Cover Stories: Shine Coconut Moon by Neesha Meminger

Neesha Meminger's Shine Coconut Moon is high on my to-read list (also: The Gossip Girls are reading it!). I heard an excerpt from it last year, and I just know I'll love it! Read the very cool Lyn Miller-Lachmann's review.

Plus: The Cover. I had to find out the back story. Here's Neesha:

"Thank goodness no one asked me for my thoughts on what should go on the cover! As I was writing the book, the only thing I could think of was a giant coconut in the shadow of a waning moon. Ugh.

"The only thing I said to my publisher was, 'I'm fine with

anything except a headless woman.' Obviously, you know just how far that input got me {grin}.

"Okay, truly? When I first saw my cover, I was disappointed with the headless model. I really had a hard time moving through that. For South Asian women, it's a bit of a double-edged sword. On the one hand, we're absolutely thrilled that there is SOME representation--especially if that representation is not of the usual, passive, submissive, sari-clad, new-immigrant variety we're used to seeing on television and in movies. On the other hand, yes, it absolutely objectifies young women as does all of the mainstream media we see every single day.

Read the full post on melissacwalker.com.