Barbie: All Dolled Up: Celebrating 50 Years of Barbie

Barbie: All Dolled Up: Celebrating 50 Years of Barbie

About the book: Barbie™ All Dolled Up is a dazzling celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of Barbie™ doll. Fully illustrated and featuring three-dimensional replicas of rare memorabilia, this unprecedented book truly brings Barbie to life in full-color, and fabulous style. With the full support of Mattel, the publication of All Dolled Up is a highlight among nationwide Barbie events and marketing initiatives being staged for the anniversary.

In five decades, the influence of Barbie on girls and the world of fashion has never faded. Now devoted collectors, baby boomers reminiscing about the doll’s classic beauty, moms still dreaming of the pink Corvette of the ’80s, and children just discovering her will relive the magic of Barbie through key eras in her development—her debut in 1959, the Mod Era of the late ’60s, the big, bold ’80s, the Totally Hair ’90s, and up to today. Original doll packaging, Barbie comic books, designer’s sketches, and an official fan club membership card and welcome letter are among the rare Barbie ephemera that have been reproduced. The narrative combines historical detail with contributions from moms, daughters, and fashion celebrities including Diane Von Furstenburg, Christian Dior, Versace, Armani, Bob Mackie, and Vera Wang. It’s Barbie doll’s birthday and no one wants to be left out of the party!

Our Take: As everyone is well aware Barbie is an icon in American culture, as well as around the world.  Every little girl wants one.  One of the first memories that I can recall is getting my first Baribe..it was so long ago, but I can recall exactly what she looked like. To my delight I open up this book and find pictures of all the Barbies I had as a youth. Then I saw photographs of the Barbies all of my older sisters had too (that I played with in secret..shhhh don't tell!). This book was a blast from the past to say the very least.  It takes us through her history from conception all the way to her 50th birthday.  The book does that and it gives us little pieces of history in the flesh including a copy of the membership card, and letter you would have received in 1964 had you joned the official Barbie fan club.

One of the really nice attributes of this book is that its hardcover with a dynamic dust jacket.  As to it's presentation,  I really liked is the scrapbook feel that it has.   The Barbie tribute is full of vibrant images and a quirky layout that keeps you flipping through this truly entertaining book, until the very last page. The book is sturdy enough to allow your kids to check it out, and still makes a wonderful coffee table book.

I would highly recommend this to every Barbie fan....not to mention any mother who had one of these dolls as a child and would love to sit down with her daughter and show her all the dolly's mommy had as a youth.  I've never seen my daughters face light up quite so much as when we pull this book out.  Its a gem.

-Holly, BookLegion

How to buy: Amazon.com or the Running Press Site