Tales of Graceful Aging from the Planet Denial

For the last quarter century, Hollander’s comic strip Sylvia has dared to say publicly what most women only smirk about with their favorite girlfriends. Now Hollander’s taking on the ultimate female nightmare—getting old. While men think they “still look swell” when they’re older, aging is hard on women. In a series of hilarious sketches, Hollander takes on everything from late-life sex with vibrators to peculiar herbal remedies for menopausal symptoms, rounding it all off with a most astonishing afterlife fantasy, where she’s reborn as Rex Stout. There’s practical advice, too. A lot of problems stem from things we think we should be doing, but aren’t, like having a fantastic love life. Hollander was 50 when she realized she was holding onto love affairs way past their “sell-by date,” ruining decades of her life. Now she reminds herself that she’s already been married, even if it was 40 years back and only lasted four years. Brimming with bad attitude, Hollander is a real gift to women “of a certain age.” (Sept.)