Let’s Call Her Barbie

Baby dolls rule the toy store in the mid-1950s, but Ruth Handler, cofounder of Mattel, believes that little girls need something different: a doll who is an adult woman and encourages them to pursue big dreams. Historical novelist Rosen (Park Avenue Summer) traces the development of Barbie from Ruth’s initial idea through the mega success that threatened to permanently derail her vision. Readers meet Jack Ryan, the genius toy designer with a decadent lifestyle who eventually tried to claim sole credit for Barbie, and Rosen’s original character Stevie, a young fashion designer whose life is transformed when she is hired to create glamorous outfits for an 11.5-inch-tall model. Rosen vividly portrays her characters and deftly balances covering both the highs and lows of their personal lives and the professional challenges that arise along the way, from designing the first Dreamhouse to responding to criticism (ranging from demands that Barbie get married and have babies to feminist critiques that Barbie promotes an unhealthy body image).