“A fresh and fun take on Barbie lore…clever and satisfying.” –
Shelby Van Pelt, #1
New York Times bestselling author of
Remarkably Bright Creatures
She was only eleven-and-a-half inches tall, but she would change the world. Barbie is born in this bold new novel by USA Today bestselling author Renée Rosen.When Ruth Handler walks into the boardroom of the toy company she co-founded and pitches her idea for a doll unlike any other,
she knows what she’s setting in motion. It might just take the world a moment to catch up.
In 1956, the only dolls on the market for little girls let them pretend to be mothers. Ruth’s vision for a doll shaped like a grown woman and outfitted in an enviable wardrobe will let them dream they can be anything.
As Ruth assembles her team of creative rebels—head engineer Jack Ryan who hides his deepest secrets behind his genius and designers Charlotte Johnson and Stevie Klein, whose hopes and dreams rest on the success of Barbie’s fashion—she knows they’re working against a ticking clock to get this wild idea off the ground.
In the decades to come—through soaring heights and devastating personal lows, public scandals and private tensions— each of them will have to decide how tightly to hold on to their creation. Because Barbie has never been just a doll—she’s a legacy.
Includes a Readers Guide and Exclusive Vintage Barbie Photos!
"She's an icon. She's fun and aspirational. She's stirring controversy and outrage. Her name is Barbie. In 1956, Ruth Handler, cofounder of a budding toy company, embarks on a mission to upend the marketplace by creating a controversial doll: one that looks like a grown woman. Unlike the current trend of baby dolls that reinforces traditional roles of motherhood, this doll will empower little girls to be and do anything. And Barbie is born. Not everyone sees Barbie as a a positive influence, but Ruth knows this doll is destined for greatness. With the help of head engineer Jack Ryan and fashion designer Stevie Klein, they forge ahead, their own identities becoming entwined with the persona of the doll. For Ruth, Barbie fills a void left by the mother who abandoned her and the daughter who resents her ambition. Jack, Mattel's unlikely Casanova, hides his deepest secrets behind the genius of his engineering, and Stevie pins her professional future and sense of self on Barbie's fashion designs. In the decades that follow, the Barbie team spins the doll into a cultural phenomenon. But with every great success comes the fall, and the problems at Mattel are just getting started. In the cutthroat world of toy-making, greed and public scandals threaten to tear down everything Ruth has built. But Barbie is more than just a doll for her - she's a legacy, one Ruth will do anything to protect. From USA Today bestselling author Renâee Rosen comes a riveting novel about the team of creative rebels who challenged convention, broke molds, and beat the odds to invent the most famous doll of all time"--
