 Als called Angelou one of the " pioneers of self @-@ exposure " , willing to focus honestly on the more negative aspects of her personality and choices . For example , while Angelou was composing her second autobiography , Gather Together in My Name , she was concerned about how her readers would react to her disclosure that she had been a prostitute . Her husband Paul Du Feu talked her into publishing the book by encouraging her to " tell the truth as a writer " and to " be honest about it " . " Song " took 16 years to write because it was so painful for her to relive the events she described , including the assassinations of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King , Jr . She did not celebrate her birthday , April 4 , for many years because it was also the anniversary of King 's death , choosing instead to send his widow Coretta Scott King flowers . Although Song was considered the final installment in her series of autobiographies , Angelou continued writing about her life story through essays , and at the age of 85 , published her seventh autobiography Mom & Me & Mom ( 2013 ) , which focused on her relationship with her mother . The spoken word album based on Song and narrated by Angelou received a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album in 2003 . 
