By
– August 30, 2011
Nicole Hollander makes people laugh. She’s the one outspoken feminist no one can ever accuse of lacking a sense of humor. And this collection of Sylvia cartoon strips is one of her best. Whether she’s lambasting people for their political hypocrisy or exposing a nerve in the worlds of food or fashion, Hollander’s alter ego — the dark-haired, cigarette smoking, cat-loving Sylvia — reflects a view of our times that is salient, sharply witty, acerbic, and instantly recognizable for its universal truth.
In addition to its many strips, The Sylvia Chronicles contains the added bonus of a little history. Hollander tells us how the cartoon character was born and how she developed her idea into a nationally syndicated strip that today appears in over 80 newspapers around the U.S. While she provides a welcome window into the creative process, she follows it quickly by a proffered boot out the door to Reagan, Bush, Clinton, and Palin. Thirty years may be a long time in politics, but Sylvia traverses it — and does so with a startling completeness — in a mere 126 pages.
Hollander first began providing commentary on the foibles of those of us who partake in American life in 1979, setting Sylvia in Chicago and giving her a pair of high-heeled fuzzy slippers, a shock of black hair and a total lack of inhibition. The absurdities she uncovers as she lets Sylvia’s ideas run wild have won her millions of loyal fans.
In addition to its many strips, The Sylvia Chronicles contains the added bonus of a little history. Hollander tells us how the cartoon character was born and how she developed her idea into a nationally syndicated strip that today appears in over 80 newspapers around the U.S. While she provides a welcome window into the creative process, she follows it quickly by a proffered boot out the door to Reagan, Bush, Clinton, and Palin. Thirty years may be a long time in politics, but Sylvia traverses it — and does so with a startling completeness — in a mere 126 pages.
Hollander first began providing commentary on the foibles of those of us who partake in American life in 1979, setting Sylvia in Chicago and giving her a pair of high-heeled fuzzy slippers, a shock of black hair and a total lack of inhibition. The absurdities she uncovers as she lets Sylvia’s ideas run wild have won her millions of loyal fans.
Linda F. Burghardt is a New York-based journalist and author who has contributed commentary, breaking news, and features to major newspapers across the U.S., in addition to having three non-fiction books published. She writes frequently on Jewish topics and is now serving as Scholar-in-Residence at the Holocaust Memorial & Tolerance Center of Nassau County.
