"Look who's here," Veronika cried, gently guiding another doll into the room. "This is Mariah."
The other dolls crowded around to meet the newcomer.
"You're...different," said Jolena.
"You mean because I'm darker than you are," suggested Mariah with a laugh, putting down her tiny suitcase.
"We're all different in some way, Jolena," said Mandy. "For instance, I'm the only one with red hair."
"And I'm the only one who is left-handed and wears braids all the time," said Veronika.
"Like I'm the only one with blue eyes," suggested Jolena, getting into the game.
"And I'm the only one with hazel eyes," added Charlotte.
"Some of us are alike in some ways, though," said Mandy. "Mariah, Veronika and I all have brown eyes, even though we are different in other ways."
"Jolena and I both have blonde hair," Charlotte pointed out.
The dolls decided that there were three of them with light skin and no freckles....
and one with light skin with freckles.
"And I'm a freckle all over, laughed Mariah."
"You're a beautiful freckle," said Jolena. "I think you're beautiful!"
"We're all alike in some ways, too," Veronika continued.
"Right," said Charlotte. "For instance, we all have that funny thing where two fingers of our right hands are stuck together."
"And the special bracelet," added Mariah.
"We all have elbows and knees that bend," said Veronika demonstrating how her knee joints bend, while Mandy showed what she could do with her bendable elbows.
"But none of our ankles bend," said Jolena, "so I can't point my toes, but I can still dance."
"And our eyes don't close when we lie down."
"We have another thing in common that's very important," said Mandy. "We're all made of vinyl, through and through. That means we are all mostly the same, even though we may look different in some ways."
"I think that's why I'm here," Mariah said.
"When I was put into my box, someone told me I was coming to be with a special family of dolls. You tell children all over the world stories about important things they need to know, and the stories are fun."
"That's true," said Charlotte. "We learn from each other and have fun at the same time, and we tell what we learn from each other to children."
"Yes," said Mariah. "But all of you have light skin. Many children who read these stories may have dark skin or have skin that's somewhere between light and dark. Children come in different colors, just like dolls."
"I think I understand," Mandy said. "You're saying that children who have dark skin need to see a doll more like them in the stories."
"Yes," Mariah agreed, "but not just children with dark skin. Children who look like you, Mandy, also need to know that there are dolls and children who look like me, and that those children are just as interesting and fun as the children who look like you, or Veronika or Charlotte or Jolena."
"This will be great!" Veronika exclaimed. "Let's put your things away. Then we can read all the stories from the beginning, so you can learn about us. Then we can talk about the stories, so we can learn about you."
Mariah smiled at Veronika. "I already know one thing," she said. "I know I'm going to be very happy here with you and all your readers. Maybe someday I'll even get to be in a real book! I always wanted to be in a real book."
The other dolls crowded around to meet the newcomer.
"You're...different," said Jolena.
"You mean because I'm darker than you are," suggested Mariah with a laugh, putting down her tiny suitcase.
"We're all different in some way, Jolena," said Mandy. "For instance, I'm the only one with red hair."
"And I'm the only one who is left-handed and wears braids all the time," said Veronika.
"Like I'm the only one with blue eyes," suggested Jolena, getting into the game.
"And I'm the only one with hazel eyes," added Charlotte.
"Some of us are alike in some ways, though," said Mandy. "Mariah, Veronika and I all have brown eyes, even though we are different in other ways."
"Jolena and I both have blonde hair," Charlotte pointed out.
The dolls decided that there were three of them with light skin and no freckles....
and one with light skin with freckles.
"And I'm a freckle all over, laughed Mariah."
"You're a beautiful freckle," said Jolena. "I think you're beautiful!"
"We're all alike in some ways, too," Veronika continued.
"Right," said Charlotte. "For instance, we all have that funny thing where two fingers of our right hands are stuck together."
"And the special bracelet," added Mariah.
"We all have elbows and knees that bend," said Veronika demonstrating how her knee joints bend, while Mandy showed what she could do with her bendable elbows.
"But none of our ankles bend," said Jolena, "so I can't point my toes, but I can still dance."
"And our eyes don't close when we lie down."
"We have another thing in common that's very important," said Mandy. "We're all made of vinyl, through and through. That means we are all mostly the same, even though we may look different in some ways."
"That's true," said Charlotte. "We learn from each other and have fun at the same time, and we tell what we learn from each other to children."
"Yes," said Mariah. "But all of you have light skin. Many children who read these stories may have dark skin or have skin that's somewhere between light and dark. Children come in different colors, just like dolls."
"I think I understand," Mandy said. "You're saying that children who have dark skin need to see a doll more like them in the stories."
"Yes," Mariah agreed, "but not just children with dark skin. Children who look like you, Mandy, also need to know that there are dolls and children who look like me, and that those children are just as interesting and fun as the children who look like you, or Veronika or Charlotte or Jolena."
"This will be great!" Veronika exclaimed. "Let's put your things away. Then we can read all the stories from the beginning, so you can learn about us. Then we can talk about the stories, so we can learn about you."
Mariah smiled at Veronika. "I already know one thing," she said. "I know I'm going to be very happy here with you and all your readers. Maybe someday I'll even get to be in a real book! I always wanted to be in a real book."
Cast--
Veronika: Götz Classic Kidz Vroni
Charlotte: Götz Happy Kidz Anna in Paris
Jolena: Götz Happy Kidz Lena in Aspen
Charlotte: Götz Happy Kidz Anna in Paris
Jolena: Götz Happy Kidz Lena in Aspen
Mandy: Götz Happy Kidz Katie 2015
Mariah: Götz Happy Kidz Mariah, "Chosen" from My Doll Best Friend
Mariah: Götz Happy Kidz Mariah, "Chosen" from My Doll Best Friend
You can follow The Doll's Storybook here.
Do you have questions or comments for us? Would you like to order an autographed copy of one of our books? You can email us at thedollsstorybook@icloud.com.
Note: No dolls were harmed during production of this blog. All dolls shown are Götz Happy Kidz, Classic Kidz or Little Kidz. If you like these stories and are willing, please make a donation of any amount to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or any organization that supports pediatric cancer research and treatment. We are not affiliated with St. Jude in any way other than these donations.
"The Doll's Storybook" is not affiliated with Gotz Dolls USA Inc. or Götz Puppenmanufaktur International GmbH.
Watch for the next story each Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Pacific Time.
Image on Mariah's yellow T-shirt used with permission, from Free To Be Kids, where human-size shirts with this image are available.
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Copyright © 2018, 2023 by Peggy Stuart
"The Doll's Storybook" is not affiliated with Gotz Dolls USA Inc. or Götz Puppenmanufaktur International GmbH.
Watch for the next story each Friday afternoon at 1:00 PM Pacific Time.
Mariah: Stories from the Doll's Storybook, Emil: Stories from the Doll's Storybook and soon Classic Tales Retold: Stories from the Doll's Storybook are available from BookBaby and other booksellers worldwide, such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Royalties (net proceeds) go to support pediatric cancer research and treatment. If you don't get free shipping elsewhere, buy from Book Baby. Half of the price goes to St. Jude. Autographed copies of all three books are available from the author for $20 including shipping. (Multiple books to the same address have a discount on shipping.) To inquire, email thedollsstorybook@icloud.com.
<a href="https://www.bloglovin.com/blog/19832501/?claim=j3fj3mbb8kt">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>
Copyright © 2018, 2023 by Peggy Stuart
Perfect!
ReplyDeleteVery nice and talented! Real dolls like real girls!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful!
ReplyDelete