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It’s Official! The ’70s Become History At American Girl


WEBWIRE

New doll and book series—the first in five years—explores America’s recent past

Middleton, WI.— Mood rings, typewriters, women’s rights, Title IX, pet rocks, vinyl records, the Ford and Carter presidential race, the Bicentennial. While many moms and dads across America experienced these things first-hand thirty years ago, their daughters are about to learn more about this important era—the 1970s—through Julie Albright™, a 9-year-old girl growing up in San Francisco and the first new character to join American Girl’s historical line of dolls and books in five years.

Julie launches on September 10, 2007, with a set of six historical books that tell her story, a high-quality 18-inch Julie doll, and an array of historically accurate clothes and accessories that represent the material culture of the seventies. And to further enhance Julie’s world, American Girl is simultaneously launching an 18-inch doll and book for her best friend in the series, Ivy Ling™, a 9-year-old girl from a close-knit Chinese American family.

“The ’70s were a time of profound change. People were adapting to new views on politics, on women’s roles, and on concerns for the environment, to name just a few issues,” says Ellen L. Brothers, president of American Girl. “Although the 1970s represented a period of societal upheaval, they were also a time of positive change for many Americans. Our hope is that Julie’s stories can still touch and teach girls of today. More than any American Girl character before her, Julie bridges the past and present and allows moms to share their personal experiences with their daughters and show them how changes made today can make a profound difference within their own lifetime.”

The Julie books—Meet Julie, Julie Tells Her Story, Happy New Year, Julie, Julie and the Eagles, Julie’s Journey, and Changes for Julie—were written by popular children’s author Megan McDonald, author of the bestselling Judy Moody series. In developing the Julie stories, Ms. McDonald drew on her personal experiences growing up in the seventies.

“I hope Julie’s stories will inspire girls today to find their own voice, speak up for themselves, and to effect change in their own lives, no matter what obstacles they face,” says Ms. McDonald.

The Julie books, along with Good Luck, Ivy! by award-winning author Lisa Yee, give readers ages 8 and up a “girl-sized view” of what life might have been like as a nine-year-old girl growing up in the mid-seventies, such as adapting to a parents’ divorce, moving to a new home, and trying to get onto the basketball team...even though it’s a boys’ basketball team. Through Julie’s and Ivy’s stories, readers discover that when something is important—when a friend is in trouble, an animal is endangered, or a rule needs to be rewritten—it’s time to make the change happen yourself.

Julie is American Girl’s ninth historical character to join Kaya (1764); Felicity (1774); Josefina (1824); Kirsten (1854); Addy (1864); Samantha (1904); Kit (1934); and, Molly (1944). The new Julie and Ivy dolls, books, and accessories will be available on September 10, 2007, through American Girl’s consumer catalogue, at www.americangirl.com, at American Girl Place® Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles, and at American Girl’s newest retail venue, American Girl Boutique and Bistro™, in Atlanta. To request a free catalogue, call 1-800-845-0005.



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