Barbie Forever

An interesting and colourful look at the history and affect Barbie has had, this will appeal to a lot of fans and as a previous Barbie owner as a child it’s really fun to look back over the dolls and reminisce, it would have been nice for a commentary about her effect on body image etc, but I guess I expecting far too much there. But a colourful guide to Barbie and her history, will appeal to fans.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

This book was absolutely amazing. I have an obsession (and have had since childhood) with vintage Barbies. Not only did this go VERY in-depth with the story of Barbie, the photographs and old dolls are to die for. Such a neat book for a collector or a fan.

Let me begin saying that I don't know much about Barbie's history, so this book was a good introduction, as it gives several brushstrokes about her birth and Ruth Handler, the woman behind the doll, how a doll is made, her fashion and her impact as a pop culture icon. It also has lots of pictures and sketches, from the first dolls in 1959 to nowadays, so it was good to see the changes she has been going through the years.

With several interviews and testimonies, this book is proof that Barbie is as relevant today as sixty years ago and the huge scope of Barbie's effect on culture, being much more than a doll.

Interesting and fun read if you don't know much about Barbie, but I would have liked for it to go deeper into some themes and not just skim through the surface.

Thanks to Netgalley and Quarto Publishing Group, Epic Ink, for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review

An ode to the iconic Barbie.Full of history photography nostalgia would make a perfect gift for any Barbie lover.#netgalley#quarto

I requested this book as a life long lover of dolls. This book is for the die-hard doll lover. The ones who enjoy the entire realm of dolls. Starting from the very beginning this is a history book about the entire lifespan of Barbie as we know her. If you are a collector or a historian of toys and/or pop culture then this book should be added to your collection.

The best way to describe this book is as a loving tribute to the doll - with all that would entail as a very narrowly focused tribute espousing the positives while ignoring all the negatives. A large chunk is about Mattel chief Ruth Handler bringing the concept of the fashion doll to market and the doubts, fights, and perseverance that saw Mattel produce the doll (with quite a bit about her partnership with Barbie fashion designer Charlotte Johnson and her work in Japan). The rest of the book covers mostly the empowering aspects of Barbie: careers, pop cultural influences, and the fans. Negative issues and controversies are either glossed over, ignored, or respun into a positive light. With many wonderful and unique photographs, this coffee table suitable book is a beautiful presentation and very easy to read. There may not be a lot of history here, especially after the first three years of barbie are discussed, but the joy is likely most to be found in the archival photographs.

The book is broken down as follows: Introduction, Inspiring fans since 1959, Barbie goes to market, Shaping Barbie, Barbie lifestyle, Fashion and art, Going global, The magic of Barbie, Bibliography, Acknowledgements, About the author, Image credits, Historic Timeline.

Although the book feels big, really most of the informative parts are in the beginning and a lot of the book are the large images. Since the author has also penned a book about Mattel chief Ruth Handler (the creator of Barbie), there is a lot of good information here with some interesting tidbits about Barbie's early years. Handler is fully lionized here - put on a pedestal as a one-woman show who made Mattel what it is today. And these areas of the book feel especially meant to create a mythos: Instead of being seen as the woman who found an erotic prostitute doll from Germany and basically recreated it wholesale in the US, the book tells a story of Handler always having the Barbie doll in mind but only needing proof that it could be manufactured (which she found with the German doll. We are told that she completely redesigned the doll, especially the face, so it wasn't a direct copy. But it's hard to argue that when the pictures in the book show nearly the exact same doll between Lilli and Barbie. Things like that especially feel like revisionist history here.

After a large chunk of the book is given to Handler, her employee Charlotte Johnson is discussed in several places. Johnson's challenge of living in Japan (the cheapest place at the time to manufacture Barbie and her clothing) without speaking the language are fun anecdotes but she soon disappears as the book glosses over the rest of Barbie history. Cherry picked features follow, from a discussion of the career barbies, a VERY brief discussion of the manufacturing, to the designers and clubs/fan inspired tributes.

At the end of each chapter are several pages dedicated to various fans and their collections, making the historical aspects even shorter than they appear at face value. I read the entire book in about 1 hour, including long stares at the lovely photographs. And really, that is the true value of the book - there are a lot of wonderful Mattel archive images to enjoy. From photographs of the early years of promoting Barbie, to old ads, promo pieces, even the original Barbie patents. Clearly, writing a very optimistic piece celebrating (glorifying?) Barbie has given the author access to some great images from Mattel. The book is beautifully presented with large images on each page, many in full color. All have clean graphic design layouts, though often the images do not match the discussions on the page at all (e.g., a 1970s Barbie will be in the middle of a discussion about the original Barbie).

Here's the thing: if you love Barbie (as do I, a collector of many years), then this book was meant for you. It's everything you love about Barbie and absolutely nothing negative in there. But if you want a truer history of the doll and Barbie phenomenon, you are not going to find it here. Issues/controversies that plague Barbie are very neatly respun in very obvious ways that greatly show the bias and true purpose of the book. In addition to the Lilli doll origins, topics such as female stereotype promulgation ("I don't like math!" Barbie) are changed into "Barbie created female careers before women could even realistically achieve them", body issues and impossible proportions causing girls to feel inadequate were translated into "Handler felt these proportions were best for the clothes/barbie introduced new body styles (in 2018!!)," The "Don't Eat!" diet book included with a baby sitter Barbie, the camera Barbie that could be used to spy on girls, etc. never see the light of day Controversies were deftly not mentioned while at the same time explaining them away. It felt disingenuous to not include the missteps that all companies/products make in a long lifetime and due to the times in which they were produced. A more cynical person would likely see the Barbie girl empowerment themes, various careers, and body type variety changes to be more of a reaction to Barbie market share loss in the 2000s due to the backlash of barbie being seen as a detriment to girls' self image. Indeed, the whole book feels like a response to create a new Barbie image and distance Barbie farther from the negatives that have grown up over the years.

As such, this feels more like a glossy Barbie marketing tool - a rose colored glasses view on the Barbie mystique likely meant meant more as a self affirmation bible for adult Barbie collectors and to recreate Barbie than as a book about her 'Inspiration, History, and Legacy." A more accurate title would have been, "For the Love of Barbie." I hope we do one day get a bigger picture that is more than just super fans espousing how much they love the doll, glossy marketing pictures, employees making marketing doublespeak, and lovely archive images. But for now, there is definitely an audience for a loving Barbie tribute book with some great images provided by Mattel.

My thanks to Quarto Publishing Group becker&mayer kids! for granting my wish via NetGalley of ‘Barbie Forever’ by Robin Gerber in exchange for an honest review.

Its subtitle: ‘Her Inspiration, History, and Legacy (Official 60th Anniversary Collection)’ sums up the contents. Robin Gerber previously had written ‘Barbie and Ruth: The Story of the World’s Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her’ so she has a solid background on the subject.

‘Barbie Forever’ contains a great many photographs of vintage and rare limited edition dolls, sketches, advertisements, and much more.

What fascinated me was how Barbie came to be and learning of Ruth Handler’s realisation that young girls were already playing with adult paper dolls. So Barbie was created as a teen fashion model with the option to purchase separate outfits or to create clothing from patterns. (I recall my early efforts in dressmaking were for my Barbie.)

“Girls no longer saw dolls as their babies, but as themselves. A new kind of fantasy life had been unleashed for them, thanks to Ruth’s vision.”

Reading this I discovered a great deal about the history of the doll, such as the introduction of an astronaut outfit for Barbie in 1965 I was aware of the interest of fashion designers in Barbie though wasn’t aware how extensive it was. Lovely to see these creations featured in this book.

I received my first Barbie quite early on as I vividly remember that she came dressed in her iconic black and white striped swimsuit with a black sheath evening dress (Solo in the Spotlight from 1960). I loved my Barbie and as an adult various relations have gifted me with a number of collectible Barbies in recognition of that early bond.

It was surprising to realise that Barbie’s creator had expected that she would be popular for 3-5 years as this is the usual lifespan for toys. Now Barbie has reached her 60th year with no sign of stopping.

I recommend this gorgeous book, which would also make a perfect gift for Barbie enthusiasts and collectors.

Barbie dolls have been a huge part of the lives of many girls and this book is the ultimate guide to the history of one of the most beloved dolls of all time. I highly recommend this for any fan of Barbie!

I love Barbie and this book brought me up to the present about her. I stopped collecting this doll about fifteen years ago. So I was very happy to see the changes that have occurred with her. We girls can do anything and Barbie is still doing it!

As a lifetime Barbie fan this was a fun look at the contemporary impact the doll has had on the world. It's also very inspiring to hear the fight Ruth Handler had to put up just to get her made. That alone is a Barbie story in itself.

If you want to read a personal story related to this book, check out my longer review on the blog:
http://avalinahsbooks.space/barbie-forever-robin-gerber/

The book really helped me go back to my childhood. More than that, it was so interesting to see how Barbie was invented, what the first models looked like, what her fashions looked like. The fashions especially! Oh god, this book is full of the most stylish and amazing Barbie designs ever. It reminded me how I used to make clothes for my Barbie along with my mom myself. (I think those are the only Barbie things I might have kept!) The book has a lot of one-page or two-page photos – of Ruth Handler, Barbie’s creator, of the first designs and clothes, the first ads, and just all sorts of special, incredibly gorgeous Barbies. And not just Barbies – it also has a lot of early Mattel toy sketches as they were being made. I looooooved the photos so much. And I tell you, there are photos in pretty much every page. Like 99% of the pages. The 1% reserved for me forgetting, cause I’m pretty sure it was on every page!

Barbie Forever really concentrates on diversity and how Barbie supports it right now. However, I felt that that wasn’t always the case – this is not apparent in the book. It paints the picture of Black, Latina and Asian Barbies available, well, pretty much always – except I’m pretty sure they’ve surfaced in the numbers only very recently. Yes, there might have been diverse Barbies in the 1980s, but were they very popular? Were they sold broadly? I doubt it.

I loved this book’s focus on the diversity and the way Barbie’s body tries to move towards a better, more inclusive body image right now, and that’s great! Barbie has made progress.

But why do I remember how I hated my curly hair because that wasn’t “normal”? Because I didn’t have blue eyes? Why have I never in my life seen a non-blonde, non-straight-haired, perfect-figured Barbie played with?

Perhaps those were the problems of the 90s. But they are not even mentioned.

However, I am happy, looking at the photos now. Knowing that if I was growing up now, I could find a petite, curly haired Barbie sold. And think I was normal.

A little too late, maybe, but better late than never! I would have liked to see this talked about in the book. But for some reason, maybe they couldn’t. Really, that’s the only bone to pick I had to pick with this book! I loved everything else.

The history of Barbie was also really interesting. Apparently, before Barbie, girls were encouraged to play with baby dolls (and grow up to be mothers), but they had no way to see themselves grown up (or in any other role, apart from mothers.) I didn’t even know that! That’s one thing Barbie changed.

(Funnily enough, men almost shut down the idea completely, saying that mothers won’t buy their daughters a doll with breasts. Because OF COURSE they did.)

As smart as the marketing technique was of making Barbie a “teen-age fashion model”, I fear that is exactly what raised quite a few generations of women who thought that modelling is the absolute greatest life for a woman (which, as it appears, is a very hard and unhealthy industry to be in for a lot of young women.) I’m pretty sure Barbie is also responsible for a lot of girls’ self-image problems. But disregarding all that, it also allowed girls to see themselves as future grown-up women with more opportunities and jobs than just being a mother, as in a pre-Barbie world. And that’s something this book really tried to accentuate.

All in all, I really loved reading Barbie Forever. It wasn’t just a journey into my own past – it was also an enriching experience, mostly due to the amazing, detailed and super good quality photos in the book. If you’re a fan of Barbie or if you at least remember her fondly from your younger days, this is a great book to delve into. I’d even say it’s a great coffee table accessory! I really enjoyed it.

I thank the publisher for giving me a free copy of the ebook for review. This has not affected my opinion.

This is a fun book. I really enjoyed reading it and looking at all the photos. The book is a good introduction to everything Barbie and shows how she has maintained her popularity and changed through the times. The book is well written and very easy to read but the photographs are real stars. This book will appeal to anyone who is a fan of dolls and Barbie. Enjoy.

Brilliant coffee table book! Lots of fun information about Barbie, very accessible writing style and wonderful photos to support the text. A must-have for any fans of Barbie or anyone who wants to learn more

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this title. I have collected Barbie dolls my entire life and have loved her ever since I can remember. Barbie Forever is for anyone who has collected and and enjoyed these special dolls. A retrospect in how she has evolved over the course of generations. A must read for all Barbie fans.

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Barbie Forever. This book is a MUST HAVE for any Barbie collector!! While the ARC is of course only available on Kindle/electronic version the photos are impressive and must be gorgeous in the print book. Be ready to get lost going down memory lane of your childhood playing endless hours with Barbie!

Okay, so what you're not going to get in this book is negative stuff about Barbie- her supposed bad effects on girls' body image, her math woes, an unfortunate cookie cross-promotion- but you will get lots of interesting history and trivia about not just Barbie herself, but the times she's lived in. Learning about what Ruth Handler went through to get her doll made gave me new respect for her- just because her husband co-founded Mattel didn't mean she had an easy time making her dream a reality! Barbie's controversial figure came about because the tiny waist and hips made the clothes look better; the waists of the skirts and pants and the fasteners were bulkier than what equivalently sized human clothes had, so Barbie's waist and hips shrank to make the clothed doll look more proportionate. And oh my, the clothes! So much attention was put into every detail of the outfits, so that each was a complete play experience, with accessories to spark the imagination. For me, and I'm sure for many other girls too, the clothes were the best part- I didn't do pretend play with Barbie so much, it was mainly dressing her up, combining outfits to make new combinations, talking my mom into crocheting clothes for me, making clothes of my own. I also loved constructing homes for her, not just using doll furniture but also making furnishings out of household objects (half empty tissue boxes make groovy lounge chairs with built in side tables ha!). Barbie provided countless hours of creative fun for me, and helped me to look at objects in a different way, to see what they could become. She never gave me body issues- I recognized that she wasn't proportionate, and subconsciously realized she was a mannequin to put clothes on, and I didn't want that kind of body. To me, she was just fun to play with, and this book captures that. The pictures will delight Barbie fans, and the stories from collectors will give you the warm fuzzies. A perfect gift for any Barbie fan or collector.

#BarbieForever #NetGalley

An interesting look at Barbie. I enjoyed the historical perspective.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this book about the history of the Barbie doll. It was interesting and informative and gives the reader insight into the development and on-going success of the iconic doll. For me, it was like a trip down memory lane. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 stars

I grew up surrounded by Barbie dolls and I hold happy memories of the afternoons spent creating stories and adventures.

It’s Barbie’s 60 anniversary and this book narrates the birth and the evolution of the doll,loved by kids from across the world.

I truly enjoyed discovering the story behind the doll,the challenges and the evolution of Barbie and her friends.It’s essential to keep up to date but also to promote diversity and inclusion.

Beautiful picture make this book a treat in its physical form (I received a digital copy).
Truly enjoyed it!

This is a great book for people who are interested in the history of the worlds favorite doll! It’s a great story and one that can enjoyed by history buffs as well as the little girl inside us all.