Sylvie
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4.3 • 3 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
In a wise and witty graphic memoir, a young artist finds her path apart from the expectations of those around her. Sylvie lives in a school in France. Her father is the principal, and her home is an apartment at the end of a hallway of classrooms. As a young child, Sylvie and her brother explore this most unusual kingdom, full of small mysteries and quirky surprises. But in middle and high school, life grows more complicated. Sylvie becomes aware of her parents’ conflicts, the complexities of shifting friendships, and what it means to be the only Jewish family in town. She also begins to sense that her perceived “success” relies on the pursuit of math and science—even though she loves art. In a funny and perceptive graphic memoir, author-illustrator Sylvie Kantorovitz traces her first steps as an artist and teacher. The text captures her poignant questioning and her blossoming confidence, while the droll illustrations depict her making art as both a means of solace and self-expression. An affecting portrait of a unique childhood, Sylvie connects the ordinary moments of growing up to a life rich in hope and purpose.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This tightly composed illustrated memoir spans Kantorovitz's childhood from the late 1960s through the 1970s, when her family emigrated from Morocco to France and lived at a teachers' college where her father was the director. As a girl, Sylvie sketches while paging through the encyclopedia, later refining her ink and watercolor techniques. These anecdotes reinforce Sylvie's love of illustration, lending suspense to years of pressure to choose an education career. Like a photo album, chapters distill ordinary events, glossing over them without erasing troubles: Sylvie attempts to conceal her Jewish identity, questions her parents' strained marriage, cares for three younger siblings, sees her misbehaving brother depart for boarding school, and weathers rocky times with her judgmental mother. High school brings a chaste heterosexual relationship and baccalaureate anxieties. Throughout, airy layouts allow for reflection; a crayon map of the walled grounds early on implies the pleasures of childhood expeditions, and chestnuts from local trees become a nostalgic visual motif, reminding readers of Sylvie's formative moments. Introspective, this chronicle traces a winding path, concluding with optimism and promise. Ages 9–12.
