Sarah Palin's Independence Day
You don’t have to be a seer to recognize material for political celebrity memoir these days. Everyone knew that Sarah Palin would ink a book deal (even though she would not ink the memoir herself). Sure enough, HarperCollins signed her.
The August issue of Vanity Fair includes an in-depth portrait of Palin by Todd S. Purdum–published just before her surprise announcement yesterday that she is leaving the governorship. You can read about the upcoming memoir in the context of a good summary of her entire career by following the link above.
The instant political celebrity memoir from the 2008 campaign has developed a track record. Samuel Wurzelbacher (remember him?) earlier this year published his memoir called 
Joe the Plumber: Fighting for the American Dream. Click on the image to read some of the reviews (2.5 stars). And read this Washington Post description of one stop on the book tour–11 people in the audience. Book sales: 5.
Twitter was alive with conjectures about Palin’s HarperCollins memoir after the resignation announcement yesterday. Some thought she has already had her 15 minutes of fame and will no longer have the star power necessary to sell books.
The publisher, gamely, predicted interest in the memoir to be “huge.” See GalleyCat post at mediabistro.com.
What are your thoughts–either about Sarah Palin herself or about her prospects to remake her career and her life by telling her story (ghost writer at her side)?
First of all I had no clue that only 5 books sold for Jow the Plumber. Quite interesting statistics.I think Sarah Palin's will sell, especially if there are many photos in it–not for my sake. As far as her career, I have no clue if this is a strategic move on her part, or if she wants to simplify her life.
The 5 books sold refers only to the appearance Joe the Plumber made at a DC-area bookstore. He probably can sell more in small towns, but with poor reviews and his 15 minutes of fame fast fading, I don't think the book will be called a success.Sarah has a few more minutes of her 15 left. It will be interesting to see what she does next, but even her own party members are saying she ruined her chances of running in 2012 by quitting in the middle of her term.
The 5 books sold refers only to the appearance Joe the Plumber made at a DC-area bookstore. He probably can sell more in small towns, but with poor reviews and his 15 minutes of fame fast fading, I don't think the book will be called a success.Sarah has a few more minutes of her 15 left. It will be interesting to see what she does next, but even her own party members are saying she ruined her chances of running in 2012 by quitting in the middle of her term.