BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Maya Angelou is an acclaimed author, poet, actress, singer, dancer, playwright, director and producer.  She is most well known for her multi-volume series of autobiographical books, the first of which is the bestseller I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.  In addition, Angelou has written several volumes of poetry.  Some of her most famous fans include Oprah Winfrey and President Bill Clinton, who invited Angelou to deliver a poem at his inauguration in 1993.   (Biography Resource Center)

REFERENCE SOURCES:
The following reference books can be used to get both biographical and critical information about authors.   Each book has one or more volumes.  Check the index (located either in the back of the book or a separate volume) for your author's name and/or a title of his or her work.
 

BIOGRAPHICAL SOURCES:
Contemporary Authors
REF Z 1224 .C6

Dictionary of Literary Biography
REF PS 221 .D5

Black Writers
REF PN 490 .B53
 
Black Women in America
REF E 185.86 .B542

CRITICAL SOURCES:
American Writers
REF PS 129 .A55
 
Great Women Writers
REF PN 471 .G74

American Women Writers
REF PS 147 .A4

Modern American Women Writers
REF PS 151 .M544

Contemporary Literary Criticism
REF PN 771 .C59

Black Literature Criticism
REF PS 153 .N5 B556

The Chelsea House Library of Literary Criticism: Twentieth Century American Literature
REF PS 221 .T834

Masterpieces of African American Literature
REF PS 153 .N5 M264

Masterplots II: Women's Fiction Series
REF PN 471 .M37

Masterplots II: Poetry Series
REF PN 110.5 .M37

Masterplots II: Short Story Series
REF PN 3326 .M27

Masterplots II: Non-Fiction Series
REF PN 44 .M345

Beacham's Popular Fiction in America
REF PS 374 .P63 B43

Authors and Artists for Young People
REF PN 452 .A939

Short Stories for Students
REF PN 3330 .S386

LINCCWeb Searching:
The library catalog online (LINCCWeb) allows you to search for materials about or written by your author.  Click on the links below to view sample searches within the library catalog. 

Sample LINCC Keyword Search: "Maya Angelou"
Sample LINCC Author Search: Angelou, Maya

BROWSE THESE CALL NUMBERS:

PS 3551 .N464

FULL-TEXT DATABASES:
Search for articles and criticism about your author. (Highly recommended are highlighted)
From your home computer, login using your borrower id ( the 14 digit number on the back of your student ID) and your pin (EITHER the last 4 digits of your SSN for returning users OR the last 4 digits of your VID number for new students).

Academic Search Premier

Biography Resource Center

Book Index with Reviews

Book Review Digest Plus

Critical Companions to Popular Contemporary Writers

eBooks/netLibrary

Essay & General Literature Index

Expanded Academic ASAP

Granger's World of Poetry

Humanities Full Text

InfoTrac OneFile

JSTOR

Literature Resource Center

LitFinder

MagillOnLiteraturePlus

OmniFile Full Text Mega

Valencia's Play & Short Story Index (Search for items owned by the library)

WEB SITES:

The Official Maya Angelou Web Site
Maya Angelou: Teacher Resource Files
The Academy of American Poets: Maya Angelou
National Women's History Project: Maya Angelou Biography
Maya Angelou
Voices from the Gap: Maya Angelou
Audio Interview with Maya Angelou
Literary Resources on the Net
Internet Public Library: Literary Criticism

SAMPLE GOOGLE SEARCHES:

intitle:"maya angelou" site:edu
(title phrase and domain search)
intitle:"maya angelou" site:org
(title phrase and domain search)
inurl:mayaangelou
(url search)

EVALUATE YOUR SOURCES:

Distinguishing Between Popular and Scholarly Sources
Evaluating Data
Evaluating Internet Sources
Using Primary and Secondary Sources

DOCUMENT YOUR SOURCES:

APA Documentation of Print Sources
APA Documentation of Electronic Sources

MLA Documentation of Print Sources
MLA Documentation of Electronic Sources

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