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A Golden Thread: An Unofficial Critical History of Wonder Woman
For over seventy years Wonder Woman has been one of the most popular and recognized comic book characters in the world. Now, for the first time, A Golden Thread presents a detailed critical history of the character. From her origins as a World War II-era avatar of William Moulton Marston's vision of a feminist bondage utopia to the present day, this book looks closely at seven decades of Wonder Woman comics alongside her appearances in television and film. Through her many highs and many lows, this book traces the unlikely story of the world's most popular feminist character.
278 pages, Paperback
First published October 21, 2013
3 people are currently reading
57 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Sandifer
24 books87 followersNote: This author previously published under the name Philip Sandifer.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
August 26, 2016
‘The Golden Thread’ is a breezy, informative and above all else affectionate tour through Wonder Woman’s history. From her creation, through (nearly) all the writers who steered her story, the hugely successful TV series and beyond. Actually it was written before next year’s movie was even announced, although I can’t wait to read Sandifer’s take on that.
For me it worked perfectly, as I only had a vague interest and virtually no knowledge of the background of the character when I picked this up, so a quick, detailed history was just what I needed. Yes, as is his wont, Sandifer can be pious and preachy at times, and if there’s a point he wants to hammer home, he’ll keep on hammering until its smashed to dust at your feet. But counter-acting that is his sheer enthusiasm for the character. Wonder Woman has been steered into numerous dead-ends over the years and even as he narrates and describes them, his authorial disappointment is impossible to miss. He wants the character to be the best she can be, and so often she seems to have missed getting anywhere near that.
It moves efficiently from A to B to C to D in a way which worked well for me, but might be tedious for someone already au fait with the background story. But if you’re similarly a neophyte, someone who doesn’t know that much about comics at all, then this is a fun guide to a character who has remained a major player, seemingly often against the best efforts of the people writing her and the company behind her.
For me it worked perfectly, as I only had a vague interest and virtually no knowledge of the background of the character when I picked this up, so a quick, detailed history was just what I needed. Yes, as is his wont, Sandifer can be pious and preachy at times, and if there’s a point he wants to hammer home, he’ll keep on hammering until its smashed to dust at your feet. But counter-acting that is his sheer enthusiasm for the character. Wonder Woman has been steered into numerous dead-ends over the years and even as he narrates and describes them, his authorial disappointment is impossible to miss. He wants the character to be the best she can be, and so often she seems to have missed getting anywhere near that.
It moves efficiently from A to B to C to D in a way which worked well for me, but might be tedious for someone already au fait with the background story. But if you’re similarly a neophyte, someone who doesn’t know that much about comics at all, then this is a fun guide to a character who has remained a major player, seemingly often against the best efforts of the people writing her and the company behind her.
January 12, 2017
A Golden Thread is a deeply thoughtful book, carefully reasoned and written by someone who both knows and loves his subject. It is unlikely that any given reader will agree with all portion, but it stands as a strong entry in the history of comics and as a valuable part of an ongoing conversation we need to have about this most difficult (or “tricky”) of heroines, her sisters, and the society they represent for us.
Read the rest of this review, more reviews, and other wonderful, geeky articles on FangirlNation
Read the rest of this review, more reviews, and other wonderful, geeky articles on FangirlNation
January 14, 2018
A generous 3 made up of the fact that the author clearly knows his history of Wonder Woman, however he has some very clear bias that comes out again and again in his writing and this left me at times confused and many times angry as the author clearly bends the facts to fit his description - I wonder of he likes women at all after reading this - as a Wonder Woman geek it has given me other creators to explore though and a better understanding of her history.
August 16, 2017
Thoroughly enjoyable! Comic geekery meets feminist philosophy in this very detailed history of the various rises and falls of the greatest female superhero. If you are reading as a comics fan, you won't be disappointed - if you're reading as a feminist critic....you might be.
August 27, 2016
If you're going to pick a superhero character to do a critical history of, Wonder Woman has to be about the best choice. She's been going more or less constantly since the 1940s, is reasonably well known to the general public, and yet has never had the huge amount of material that, say, Batman and Superman have had - for much of her history, she has had just one monthly comic title focussed specifically on her. And, while this book was written before the 2017 movie was even announced, you do get to add a '70s TV series and some more modern cartoons into the mix.
And, of course, she's a prominent female character in a male-dominated medium, which allows us to see how she has interacted with things like the history of feminism.
Not all eras of the character's history get the same level of detail, and that's entirely fair. The original Wonder Woman, of the '40s, was quite radically different to all the conceptualisations that followed, and takes a up a full quarter of the book. While, on the other hand, not a lot happened in the '50s and early '60s, when the comic was largely treading water with no interest in being more, so that that (longer) era gets just a single chapter.
The author's love of the character comes across, as does his disappointment when, as happened regularly over the decades, a new writer comes along and mucks everything up. There's an emphasis on Wonder Woman's politically progressive nature (as portrayed by the better writers, anyway) and some good literary analysis of the nature of the stories and the accompanying artwork, as well as how DC and its predecessors marketed the character. And, of course, there are chapters on the TV series, likely WW's widest exposure to the general public.
Some might find the writing a little dry and academic, but I found it all very interesting, a good, in-depth look a one specific corner of comic-book history. So far as I can tell, it's all well-researched, and I enjoyed reading it.
And, of course, she's a prominent female character in a male-dominated medium, which allows us to see how she has interacted with things like the history of feminism.
Not all eras of the character's history get the same level of detail, and that's entirely fair. The original Wonder Woman, of the '40s, was quite radically different to all the conceptualisations that followed, and takes a up a full quarter of the book. While, on the other hand, not a lot happened in the '50s and early '60s, when the comic was largely treading water with no interest in being more, so that that (longer) era gets just a single chapter.
The author's love of the character comes across, as does his disappointment when, as happened regularly over the decades, a new writer comes along and mucks everything up. There's an emphasis on Wonder Woman's politically progressive nature (as portrayed by the better writers, anyway) and some good literary analysis of the nature of the stories and the accompanying artwork, as well as how DC and its predecessors marketed the character. And, of course, there are chapters on the TV series, likely WW's widest exposure to the general public.
Some might find the writing a little dry and academic, but I found it all very interesting, a good, in-depth look a one specific corner of comic-book history. So far as I can tell, it's all well-researched, and I enjoyed reading it.
January 24, 2014
As chronicled on this site, and in life, I am a huge comic book nerd. I specifically try to seek out work written by women or featuring women. GIVE ME ALL YOUR FEMALE HEROES! So, when offered the chance to review A Golden Thread: An Unofficial Critical History of Wonder Woman by Philip Sandfifer, I jumped at the chance. Wonder Woman is an inspiration of mine, and of feminists everywhere. The book promised to be a thoroughly researched critical and educational history of the entire history of the comic book heroine.
Cue the sad trombone. I really didn’t enjoy reading the book for a couple of reasons. The first is that I found it unnecessarily dry. Now, I have my B.A. in English, so I am imminently familiar with the critical article. Unfortunately, this one felt like one of the more boring/pretentious ones assigned for class. I definitely appreciate the critical lens and the seriousness with which he deals with the subject, but I really wish that the tone had been lighter at points for the idle reader. I do want more people to engage with comics in a critical way, and I think more and more people are, but I definitely believe it can be done in a less dry and more interesting fashion.
As a whole, I might recommend this to someone writing a critical thesis about Wonder Woman since there was a lot of great information, and it really lays out her origins clearly. It has some interesting points, but all in all, I would prefer to search other places for my comic history and criticism.
Complete review: http://www.paperdroids.com/2014/01/18...
Cue the sad trombone. I really didn’t enjoy reading the book for a couple of reasons. The first is that I found it unnecessarily dry. Now, I have my B.A. in English, so I am imminently familiar with the critical article. Unfortunately, this one felt like one of the more boring/pretentious ones assigned for class. I definitely appreciate the critical lens and the seriousness with which he deals with the subject, but I really wish that the tone had been lighter at points for the idle reader. I do want more people to engage with comics in a critical way, and I think more and more people are, but I definitely believe it can be done in a less dry and more interesting fashion.
As a whole, I might recommend this to someone writing a critical thesis about Wonder Woman since there was a lot of great information, and it really lays out her origins clearly. It has some interesting points, but all in all, I would prefer to search other places for my comic history and criticism.
Complete review: http://www.paperdroids.com/2014/01/18...
January 1, 2015
For someone who actually wants a *critical* history, one where history is interrogated and not written to suit any one view, this book is a gem.
There was obviously no editor, not that there were many typos but the book itself could have been smoother and it is clearly the work of one voice, unconstrained by outside input on cuts or rewrites. Surprisingly, even without the benefits a large publisher might have brought, the book is coherent and eminently readable.
I read a review that said the vocabulary was pretentious and wanted to assure anyone that, if you are a critic of media at all, care about history, and are vaguely familiar with the vocabulary that is accepted in speaking about social systems, you will find the writing familiar and not at all pretentious (careful to articulate a point, certainly, but not pretentious by any means).
There was obviously no editor, not that there were many typos but the book itself could have been smoother and it is clearly the work of one voice, unconstrained by outside input on cuts or rewrites. Surprisingly, even without the benefits a large publisher might have brought, the book is coherent and eminently readable.
I read a review that said the vocabulary was pretentious and wanted to assure anyone that, if you are a critic of media at all, care about history, and are vaguely familiar with the vocabulary that is accepted in speaking about social systems, you will find the writing familiar and not at all pretentious (careful to articulate a point, certainly, but not pretentious by any means).
June 3, 2015
Utterly brilliant. Whereas others' books tend to focus in on the origins and mythology of WW, Sandifer walks the reader through the major eras of writing and theoretical implications. Quite academic while at the same time readable. Unafraid, too, to take on some long-held interpretations of those eras I mentioned and reconfigure them.
The only complaint I have (and it's a very small one) is that the book could have used one more editorial pass as some words get out of order and some formatting gets a bit out of control. Don't confuse those issues with trouble in Sandifer's thinking or analysis, though.
If you enjoy thinking about comics in a deeper way, like reading or doing comics scholarship, or are a fan of Wonder Woman, this book is HIGHLY recommended.
The only complaint I have (and it's a very small one) is that the book could have used one more editorial pass as some words get out of order and some formatting gets a bit out of control. Don't confuse those issues with trouble in Sandifer's thinking or analysis, though.
If you enjoy thinking about comics in a deeper way, like reading or doing comics scholarship, or are a fan of Wonder Woman, this book is HIGHLY recommended.
February 5, 2014
Very thorough and clear. I could have done with a more forceful conclusion, but I guess the history is unfinished so the book is too.
And yes, I know the book is about how there's no arc of steady progress, but it would have been nice to see Sandifer bring everything home.
Still! If you've ever been curious about Wonder Woman's deal, this is definitely the book to check out.
And yes, I know the book is about how there's no arc of steady progress, but it would have been nice to see Sandifer bring everything home.
Still! If you've ever been curious about Wonder Woman's deal, this is definitely the book to check out.
August 5, 2014
A thorough review of Wonder Woman's history.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews