Well, the cover design for Meghan McCain’s forthcoming campaign memoir Dirty Sexy Politics is out. And guess what? It’s kind of phallic, what with the author cuddling an elephant’s snout and all. In fact, the silly design got us thinking about the differences between the way conservative women’s books and their liberal counterparts’ look. So, we rounded up five sets of tomes by comparable authors and set them side by side to see what we could glean. The results are after the jump.
The political daughter campaign memoir: Meghan McCain vs. Alexandra Kerry
The pundits: Ann Coulter vs. Arianna Huffington
The pundits, round two: S.E. Cupp vs. Maureen Dowd
The politicians: Sarah Palin vs. Hillary Clinton
The radio personalities: Laura Ingraham vs. Amy Goodman
Conclusions: The formula for a Republican lady book cover is pretty simple and consistent. Put the nice-looking author (preferably a blonde, long hair and lots of makeup a must) on there, in a medium or full-body shot. Display chest prominently when possible. (What is Coulter even wearing on that cover? A ’50s-style swimsuit? Ingraham, as far as we can tell, is supposed to resemble a leather-clad spy in stiletto heels with a sort of “ooh, naughty me” look on her face, for all the sense that makes.) The liberal covers are more varied. There are the medium shots, but also some close-ups. Short hair and sparse makeup are allowed. And some don’t even picture their authors — Dowd’s is a pulp-style illustration, while Kerry’s appears to be a candid shot from the campaign trail. Huffington’s is an illustration rather than a photo and shows the author strategizing. Do with that information what you will…