Finally, a proposal I can get behind. The writer specifically mentions Zadie Smith's author photos, which reminded me of one of the great lightbulb moments from my undergraduate years: the accidental discovery by one of my classmates of a British edition of White Teeth in the library.

A quick comparison revealed some interesting differences. The author photo in the back of the British edition portrayed Smith as bookish, almost librarian-like, with huge glasses, freckles, and confused, curly hair done up haphazardly behind her head. In the American photo we've all seen, of course, she looks like a model: no glasses, straight hair, flawless skin, a sultry pout, and (worst of all) it looked to us like her skin tone had even been digitally lightened.

Seemed to say a lot. [via Bookslut]