The Doll's Storybook

Stories about dolls who live in our world. Although these stories are suitable for children, they should check with their parents before reading and always be careful online. Readers are invited to donate to a charity supporting pediatric cancer treatment and research. Images shown are taken by the author or from a free image website with attribution and appreciation. The author has no connection with Götz Puppenmanufaktur, but gives them credit for the amazing dolls they produce.

Friday, June 28, 2024

How Emil Came to The Doll's Storybook, Part Two

Billy and Veronika brought a letter to the other dolls, who were busy in the living room.

"We have a letter from Emil!" Billy exclaimed. As the other dolls gathered around, Billy began to read.

"Dear Veronika and Cast of The Doll's Storybook," he read.
"I am so happy to read that you have chosen me to be the new boy doll for your stories. I will try very hard to do a good job."
"I'm sure he will," said Jolena." All the dolls nodded.

"Please tell Billy my name is said like eh-MEEL," Billy continued, "and thank him for asking. I get called a lot of funny things when other dolls don't know." Billy looked up from the letter and tried the new name, "Emil."

The other dolls all tried to think of how many different ways you could say Emil.

Then Billy continued reading. "Please tell Jolena my favorite food is...." Billy paused. "KWIT-chee?" Billy asked and looked at Jolena, puzzled.

Jolena looked at the letter where Billy was pointing.
Then she laughed. "That's quiche," she said, saying it like KEESH. Then she looked up. "I know how to make that. It's sort of a pie with eggs and cheese. I have several good recipes. I'll make my favorite."

Charlotte nodded. "The word is French. You don't say French words the way the letters sound in English."

"Quiche is a French recipe," Jolena added. "All my French recipes have unusual spellings, or maybe they're usual for French, I guess."

Billy continued to read, "I enjoy pretending to eat pretty much anything, though, so tell her not to go to any trouble."

"Forget that," Jolena said. "This is the kind of trouble I like!"

Billy looked back at the letter. "Mariah asked what kind of books I like to read," he read. "Please tell her I like to read lots of things but I especially like stories about real children."
"I like stories like that, too," Mariah said.

Then Billy went on. "I am excited to tell you," he read, "that I can hear music with my special hearing aids. Please tell Charlotte my favorite song is 'Old MacDonald Had a Farm,' because I like all the animal sounds in it. I can only hear these animal sounds for real with my hearing aids."

"I have a book of fun songs," Charlotte told them, looking up from the letter. "I'm pretty sure this song is in there."

"I am very glad that Mandy asked about my hearing aids," Billy read. "The batteries are rechargeable. All I need is an electrical outlet near the bed, because I can't see much when I take off my glasses to sleep. Someone will need to come and get me if the smoke alarm goes off during the night, but I will not need to have someone wake me up in the morning. I have an alarm clock that will shake the bed to wake me up."
"Wow!" Billy exclaimed, looking up from the letter. "An alarm clock that shakes you out of bed! What a cool invention!"

The other dolls all agreed.
"Here's how he ends his letter," said Billy, "Thank you all for choosing me," he read. "I understand from your letter that it was unanimous." Billy sounded out the word, (you-NAN-ih-mus). "That means all of you wanted me. That means a lot to me. I am excited to meet you all! Sincerely, Emil."

"We have a lot to do to get ready," Veronika said, and they did.

Billy cleaned his room and made room for Emil's clothes in the dresser and in the closet, because Emil would be sharing his room. He made sure the outlet next to the bed was easy to get to.

Jolena found her favorite recipe for quiche, and made a shopping list.

Mariah went off to the library to find books of stories about real children.

Charlotte found the music for "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" and tuned her violin, so she could learn to play it.

The dolls were busy, so the next few days passed quickly. Before they knew it, Emil was standing in the front hall. The dolls all ran to the front door to greet him.
"You look like Harry Potter!" Jolena exclaimed as soon as she saw Emil.

Emil laughed. "I get that a lot," he said, "but I don't have a scar on my forehead and I can't do magic, so you know I'm just Emil." The dolls welcomed Emil. They shook hands with him and told him their names, one after another. Emil looked at each face as he shook their hands, and repeated that doll's name. He tried to remember all six names and which face went with which name. He thought about what he already knew about each one from their letter.

Billy took Emil upstairs and showed him where to put his clothes. He showed him the drawer for his underwear and pajamas. He could hang his other clothes up in the closet.

Billy helped him plug in his hearing aid charger and his special clock. Emil pushed the clock's bed shaker under the mattress. He set the alarm on the clock for when they had to get up in the morning. Then the two boys went back downstairs.

Emil looked out at the backyard. "You have a nice place to run and play," he said, "and things to climb on, and a slide, too!" he added.

"We have a nice place to run and play," Veronika corrected him. "This is your home now, too."
Emil knew it would be fun to play outdoors here.

Billy showed Emil the bicycles in the storeroom. "Two of them are girls' bikes," he said. "The girls sometimes have to ride when they're wearing dresses, so we have two girls' bikes. I won't mind riding a girl's bike, though, when we go for bike rides together."
"I don't mind, either," Emil said. "How many dolls have bicycles, even just to share?"

"We always wear helmets when we ride," Billy pointed out. "That's why we have one helmet for each bicycle."
"That's really important," Emil agreed. "I have to be careful not to damage my glasses, and the helmet helps protect them as well as my head."
Billy explained that there was also a sled and a skateboard they could share. (The sled was Billy's Christmas present, but he had learned that it's more fun to play with the sled when you take turns.)
Mariah gave Emil the books from the library, so he could read when he wanted to. They talked about the books, and he picked out which one he wanted to read first. He thought Mariah did a good job picking out books that were interesting, and he told her so.

Charlotte played "Old MacDonald Had a Farm" on her violin, while the other dolls pretended to sing. They sat on the stairs and pretended that they were an audience of real children. They had great seats in the theater.
The dolls had fun making the animal sounds. Emil thought it was nice of Charlotte to learn the song just for him. He thought about how much more fun it was to sing it with his new family.

Billy took a photo of all the dolls sitting on the stairs, so they would have something to remember the day Emil came to live with them. He set the timer and then ran to be in the photo.

Jolena made her favorite quiche recipe and salad for supper. When it came out of the oven, she put it on the table to cool while the others got ready to set the table. Emil wanted to help set the table, too, but first he paused to enjoy the delightful smell coming from the quiche.

The dolls pretended to eat the quiche that Jolena had made. It was delicious! The salad was good, too.
By the time Emil went to bed that night, he knew he was in the right place, and it made him happy. Dolls need to have a purpose, and he had found his.
Emil and Billy talked for a while about things they found interesting, until they felt sleepy. Then Emil took off his glasses and plugged them in to recharge. He had to put the end of each earpiece into each of the two holes. Billy noticed that Emil did this without looking at the charger. He used his hands to know where to put in the plugs.

Emil put on his sleep mask, and Billy turned off the light.

The last thing Emil knew before morning came and his alarm clock started shaking his bed was that he was home! His new sisters were pretty and kind. Billy was fun and helpful. Best of all, they enjoyed sharing what they had with him.

Cast--
Veronika: Götz Classic Kidz Vroni
Mandy: Götz Happy Kidz Katie 2015
Jolena: Götz Happy Kidz Lena in Aspen
Charlotte: Götz Happy Kidz Anna in Paris
Mariah: Götz Happy Kidz Mariah, "Chosen" from My Doll Best Friend
Billy: Götz Happy Kidz Lily at London
Emil: Götz Happy Kidz Emilia

Note to parents: Not all hearing aids can be put in glasses. Billy's hearing loss is conductive. You can find out more about hearing loss and deafness here. Although Emil can hear the thoughts of other dolls and can communicate in the same way, real children cannot. This is one place dolls have an advantage.

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.

Mariah: Stories from The Doll's Storybook, Emil: Stories from The Doll's Storybook, Classic Tales Retold: Stories from The Doll's Storybook and Our Favorite Verses: Poems from The Doll's Storybook are available from BookBaby and other booksellers worldwide, such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Author's page on Amazon.

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 charity (specific information available upon request). Autographed copies of all three books are available from the author. (Multiple books to the same address have a discount on shipping.) To inquire, email thedollsstorybook@icloud.com.

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Friday, June 21, 2024

How Emil Came to The Doll's Storybook, Part One

The dolls were studying and doing their homework when Veronika came into the room.

"Everyone, you need to listen to this," Veronika said, waving a piece of paper so they would see what she had.

The dolls gathered around Veronika. "It's a letter," she said. Then she began to read.

Here is what the letter said:

Dear Veronika and Cast of The Doll's Storybook,
I heard you were looking for another boy doll, and I am hoping you will choose me.

Before you accept me, you should know something about me. I'm not perfect. It isn't the fault of the factory where we were made. Sometimes these things just happen. Anyway, I wanted to be sure you knew about this before you decide.
First of all, I'm very nearsighted. That means I can't see very far from my nose. This isn't too bad, though, because my special glasses correct my sight to almost normal. I just need to wear my glasses all the time, except when I'm asleep.
My other problem is more serious. I'm almost deaf without my hearing aids. Fortunately, they were able to build my hearing aids into my glasses. I can talk with other dolls with no problem without my hearing aids, because, like other dolls, I talk by sharing my thoughts and listening to yours, but I need the hearing aids so I don't get hurt by things like cars and bicycles, and so I know when water is running and when an alarm goes off. I can't hear those things in my head without the hearing aids in my special glasses.
If you accept me as a new cast member, I promise to try very hard not to let these things make problems for you. I will also try to be the best doll I can be.

Sincerely,
Emil

"It's a good letter," Mandy said when Veronika had finished reading the letter.

Mariah, who had been looking over Veronika's shoulder, pointed at the letter. "There are no words misspelled," she said. "The ideas are easy to understand. He must be smart. He must have worked hard on the letter."

"He could have used Autocorrect," Billy said. "Autocorrect will fix the spelling."

"Yes," agreed Mariah, "but Autocorrect just changes something that isn't a word to something that is. It may not be the right word."
"Sometimes," put in Jolena, "Autocorrect gives you something silly, and it makes you laugh, and the letter looks as if he might have written it out instead of using a computer, and Autocorrect only works if you're using a computer or a phone."

"That's right," Mariah agreed. "You have to know if the word is the right one, and you still have to write what you want to say so it's easy to understand."
The dolls all smiled and nodded. They could remember times when they had seen this happen, and they agreed the letter looked as if it might have been written by hand. "Emil must have had to use a dictionary to check the spelling of all the words he wasn't sure of," Mariah concluded.

Charlotte had been very quiet. Now she had something to say. "I like that he sounds honest," she said.
The other dolls looked up at Charlotte.

"How do you see that in his letter, Charlotte?" Veronika asked.
"Well," Charlotte began, "he wants to be chosen, doesn't he? He could have just told us how wonderful he is, and how he's the best one for the job. He could have left out the part about his problems."

"You're right," Mandy said. "Then we wouldn't have known until he arrived, when it was too late."

Veronika turned to Billy. "What do you think, Billy?" she asked. "If we choose him, he will be your pal. You need to be satisfied with the choice."

"I like the letter," Billy said. "He sounds interesting. He says he isn't perfect, but none of us is perfect. He's different, but we're all different, even though we are alike in lots of ways."

"Like that our eyes don't close," Jolena said, "and we each have one hand with two fingers stuck together."

"It sounds to me," Billy said, "like he can do everything I like to do. I think we will have fun together."

"Let's vote on it," Veronika said, "unless anyone has something else to say."
The dolls shook their heads. They were ready to vote.
"All right," Veronika said, "who wants to choose Emil to be our new brother? Raise your hand if you do."
All the dolls raised their hands.

"Good," said Veronika. "It's unanimous (you-NAN-ih-mus)! That means we all voted the same. Then I don't have to ask who doesn't want Emil to be our new brother. I will write back and let him know."
"Veronika," Billy said, "there is something I would like you to ask him. You said his name like 'eh-MEEL.' How do we know it isn't 'EE-mul' or something else? It's an unusual name. Would you ask him how he says it so we can say it correctly when he comes?"

Veronika said she would ask. It was an important part of helping him feel at home when he arrived.

"When you write, please ask him what kind of food he likes to pretend to eat best," Jolena said. "I want to fix him his favorite food when he gets here."

"I want to find out," Mariah added, "what kinds of books he likes. We can go to the library right before he arrives and check out some things."
"Ask him if he can hear music," Charlotte said. "If he can, please find out what his favorite song is, so I can learn to play it for him on my violin."

"I have something for you to ask him," Mandy said. "Ask him if he needs to plug in his hearing aids at night or if his hearing aids use batteries, and please ask him if he needs anything else we might not think of."

That night, Veronika wrote a letter to Emil and told him that he had been chosen to be their new brother. She wrote that they liked his letter and thought he sounded nice. She asked him how to say his name. She used Autocorrect to make sure she had spelled the words correctly, and when Autocorrect changed something, she looked to see if Autocorrect was just being silly.

Veronika asked Emil what kind of food and books he liked best. She asked him if he could hear music with his special glasses, and if so, what was his favorite song. She asked him if he needed batteries or a charger for his glasses, or if there was anything else he might need. Then she added that they could tell he was special from his letter, and that was good. Then she printed off the letter and signed it. She put it into an envelope. She put a stamp on the letter.
Then all the dolls went to the mailbox together to mail the letter to Emil.

They could hardly wait. They knew Emil would be special.

We are all special, and so are you.

Cast--
Veronika: Götz Classic Kidz Vroni
Mandy: Götz Happy Kidz Katie 2015
Jolena: Götz Happy Kidz Lena in Aspen
Charlotte: Götz Happy Kidz Anna in Paris
Mariah: Götz Happy Kidz Mariah, "Chosen" from My Doll Best Friend
Billy: Götz Happy Kidz Lily at London
Emil: Götz Happy Kidz Emilia