Dolls of Our Lives

In the second Kaya book, the American Girl team breaks format, and also places our protagonist in great danger. Instead of learning just one big lesson, Kaya learns many. After Kaya and her sister are kidnapped, Kaya has to use her smarts to plot an escape. Our coverage discusses Kaya’s enslavement and what this book teaches us about 18c life for Kaya’s people. We also shed light on the team behin...

This episode finds us deep in two distant and distinct time periods: the 18th century and the year 2002. Set in 1764, Meet Kaya (2002) features a strong girl from the Nimiipuu people (also known as the Nez Perce tribe). Kaya enjoys riding her horse and being with her family. Though Kaya's stories don't follow the same arc as other American Girls, trust us that this book has a bit of everything, in...

Earhart. Bones. Thermopolis. Bedelia. In the great tradition of people named Amelia, one diarist from the mid-1990s stands alone. With her handy composition notebook, Amelia could keep track of the latest gossip, her family’s major move, and her growing interest in drawing noses. For this episode, we re-read Amelia's Notebook (1995) by Amelia (she's like Cher) and the one and only Marissa Moss. In...

What is it like to serenade World War II veterans and perform patriotic tunes for tourists? J.Mix, a dialectic creative artist from New Orleans, answered that question and many more for us in this episode. J.Mix developed a deep knowledge of WWII during her time as a singer and dancer with the Victory Belles. This is a 1940s inspired/Miss Victory style vocal act that pays tribute to servicemembers...

What would Molly McIntire have known about the Holocaust? For this episode, we talked with Leah Sauter, a teacher and translator whose speciality is Holocaust history. Drawing upon her extensive work with survivor testimony and newspapers, Leah provided us with insight into anti-semitism in the United States and censorship in mainstream US media in the 1940s. Though Molly's books include just a fe...

Join us for a special episode as we celebrate our second birthday! If we held a party (we did), invited everyone we knew (did that too), you would see the biggest gift would be from us, and the card attached would say: free Britney! Join us as we talk about the Britney Spears documentary and share some wartime cake recipes. Thank you for being a friend! (and for listening)  You can find episodes,...

When Molly McIntire is told that everyone must do their part during a war, she takes that command seriously. While rocking a middle part and dancing in her town's tap dance revue, Molly ascends to the big screen in "Molly: An American Girl on the Home Front" (2006). Though many esteemed filmmakers have tried to capture war on film, few have been so bold as to include a soda jerk uttering the line:...

In book six, Molly strives for her dream dance role of Miss Victory while acting miss-understood. Along the way, she ponders some big questions, such as whether curls will change her life and what it will mean to have her father home from the war. During this episode, we consider if any of us truly go home again...and probe what happened to a real life Miss Victory from the 1940s. This hair-raisin...

One, two, three, four.. how will Molly handle her camp’s color war? Book five of the Molly series features another fictional island, frenemies, and a truly bizarre wartime Tripp to a woodsy summer camp. Proving that there’s no such thing as “too soon” at Camp Gowonagin, Molly and her friends recreate the D-Day beach landings to win a game. Molly wins, but much like the USA declaring victories arou...

It’s April 1944 in Illinois. Molly McIntire is gearing up for the big 1-0 when a new arrival comes to town. In book four, Molly gets new roommate— a refugee from London named Emily. Sure, there’s a war on, but that won’t stop Molly from turning life’s lemons into an unwanted lemon cake. Tune in to hear our coverage of Molly’s birthday week and a discussion of twilight birth that no one asked for....

For this holiday episode, we hear from YOU! We asked for some of your favorite holiday AG memories and like Molly’s mailman, you more than delivered. We also answer questions from listeners on friendship, dream AG books, and the future of the show.  You can find episodes, resources, and a link to our merch store and patreon on our website: dollsofourlivespod.com Support us on Patreon: patreon.com/...

It’s Christmas time again, and all Molly McIntire wants is ... everything. Molly’s Surprise has some classic AG elements (hello, a doll gift) and a few distinctive surprises (including a heartwarming radio messages). Along with Molly’s love language (gifts) we talk about the history of the USO, how the holidays were advertised in local papers during the war, and Mrs. M’s ability to leave work at w...

In the second Molly book, we learn 7x8 and who we can appreciate.  Molly’s plucky scheming streak continues when she refuses to take part in a group knitting project. Eventually, she surrenders and learns a lesson about allies and how to befriend an Alison. In our coverage, we continue to grapple with the great existential question of what it means to be a Molly, and much more. Tune in for our dis...

Molly wore a blueberry beret, and we think we love her. In this episode, we take a look at the first Molly book & the story that launched our love of American Girl. A surprising amount of this book hinges on a vegetable and a hula outfit. We tackle these plots and zoom out a bit to talk about wartime sacrifice and colonial costumes. We also talk about the Clare of it all and what is perhaps th...

Would Molly McIntire bring a boomer ethic into her workplace? Is there a world in which Samantha Parkington experiences burnout? In this very special episode, we talked with Anne Helen Petersen, journalist and author of Can't Even: How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation. In the spirit of the classic Care and Keeping of You Books, we chatted with Anne about self-care and social change. You w...

In this second Samantha spinoff, we speak with Dr. Allison Lange, a historian of women's suffrage and visual culture. She talks about Aunt Cornelia's speech style, the Susan B. Anthony Barbie, and Black suffragists you ought to know (plus much more). This episode also has a rich visual accompaniment: the long-awaited, never-asked-for first-of-its-kind Gard Zine! You won't want to miss this homemad...

In this Samantha spinoff, we were so pleased to be joined by Rebecca Brenner Graham, a D.C. based historian. An expert on the postal service, Rebecca studies the Sunday mail service (which was a thing until just over 100 years ago!) as a way to understand religion-state relations in the 1800s. Rebecca will take you to Such Great Heights and give you a whole other understanding of mail as a functio...

Sparks fly... it's like electricity (recently got implemented in wealthy homes). What has amazing casting, references to the 1904 Worlds Fair, and not one but two turn -of- the -century mansions? You guessed it: the Samantha movie. In this episode, we recap a made-for-tv WB masterpiece for the ages. Samantha: An American Girl Holiday was the first AG film and they went all out. Join us as we savor...

In the final book of the Samantha canon, we find just about everyone living la vida in loco parentis. Robbed of a GrandMary/Admiral wedding, we open with Samantha living with her aunt and uncle in New York City. When Samantha learns that Nellie has also come to the Big Apple, she's determined to have a reunion. Instead, she gets three new sisters. Upon learning that Jenny, Nellie, and Bridget are...

If you thought a camp element was missing from the Samantha books, you're in luck! Samantha's fifth story is set in the family's piney Adirondacks retreat. When Samantha finds a sketchbook with forgotten family memories, she books a sketchy trip out to an island with the twins. This leads to an evening that is Wet And Perilous -- but of course our hero saves the day. Come along and row, row, row y...

Gather round and grab your flower crown: it's birthday time. In book four, Samantha makes new friends, destroys a pram, and catches a suffrage speech given by Cornelia. She also meets Annie-like twins who leave Eddie (and by extension Sam's birthday ice cream) rather salty. Join us and have a marvelous time ruining everything. You can find episodes, resources, and a link to our merch store and pat...

Ah, to be a young Victorian beauty awaiting Christmas in December 1904. Such is the life of young Samantha, who is afraid she won't receive a (second) very expensive doll in the span of a few months in this Yuletide yarn. While we wait with bated breath to see if all of her holiday dreams come true, we discuss gift giving, the Roosevelts (yes again and always), and the servants' labor behind Sam's...

In the second Samantha book, we find her well established in a private academy, and just learning about class. Tasked with coming up with a speech on progress, Samantha summons her inner Elon Musk and preps for her big moment --while also finding the time to bring Nellie up to speed on years of missed schooling. Yet it turns out that Nellie has much to teach her, too. After hearing about Nellie's...

With this episode, we go back to one of the original American Girl stories: Meet Samantha. Published in the age of Reaganomics, this AG asks a lot of questions from a place of tremendous privilege -- and we are along for the ride. Though she has every material comfort, Samantha, who was orphaned a few years prior, is lonely in the House of Grandmary. Apparently, money only gets her so far, and wit...

Girl grows up longing for a Bitty Baby and her accoutrement. Girl writes several books and launches a hilarious podcast. Fast forward to 2020: girl agrees to a shopping challenge and Beanie Baby market speculation on our show. Dear listeners - meet Caroline Moss, the author of the Work It, Girl! series and host of the hit podcast "Gee Thanks, Just Bought It." On this episode, we talk with Caroline...