DOLL
“Entertaining and brilliant.” —Summer Brennan, bestselling author of High Heel and The Parisian Sphinx
“Hart reveals the stories we tell with and about dolls, and what thinking about them can tell us about our world.” —Mary Mahoney, co-host of the American Girls podcast
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A nonfiction pop-culture feminist critique of dolls, doll history, and doll culture, DOLL cuts across a universe of playthings. Along the way it does a deep-dive on Barbie's risqué past, explains Kewpie's radical origin story, gets spooky with Victorian grave dolls, and time-hops all over the American Girl Doll catalog.
Ultimately, DOLL shows how these toys become avatars of the idealized feminine self, instructing girls what to strive for in society, reinforcing dominant patriarchal, heteronormative, white views around class, bodies, history, and celebrity.
About the author
Maria Teresa Hart is a writer, editor, and dulce-de-leche addict. Her articles and essays have appeared in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Vox, The Washington Post, Teen Vogue, and other outlets. As an editor, Maria has worked for various publishers, including Penguin Random House, BenBella Books, and Bloomsbury. She lives in Beacon, NY with her partner David and spends her free time googling facts about dormice.