Book Review for Let's Call Her Barbie by Renée Rosen

 

Let's Call Her Barbie by Renée Rosen

Published:  January 21, 2025 by Berkley

Genre:  Historical Ficton, Pop Culture

Taken from Goodreads:  She was only eleven-and-a-half inches tall, but she would change the world. Barbie is born in this bold new novel by USA Today bestselling author Renée Rosen.

When Ruth Handler walks into the boardroom of the toy company she co-founded and pitches her idea for a doll unlike any other, she knows what she’s setting in motion. It might just take the world a moment to catch up.

In 1956, the only dolls on the market for little girls let them pretend to be mothers. Ruth’s vision for a doll shaped like a grown woman and outfitted in an enviable wardrobe will let them dream they can be anything.

As Ruth assembles her team of creative rebels—head engineer Jack Ryan who hides his deepest secrets behind his genius and designers Charlotte Johnson and Stevie Klein, whose hopes and dreams rest on the success of Barbie’s fashion—she knows they’re working against a ticking clock to get this wild idea off the ground.

In the decades to come—through soaring heights and devastating personal lows, public scandals and private tensions— each of them will have to decide how tightly to hold on to their creation. Because Barbie has never been just a doll—she’s a legacy.

My Thoughts:  I was never a big Barbie person, but I now wish I had been.   The history of Barbie becoming the phenomenon she has become is so interesting.  I cannot believe how much time, effort, and determination went into making a 11 ½ inch toy.

I felt like I was within the wall of Mattel with Ruth, Elliott, and Jack as they fought, worked through the issues, and figured out how to make a Barbie.  It was interesting to see how people of that time reacted to a doll with boobs.   I liked that Ruth pushed to have her made and found a way to market her to be a positive role model. 

Renée Rosen did so much research to get this story right and it shows.   I sat down to read this book, and I could not put it down.   I read it nonstop for an entire afternoon.   When I read the last page, I instantly wanted to start it over and see what I had missed.   Let’s Call Her Barbie is a book I will reread, and I have already told my book friends about it and told them it is a must read.   

Thank you Berkley for a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. 

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Meet Renee Rosen(taken from her website):  Renee Rosen is a USA Today bestselling author. Her novels include Fifth Avenue Glamour Girl, The Social Graces, Park Avenue Summer, Windy City Blues, White Collar Girl, What the Lady Wants and Dollface as well as the young adult novel, Every Crooked Pot.

She is a native of Akron, Ohio, and a graduate of American University in Washington, D.C. She now lives in Chicago and is at work on a new novel.

Renee frequently visits book clubs (either in person or via Zoom) and is available for speaking engagements. For more information feel free to email her using the contact form.