- Written by
- Angelou, Maya, American, 1928 - 2014
- Published by
- Random House, Inc., American, founded 1925
- Photograph by
- Dunwell, Steve, American
- Subject of
- Rock Rest Tourist Home, American, 1948 - 1976
- Owned by
- Sinclair, Clayton, American
- Sinclair, Hazel, American
- Date
- 1995
- Medium
- ink on paper (fiber product) with book cloth (textile material) on cardboard and adhesive
- Dimensions
- H x W x D: 6 13/16 × 5 1/16 × 7/16 in. (17.3 × 12.9 × 1.1 cm)
- Description
- A first edition, hardcover copy of A Brave and Startling Truth by Maya Angelou. The cloth bound hardcover book has an adhesive binding. The book’s dust jacket has dark, medium, and light blue vertical stripes interspersed with two yellow stripes and one orange stripe. The author’s name is printed in large, black text over the top half of the dust jacket that reads [MAYA / ANGELOU]. The book’s title, [A / BRAVE / AND / STARTLING / TRUTH], is printed in white text inside a black box centered at the bottom half of the dust jacket. Printed on the blue dust jacket spine is the author’s name printed in white text at the top, and the book’s title printed in white inside a black rectangular box at the center. At the bottom is the publisher’s name, [RANDOM / HOUSE] printed in white text below a small, white, house shaped graphic. The back of the dust jacket has a striped background identical to the front. At the center is a square black-and-white photograph of Maya Angelou. Angelou is depicted in bust pose from the shoulders up. She is facing the viewer, smiling, with her chin propped on the knuckles of her proper right hand. She is wearing a light-toned jacket over a white blouse, thick hoop earrings, and a long necklace. Along the right edge of the photograph is a photography credit printed in small white text that reads [STEVE DUNWELL PHOTOGRAPHY]. The front and back covers and the spine of the book are covered in blue book cloth. On the front cover is an imprinted reproduction of Maya Angelou's signature centered within the bottom third of the cover. Gilded text printed on the spine includes the author’s name, the book title, and the publisher’s name and logo. The back cover is plain. The interior pages are white, calendared paper with black text and some blue accents. Printed on the front fly leaf is black text that reads [Read by the poet / at the fiftieth anniversary / of the founding of the United Nations / San Francisco / 26 June 1995]. The book is unpaged but there are 32 pages excluding flyleaf pages.
- Place collected
- Kittery, York County, Maine, United States, North and Central America
- Place printed
- New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
- Collection title
- The Rock Rest Tourist Home Collection
- Classification
- Books and Published Materials
- Type
- hardcover books
- Topic
- Black Enterprise
- Black interiors
- Literature
- Poetry
- Segregation
- Travel
- Credit Line
- Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Portsmouth Black Heritage Trail, Inc.
- Object number
- 2011.12.52.25
- Restrictions & Rights
- © Maya Angelou
- Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.




