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As far as I know, there have been three major publishers of Ann Petry's novel, The Street. Each one used a different cover image to sell the novel to readers. The most common publisher has used three different cover illustrations, in the 1940s, 1990s and now in the 2000s. Each of these cover illustrations sends different messages to the reader about the contents of the book.
After a few years
of Beacon Press publishing the paperback
version of The Street, Houghton Mifflin, the original publisher,
decided to exercise their rights and begin publishing the novel
again. Their cover version, unlike the Beacon Press version, emphasized
Lutie again. However, for the first time, Bub makes an appearance
on the cover. By the 1990s, it was apparently seen as a better
sales angle to be about a young mother than about a seductive
young woman (see 1960s cover). This
corresponds to American society's move to concern about urban
families and the perils of single motherhood. This cover is going
to appeal to the same sort of concern/instinct that makes people
watch "women in crisis" movies on the Lifetime
Network.
Notice that unlike the 1960s version, this image of Lutie emphasizes here serious nature, not her sexual nature. You have to think that Lutie would prefer to see herself portrayed like this instead of the overly sexualized image of the 1960s. Notice that Lutie is overshadowing Bub, and has a hand on his shoulder, but the two of them are staring off in the distance at something. The look on both of their faces is serious, if not concerned. These are not happy people. Lutie is shown with Bub, but is shown as a protector, not a caregiver.
The sharp, geometric angles of the image give a sense of edginess and anger to the image. The colors used are relatively soft and muted, but the image itself makes the reader tense and uneasy, as it should. This cover illustration, while showing a mother/child relationship, is not sending any sense of comfort to the reader. Looking at this cover, the reader knows that these characters will not have a happy ending.
The 1940s styled car, as well as the cut of Lutie's suit and Bub's suspenders and collared suit tell the reader that this is a story set in the past. The other covers to date have not sent this signal to the reader. That makes this cover somewhat unique among all of the others that it is not emphasizing the timeliness or universality of the story's message.
This edition is the first to bring back the interior illustration on the title page. Oddly enough, the Gloria Naylor quote from the 1985 edition is carried over to this cover, but it is de-emphasized and the phrase "forty years" is replaced with "forty-five years."
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