Today, however cover #2 has an attractive Asian woman looking to her right (conveniently enough, directly at the magazine's logo). There is an face down open book breaking its spine and a mug of coffee? tea? next to her. She is sitting on either a wooden slat bench or a hardwood floor. She is holding a large, yummy looking cookie, sugar or peanut butter, I think, in both hands, like a squirrel, mouse, or Meleah Himber. This woman has a look of apprehension on her face, as though someone big and scary has just threatened to steal her snack.
There are four headlines on the cover, and one diagonal item, which goes across cookie girl's green khaki covered legs.* My awesome powers of media analysis (fuck you, Intro to Women's Studies) have matched cookie lady with either "Reader Power: How America's book groups are changing publishing," or "The Practical Faithful: a Religion Update."
The other options are:
"'Star Wars' By the Numbers"
"Kirshbaum's Time"
"Legs McNeil on the Life of Russ Meyer"**
So, what does everyone think? Is cookie lady reacting with fear to the comments of her book group buddies? Has Jesus come to restore her practical faith (what the hell does that mean, anyway?) and yoink himself a tasty snack? I tried to find the cover online to link, but can't easily, and I'm feeling lazy. It's the May 23 PW if someone else wants a shot.
Actually, I opened up this window in the first place to share the stupid leaps my brain makes. I turned to an ad for this book:
and immediately got "Who's That Lady" stuck in my head.
*She's also wearing an oatmeal long sleeve shirt over a slightly darker and pinker oatmeal shirt--like the color oatmeal would be if you gave yourself a slice instead of the banana--and "natural" makeup. Why is it fall in cookie lady's world? Especially since it's already feeling like August in everyone else's. Aren't we getting a bit close to beach book time for pants and heavy-ish layers? How has she not gotten cookie crumbs under her perfect nails? And, most of all, how come there are no coffee stains on her light-colored outfit?
**Is it too much to ask that my cat's namesake be on the cover? There better be a picture inside. A big one.
Just finished the issue. Couldn't find any Legs. Grrr.
3 comments:
"who's that baaaaaby, who's that baybay..."
there's good legs footage in that ramones documentary
t.
Yea, book nerds! I actually have the issue on my desk!
Perhaps she's experiencing apprehension over the complete randomness of her inclusion as the inside cover image. I like to look at Asian ladies eating delicious cookies as much as the next person, but what's it have to do with anything?
Add to my list of ALA goals: tracking down the PW booth and getting an explanation out of them.
This will cut into my Ira Glass stalking time, but I'm OK with that.
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