Melania and Michelle: First Ladies in a New Era

At home or at the podium, the First Lady is uniquely poised to serve as advisor, confidant, and campaigner, with the power to shape American political and social conversation. At first blush, First Ladies Michelle Obama and Melania Trump appear categorically different from each other; however, as women rising from humble origins to pursue their ambitions and support their husbands, the two have more in common than one might think.

In Melania & Michelle: First Ladies in a New Era, author Tammy R. Vigil provides a compelling account of our modern first ladies, exploring how each woman has crafted her public image and used her platform to influence the country, while also serving as a paragon of fashion and American womanhood. Both women face constant scrutiny and comparison--from their degrees of political activism to their cookie recipes--and have garnered support as well as criticism. From their full lives pre-nomination to their attitudes while occupying the White House, Vigil builds careful and thoughtful portraits of Melania Trump and Michelle Obama that provide a new appreciation for how these women, and the first ladies that came before them, have shaped our country.

Tammy R. Vigil's recent books include Moms in Chief and Connecting with Constituents. She has also published articles or chapters on rhetoric by Michelle Obama, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and George W. Bush; the history of nominating conventions; and convention speeches by presidential nominees' spouses. Dr. Vigil is Associate Professor of Communication at Boston University and studies political campaign rhetoric and women as political communicators. She formerly served as associate dean of the College of Communication at Boston University and is a past winner of the Wrange-Baskerville award given by the Public Address Division of the National Communication Association.