special events she was asked to speak at or to speak about people she knew. I can definitely see myself picking up more of her writings in the future.
August 20, 2025
Be warned. This is a very emotional collection. Bring a tissue.
February 12, 2020
All poetry is meant to be read out loud, but Angelou's especially. These poems are straightforward, joyous, and full of power. Most were written for a specific occasion which is interesting. "Prayer" is probably my favorite of this collection.
June 30, 2025
"On this platform of peace, we can create a language
to translate ourselves to ourselves and to each other."
Beautiful.
to translate ourselves to ourselves and to each other."
Beautiful.
April 20, 2018
A collection of poetry by Maya Angelou. It was interesting and my first exploration into her work.
October 4, 2020
Gorgeous. True poetry. It's unfair of me to compare this poet to the last one I read, but man. It's like comparing a Michaelangelo to an amateur artist.
January 25, 2023
Beautiful poems that touch deeply! No need of false complexity here, only honest simple words.
December 28, 2024
omg i loved the poem “when great trees fall”
April 21, 2025
Absolutely beautiful ❤️❤️
October 6, 2015
"I was yours to love
You were always mine
We have belonged together
In and out of time.
When the first stone looked
Up at the blazing sun
And the first tree struggled
I loved you more.
You were the rhythm on the head
Of the conga drum
And the brush of palm
On my but brown skin
And I loved you then.
We worked the cane
And cotton fields
We trod together
The city streets
Wearied by labor
Bruised by cruelty
Strutting age sassy
To our inner beat.
And all the while
Lord, how I loved your smile."
You were always mine
We have belonged together
In and out of time.
When the first stone looked
Up at the blazing sun
And the first tree struggled
I loved you more.
You were the rhythm on the head
Of the conga drum
And the brush of palm
On my but brown skin
And I loved you then.
We worked the cane
And cotton fields
We trod together
The city streets
Wearied by labor
Bruised by cruelty
Strutting age sassy
To our inner beat.
And all the while
Lord, how I loved your smile."
August 5, 2021
Rereading: There are some brilliant people who have the ability in a few lines of verse to show a shared human experience and also impart wisdom that everyone needs to hear and live by. Only a few can do it; Mary Oliver, I suspect Amanda Gorman and one of the best of all, Maya Angelou. This is one of those audiobooks I return to as it has so much in so little space.
Original Review: First real introduction to Angelou’s poetry and I really enjoyed it- thought provoking, intelligent and even better as an audiobook read by the author herself.
Original Review: First real introduction to Angelou’s poetry and I really enjoyed it- thought provoking, intelligent and even better as an audiobook read by the author herself.
May 19, 2024
The lineup of reasons for these poems is bonkers, from Clinton's inauguration to Oprah's birthday to the United Nations' 50th Anniversary. But it makes sense! Angelou is able to observe and articulate human behavior, from the nuance of its beauty to the cracks in its cruelty, and she speaks of legacy as if there is potential for community across the world, as we are but a tiny, wonderful blip in the universe. It is not optimistic, but rather hopeful. She recognizes how much damage humanity can cause itself and the surrounding nature and universe, but she believes we can trend upward. We just may not see our species cross the finish line to True Greatness in our lifetime. But that's why Angelou notices how far other things have come, such as the length of a root or the smoothness of a rock in the stream. Angelou is seeing all, eon by eon, one poem at a time.
February 15, 2022
“Clap hands… we have survived.”
A lovely collection of poems made lovelier by the audiobook read by Ms. Angelou herself. Highly recommend — a quick read/listen that will stay with you. Angelou commemorates occasions both public & private, such as Mother’s Day, a young boy’s bar mitzvah, President Bill Clinton’s inauguration, Oprah’s 50th birthday, the vigils of Luther Vandross & Barry White, and more.
Each is its own meditation on what it means to live a life & be connected to one another. What it means to have an impact.
A lovely collection of poems made lovelier by the audiobook read by Ms. Angelou herself. Highly recommend — a quick read/listen that will stay with you. Angelou commemorates occasions both public & private, such as Mother’s Day, a young boy’s bar mitzvah, President Bill Clinton’s inauguration, Oprah’s 50th birthday, the vigils of Luther Vandross & Barry White, and more.
Each is its own meditation on what it means to live a life & be connected to one another. What it means to have an impact.
July 28, 2017
This is a collection of timely poems by Maya Angelou that shows her grace, dignity and eloquence. Several have become iconic like the inspiring ”On the Pulse of Morning” read at Clinton’s 1993 inauguration, and “Amazing Peace,” presented at the National Christmas Tree lighting at the White House and “A Brave and Startling Truth,” which was read at the 50th anniversary of the United Nations. Her last poem in this collection, “A Prayer for Peace” really resonated.
April 29, 2023
Grabbed this for Poetry Appreciation Month (or something 🙂)
There are some lovely things here. My favorite was A Brave and Startling Truth.
In Ben Lear’s Bar Mitzvah, there were these lines:
They know also
that you will meet those who would be kind
if only the had the courage, and
those who would do evil
if only they had the opportunity.
I had read Amazing Peace, put in picture book form, just a few months ago, and wasn’t terribly impressed. But this collection, including that piece, is wonderful.
There are some lovely things here. My favorite was A Brave and Startling Truth.
In Ben Lear’s Bar Mitzvah, there were these lines:
They know also
that you will meet those who would be kind
if only the had the courage, and
those who would do evil
if only they had the opportunity.
I had read Amazing Peace, put in picture book form, just a few months ago, and wasn’t terribly impressed. But this collection, including that piece, is wonderful.
December 27, 2024
One of my favorite poems was "Amazing Peace," what a beautiful perspective on the world and how we impact it. I read this on libby and have always wanted to dive deeper into Maya Angelou's beautiful work.
February 18, 2018
I think this one is my favorite of her poetry books. It flowed well and was easy to follow.
June 25, 2020
4.5🌟 Amazing collection of poetry, though as I'm not religious a few lost a bit of their impact.
April 9, 2022
What a challenge it is to find words worthy of this poet. Read by the one and only, her words will dance in my ears for a long, long time. THAT is poetry worth celebrating. My favorite? “Mother”
November 27, 2022
Perfect listen on my walk this morning. Birds chirping, water flowing in the little creek, Maya Angelou reading these powerful words. Lovely
December 8, 2024
5 starts for the sons & daughters poem within this collection.
July 2, 2025
Maya has such a way with words you can't help but stop and really listen to the meaning. ❤️
April 8, 2022
This slim collection of poetry is a great read or listen to during big moments - whether birthdays, the end of life of loved ones, and any other event in between. It offers hope and inspiration, including some of Maya Angelou's most memorable lessons (e.g., be a rainbow in someone's cloud). Would make for a thoughtful gift for graduations, I think.
March 3, 2025
my first Angelou! love love loved her narration. felt really deep and whole coming from the poet herself. a nice quick collection that isn't too dense and just the right amount of poetic.
December 22, 2023
How inspirational reading bodies of work that Maya wrote for different occasions. A timeless piece of work.
August 30, 2024
So many beautiful messages in this & loved hearing Maya’s voice!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 287 reviews