Barbie Doll a Rare Beauty by Sandi Holder (2010, Hardcover)

My sister’s book, Barbie, A Rare Beauty, was recently published; and of course my autographed copy came in the mail. It’s a beautiful book, with a lot of pink and four vintage Barbie’s on the cover. Of course I was excited for her, of course I was proud of this amazing accomplishment, but here’s the thing; I am not a Barbie girl living in a Barbie world. I know I won’t completely absorb the information and details like someone who has a clue, but I also know Sister will be calling to ask what I thought. I needed to be prepared for the conversation, so I opened it up to take a look. Ok, it’s true I intended to flip through a few pages and have something topical to share when we spoke, but that isn’t what happened.

First of all, the book is dedicated to my late husband, who would have lost his mind with pride over her accomplishment. Secondly, she mentions my name in the acknowledgement. Crap, now I’m shamed into actually reading this book, and as I said before, Barbie’s are not my thing. The first Barbie I owned was Malibu Barbie, and I think I was more enthralled with her sunglasses than anything else. (I had a thing about glasses as is evidenced in a photo of me at age five wearing Mrs. Beasley’s plastic spectacles). What I most remember about my Barbie phase is many shoes getting sucked up in the vacuum cleaner and my mom getting upset with me for using wash clothes to make Barbie a bed. And now that I think about it, I was more enthralled with Sunshine Family anyway, but I digress.

The first thing to catch my eye was the photo of three gorgeous brides (my favorite is the one wearing gloves). I just stared at the page for a while because they almost looked like the real deal, ready to walk down the aisle. A few pages later begin photos from 1959 all the way to today. As I looked at the progression of looks and fashions it made me think about what was going on in the world and influencing those changes. I wondered what it would be like to be a little girl who played with the blonde ponytail doll in 1960 and then the bubble cut doll in 1962. Did she want to cut her hair? Did she create different types of play scenarios to incorporate the change in Barbie’s look? It was interesting to think about it.

Looking at the pictures I began to have serious closet envy. Who wouldn’t have loved to have a wardrobe like Barbie? And of course with her figure everything looks good on her. As the years went by, the dresses got more elaborate. Billions of Dreams in 1997 is one of my favorites. When I looked at the picture I actually tried to imagine myself wearing that dress, just for a second. Then of course things got very posh as designers made the acquaintance of Barbie. From Kate Spade to Bob Mackie, each new look was more stunning than the one before and it continues today.

So what does all of this mean? What’s my point you ask? Here it is. I am not a Barbie collector and I really enjoyed this book. Not because my sister wrote it, but because suddenly I saw Barbie as more than a child’s toy. I had a better appreciation of her influence on everything from fashion to career choice. I liked that this doll showed little girls they could be anything, and encouraged them to dream big.

So here’s the deal, buy the book, Barbie, A Rare Beauty, and see where it takes you. Whether you appreciate the sheer art of Barbie, or you’re reminded of world events over the years, you will enjoy the ride. Oh, and by the way…Malibu Barbie is on page 71,

I am an avid Barbie collector and so I was looking for a book written by another very experience collector. This book does not tell you the value of the dolls but rather the history and how rare some of them are. I was super excited to learn how rare some of mine are!

This is an interesting and resourceful book for Barbie collectors and lovers. I especially like that it goes beyond 1967 which is where the Eames vol. 1 leaves off.. I also like that that book shows Barbie related items:watches, carrying cases, vehicles,etc. It also is a lot cheaper than the Eames book. In fact, the Eames book was listed in the bibliography. There's nothing I really dislike about this book. There's a lot of useful information . However, I wouldn't consider this a substitute, but more of a supplement to the Eames book.. Great value for the money!

REALLY BEAUTIFUL! IF YOU ARE NOT A COLLECTOR YOU WILL START YOUR COLLECTION AFTER BUYING THIS BOOK ;)....GREAT PICTURES, I ENJOY IT EVERY TIME I READ IT.

love the book!! the pictures are great!! the information is great!!! just a great book to have if you are a barbie lover!!!!!!!