Kofi and His Magic by Maya Angelou

Rating: ★★★

Maya Angelou missed her mark with this book. I'm sorry to say it but these photographs either did not have a strong story to tell or the passion of writing this book was not fully committed. She incorporated the same experiment of making a story out of the photographs and I was disappointed. I was expecting more out of the story and character development but I didn't get anything in return.

I love that Maya Angelou wanted to incorporate African culture whether it be the different cultural lifestyle, the beautiful costumes, or how as a community they make beautiful art whether it be music, storytelling, or other. We need diverse books for children especially how ill informed are we when it comes to Africans and what is daily life for them in the 21st century. 

Once again the photographs are spectacular but it couldn't help the story or making me raise it from 3 stars to 4.

My Painted House, My Friendly Chicken, and Me by Maya Angelou

Rating: ★★★★

When it comes to this book I see Maya Angelou getting excited about writing and in particular writing Children books. We get to see the whimsical side of her and I wish I could have loved this and rated it 5 stars but I feel as though Maya fell short on this poem.

Instead of creating an original poem and incorporating illustrations or beautiful artwork instead she told a story through photographs. The photographs were already taken and she tried to make a fun and entertaining read which I believe she conquered in the beginning of the poem but by the time I reached the ending I felt like she lacked information about the Ndebele women and the growth of her characters.

I have no clue how to pronounce Ndebele which should have been incorporated into the book, I have no clue about African culture except women like to paint their houses with beautiful patterns and design. It's been a few days since I read this story and yet it's already forgettable which speaks volume for me because my memory is one of the best. 

The photographs are marvelous and really capture the beauty of the artwork and I believe it's the reason why I rated this book 4 stars instead of 3. I wouldn't recommend it unless you like Maya Angelou or want to read a bit about African culture.

Humans of New York: Stories by Brandon Stanton

Rating: ★★★★★

If you have no clue as to what is Humans of New York aka HONY so let me enlighten you. Years ago, Brandon Stanton quit his day job and focus on photography and during his travels during New York, he absolutely loved the city and decided to move to the Big Apple. With no job he focus on his photography and began this project. He pursued this project like a personal hobby and through Facebook and social media, it became wildfire and now millions of individuals around the earth tune in to HONY and Brandon Stanton has published two majors books of the thousands if not millions of photographs he has taken so far for the HONY project.

I remember vividly that I discover HONY on Tumblr which lead to following them on Facebook and it was still in the early phases. Originally it didn't have quotes, it was just pictures that in of itself explained the emotions the individual was experiencing at that moment. When it became famous, Brandon Stanton decided to make it more personal and provide a little background into these individuals lives by adding any comments that the person wanted in their photo. 

Between the first book which is Humans of New York and this new brand new book, we truly get to see the concept of being human and Brandon Stanton is magnificent at how to put the different photos together and made an occurring theme that showcase the highs and lows of Humanity. Both books are wonderful and if I have to be honest I believe this book surpasses the first one and worth the read. Even though I may never met these individuals in my life, I felt that their story and their photo left a major impact.

What was brilliant about this book is we get to experience the different emotions that we as humans are able to feel so some pages will bring us total laughter and happiness, some would make us think about what are we doing in our lives, some will disgust us, and finally some make you cry and either be grateful that you have a better life than these people or finally be able to find someone that we can relate. Nowadays we are so busy within our private lives between school, job, relationships, family, friends and paying bills that we sometimes forget to take care of ourselves and those around us who need help.

This book is not meant to be read in an hour and be done with it, this book enables the reader to be present in the moment and really absorb in the photographs and what the person is going through whether it be depressing or hilarious. We as humans are automatically designed to be imperfect and this book is terrific at showcasing that ones self of reality differs from others between the unique moments we experience in our upbringing or how we manage the day-to-day struggles in our life.

I find the Humans of the New York to be a phenomenal project and I love all these photographs. In my understanding of this series, we learn that we are not alone in this world. I highly recommend everyone to pick up a copy of this book and read it because it is so worth the experience. I cannot wait for more HONY books. Plus if you don't check out HONY daily, you are in for some major surprises with certain famous people.