Podcast
Dolls of Our Lives
Hosted by Allison Horrocks and Mary Mahoney · EN
The series you loved, book by book. Join Allison Horrocks and Mary Mahoney as they explore the wild world of American Girl fandom. In each episode, Allison and Mary will dive into an American Girl book from their (and perhaps your) childhood. Using their knowledge as professional historians and finely tuned instincts as amateur pop culture critics, they’ll take you back to a very different time—the 1990s. Formerly American Girls Podcast.
11episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Lavender House
Oct 1, 202401:09:15Tap to summarizeIs this novel about a lavender haze or smoke and mirrors? How about both? In Lev AC Rosen’s Lavender House, a family of soap makers tries to keep their side of the street clean. There’s one big problem: someone in the Lavender home probably committed murder. Set in the Bay Area in 1952, Rosen’s novel imagines a home where queer love makes a chosen family—-and a poisonous mother tries to tear it apart. We discuss recent book bans and echoes of repression in historical fiction. Original air date: May 26, 2023 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →Meet Me at the Fountain
Oct 1, 202401:04:17Tap to summarizeThis episode, we're going to a place where the lights are bright, the music is dim, and everything smells vaguely like cookies, pretzels, and overpriced lotions. That's right, we're going to the mall. Despite many predictions of near death, the mall is alive and well in many parts of the USA (and parts of the world). For this episode, we discuss Alexandra Lange's 2022 book Meet Me by the Fountain: An Inside History of the Mall. Lange's architectural history takes us all the way back to the beginning, which in the case of malls, is not that long ago. Starting with early American malls in post-war America, Lange offers a sharp overview of how malls came to be and considers where they are still thriving now. We talk about our own relationships to malls and bigger questions raised by these American institutions. Is the mall a useful third space for communities? Or, are malls simply the best place to be wowed by build-a-bear operations and rollercoasters? Original air date: January 29, 2024See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →American Girl Fans in a Barbie World
Oct 1, 202401:12:36Tap to summarizeIn anticipation of the Barbie movie coming out this July, we took a dive into the corporate history of America’s (smaller) doll. Join us for a review of Barbie and Ruth: The Story of the World's Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her. Robin Gerber’s dual biography charts the rise of Barbie under the leadership of the ruthless girlboss Ruth Handler. Her book shares fascinating information about the culture of Mattel—and explains how Barbie and Ken got their names. Much like the Barbie movie, whether you have a love or hate the doll, this episode is for you. Original air date: July 17, 2023See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →Are You There God? It’s Us, Mary and Allison
Oct 1, 202401:00:53Tap to summarizeFor this monthly, we read Judy Blume’s iconic novel about faith and girlhood. Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret may be from the 70s, but we found it to be a relevant and fun read as 90s girls. Protagonist Margaret is a curious and thoughtful pre-teen who has recently moved to a new suburb with her parents. Throughout the book, Margaret navigates questions about religion and her body while talking privately to god. Return to this classic book with us just in time for the release of a feature film version! Original air date: April 21, 2023See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →Dear America, Did you read The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple?
Oct 1, 202400:51:35Tap to summarize. . . .Well, we seem to have not remembered and this story may have tested our patience. In this episode, we re-read the first Dear America book, set on and off the Mayflower in 1620-1621. Protagonist/diarist Remember a.k.a."Mem" experiences a lot of hardship and seasickness in this 1996 ribboned classic. She gets jealous when her friend is the "first" to step on Plymouth Rock and that's just the beginning. In our coverage, we talk about life in the 1600s, the limits of historical fiction, and representations of indigenous life in "pilgrim" stories. Want to learn more re-indigenizing education? Check out the Akomawt Educational Initiative - @akomawt on Twitter. Original air date: September 28, 2020See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →Last Night at the Telegraph Club
Oct 1, 202400:58:04Tap to summarizeA wise person once said: "having fun is never hard when you've got your library card." To this precious adage, we'd like to add an additional locale for future fun consideration: the fictional Telegraph Club. In this month's feature, we decided to read Malinda Lo's phenomenal YA book Last Night at the Telegraph Club. We discuss the fantastic resources in the book (a bibliography! timelines!) along with the super-accurate-yet-still-deeply-compelling historical adventures of protagonist Lily Hu. While trying to dodge accusations of Communism, keep up her high math grades to participate in the space race, AND help a friend win Miss Chinatown, Lily catches feelings for her classmate Kath. Tune in to hear us discuss their romance at the Telegraph Club -- and to discover whether this Space Girl finds the one who can "know the galaxies of (her) heart." Original air date: May 30, 2021See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →The Midwife’s Apprentice
Oct 1, 202400:59:33Tap to summarizeDo you remember this classic novel by Karen Cushman? Set in the Middle Ages, The Midwife’s Apprentice is about a girl named Alyce who is anything but mid. In spite of many challenges, starting with the fact that she sleeps in a dung-pile, Alyce finds her way in the world (and makes a few friends) while learning to be a midwife. We talk about our own medieval times, the transmission of medical knowledge, and what happens when cats name themselves (purr!). Original air date: March 26, 2022See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →Stonewords
Oct 1, 202400:58:23Tap to summarizeWould you befriend a ghost? Better yet, would you leave the 1990s to spend time in the 19th century? Young Zoe, the protagonist of Stonewords, decides she's cool with doing both. From a young age, Zoe develops a bond with a girl named Zoe Louise. The relationship is rocky, and one of their main issues is that Zoe Louise is dead (or half dead, depending on the chapter). We go on a journey with Zoe to try and prevent her BFF's untimely demise in the 1800s. This episode includes discussion of time travel, Halloween, and our favorite scary stories. Original air date: October 31, 2022See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
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Seeing the American Girl Store Through Silver Eyes
Oct 1, 202401:02:50Tap to summarizeIn October, we set out one morning for NYC to take a VIP tour of the American Girl Store. What happened next cannot be described in a mere text box. Did we do a photoshoot on a train? Did we learn about a heretofore unknown to us diagnosis? Did we read the main floor display of the store through the lens of 90s figure skating? Listen as we explore the store, visit the doll hospital, fix a hair crisis, and more. Original air date: January 27, 2020See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →Lisa Frank Talk
Oct 1, 202400:57:04Tap to summarize"I'll never forget the day I got stuck on Lisa Frank!" With these immortal words, Mila Kunis launched her career and the sticker obsessions of at least a million young people. In this Patreon episode, we talk all about the world of Lisa Frank. We share our own favorite characters, discuss the complex naming conventions of some of the more popular designs, and delve into the dark world of the Lisa Frank Factory. We have also included some other bonuses you will want to put right next to your vintage Lisa Frank Trapper Keepers. This summer, it was our pleasure to work with Rebecca Doyle, a student and designer who dazzled us with her talent and sharp instincts. Check out Rebecca's awesome work! American Girl x Lisa Frank character pairings Lisa Frank Resource List for further reading, viewing, and shopping Original air date: September 27, 2021 See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Transcribe →