I am so impressed again with the life-giving power of literature. If I were a young person today, trying to gain a sense of myself in the world, I would do that again by reading, just as I did when I was young.

More quotes by Maya Angelou

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"To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power."

- Maya Angelou

Love

"We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated."

- Maya Angelou

Courage

"Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can’t practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage."

- Maya Angelou

Courage

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

- Maya Angelou

Compassion

"The best part of life is not just surviving, but thriving with passion and compassion and humor and style and generosity and kindness."

- Maya Angelou

Compassion

More Personal Growth Quotes

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"We are all capable of change, both in our actions and our hearts."

- Beauty and the Beast

Personal Growth

"When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too."

- Paulo Coelho

Personal Growth

"If the decisions you make about where you invest your blood, sweat, and tears are not consistent with the person you aspire to be, you’ll never become that person."

- Clayton M. Christensen

Personal Growth

"I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to dance better than myself."

- Arianna Huffington

Personal Growth

"The two most important days in your life are the day you’re born and the day you find out why."

- Mark Twain

Personal Growth