I love my American Girl dolls. They are my best friends. Adults think they are just plastic toys but little girls know they are real girls. I always take one my my girls with me wherever I go. It's great to have a friend to chat with and play games with. Plus, I get a lot of comfort, which I need, by holding my girl near me. I love playing dollies with other girls who have the same interests.
The other thing I like is that people treat me as a little girl when they see me with my doll. Even more so when I am twinning. Each one of my girls are very precious and important to me. I am going to share special stories about each of my girls!
These are the American Girls that I currently have.
Girls of the year
Blaire is a ten-year-old girl who lives on the Pleasant View Farm Bed-and-Breakfast. She is very creative, responsible and hard-working, and is good at improvising solutions to the unique problems that can arise on her farm. She loves her family, even though she often finds her younger brother annoying, and she loves caring for the animals on the farm- such as Penelope the lamb, Dash the goat and Dandelion the Silkie chicken. Her favorite thing to do is to help her Mom cook meals for the guests in the kitchen.
She enjoys spending time on her tablet, to play games or talk to her friends, but she can sometimes get too caught up in it and forget to talk to people in reality. She also can get too focused on her plans, such as when she spent her entire summer planning a wedding and forgetting to spend time with her friends.
Blaire's love of cooking becomes challenging when she finds out she is lactose intolerant, and will have to go dairy-free for some time. While she and her Mom experiment with dairy substitutes, she finds her allergies embarrassing and doesn't like to bring them up.
Kanini Akina 2011
Kanani is a ten-year-old girl living on Kaua'i, the geologically oldest island of Hawaii. Her father, Mr. Akina, is of Japanese-Hawaiian descent while her mother, Mrs. Akina, is of French-German descent, making her multiracial. She helps her family run a popular shave ice shop and is passionate about helping people by sharing the Aloha spirit and protecting Hawaiian wildlife, such as the Hawaiian monk seal. She has a rooster named Jinx, a dog named Barksee, and a goat named Mochi.
Kanani enjoys swimming- her parents call her a mermaid- but she dislikes surfing. She knows her island very well and is friendly to everyone. She also has a gift for photography and business, and she helps her parents run their Shave Ice shop. She is very passionate about helping the endangered monk seals, including one that she helped rescue on the beach that she named Malana.
Kira Bailey 2021
Kira is a ten-year-old girl living in Michigan with her mother, a middle school teacher; the two of them foster kittens for a local shelter. Her father died three years ago from an unspecified accident. Her paternal family owns the Bailey Wildlife Sanctuary in Australia; the sanctuary has been with the family since the 1800s. Kira dreams of living there and always helping with the animals, but her mother refuses to let her stay at the sanctuary full-time as she would prefer Kira attend public school than online school. Despite the usual distance between them, Kira is very close with her great aunts, Mamie and Lynette, and holds a great deal of respect for them as the heads of the sanctuary. She is very loyal to her family's home and will do anything she can to help out and protect it.
Kira loves animals of all kinds and wants to work with them as a career, though she isn't sure if she wants to be a veterinarian or scientist. She is very skilled with animals and is eager to learn as much about them as she can. The memories of waiting for her father in the emergency room have given Kira a fear of hospitals. She is also very anxious and stubborn, and her former friend Laila blames Kira's inability to be flexible as the reason their friendship eroded. When Kira gets nervous, she will start to ramble about information she knows, regardless of whether or not whoever she's talking to wants her to stop. She is very scared of the unknown, though her new friend Alexis later gets her to open up and become braver.
She is very focused on the idea of being prepared for anything, and doesn't like to be spontaneous or to do anything without a plan While Kira is good at planning ahead, she is not good at thinking in the moment; she often makes simple mistakes without thinking such as leaving the wombat pen open because she was distracted or befriending a stray cat without realizing that it was a predator hunting in the sanctuary.
Luciana Vega 2018
Luciana (nicknamed Luci) is an eleven and later twelve year old girl of Chilean descent. She aspires to be the first person to explore Mars, and refers to herself as the "Future First Girl on Mars."
She is very confident in herself and can be impulsive in a lot of her decisions, such as adding a purple streak in her hair to match her best friend Raelyn's and leading the Red Rovers to break the rules in an attempt to find their missing motor module. However, she can sometimes doubt herself due to her plans failing, and often worries about being a good leader and a good older sister. She sometimes has trouble paying attention to other people's feelings and tends to listen more with her head than her heart.
Luci is incredibly creative, sometimes considering herself to be too creative. She loves sketching her ideas. She is also incredibly determined and quite smart, as seen in her taking part in the essay contest to get into Space Camp for several years before finally winning with a paper on space rocks, which she has an interest in. She is shown to never give up until she completes her goal. However, she can sometimes get a lot of anxiety and go into "panic mode", where she feels like she's dying and has trouble breathing. Her teammate, Claire Jacobs, taught her a good way to deal with them, where she starts focusing on what she can sense in the moment. Luciana is bilingual, and can speak both English and Spanish fluently.
One of Luciana's prized possessions is her star necklace, which was given to her on her first birthday. She only wears it for special occasions. At the end of Space Camp, she bought a similar necklace--a moon-shaped one instead of a star-shaped--to give as a gift to her adopted sister, Isadora. Even before Isadora was adopted, Luci became very attached to her, often worrying about being an older sister and fantasizing about spending time with her. She calls her hermanita and has nicknamed her "Izzy," while Isadora calls her "Lulu." She is very protective of her and worries a lot about her when she has surgery. Luci loves the rest of her family, even though she sometimes feels left out of it due to the fact that she lives in America and they live in Chile, meaning that she can't spend a lot of time with them. She has fifteen total cousins.
Corrine and Gwynn Tan 2022
Corinne is a ten-year-old Chinese-American girl living in a townhouse in Aspen, Colorado with her mother Judy, stepfather Arne, and younger sister, Gwynn. The two sisters spend weekends with their father, David Tan. Corinne is in the fifth grade and speaks both Chinese and English.
Corinne worries a lot about things, but does not voice her concerns, worries, or discomfort often. She is initially nervous to be moving into Arne's townhouse, as the bedrooms are very pristine like hotel rooms and the house is so clean--unlike their apartment that has toys on the floor and Gwynn's art on the walls--and has different rules. She also is reluctant to talk to people she doesn't know and worries what they might think about her. When subjected to anti-Asian prejudice (regarding the ongoing pandemic) Corinne is hurt and upset and doesn't know how to react the first time, and later avoids confrontation with the boy that was racist towards her; she is also emotionally hurt when a man implies that their pet dog Flurry would be cooked as food in her mother's restaurant. She is frustrated that Arne at first does not appear to understand the racism she is dealing with, his being a white man. Her anxieties build up and come to a head at Gwynn's competition, and she panics and runs away, getting lost in the woods; she is able to remember how to stay safe and wait for rescue, but still has unpleasant thoughts about not being found until she is.
She is still initially nervous and sad that her parents have separated and much more nervous about initially being in a blended family; she assumes that there is more awkwardness about her blended family than there is. She makes up a rule to not speak about Arne in front of her dad and vice versa, assuming this makes things uncomfortable, and discourages Gwynn from doing so, feeling that her father's more upset than he lets on; she is upset by Gwynn's her innocent discussing of what Corinne feels are awkward topics such as Arne around their father or vice versa. The plan for a small city hall wedding pleases her as she feels a small, quiet ceremony makes her feelings more manageable than if there was a big out in the open wedding. Later, she understands that her stepfather and father truly do not have issues with each other and her blended family is not as awkward as she feels they are.
Corinne is sometimes annoyed by Gwynn's energy and antics. She is still very supportive and does her best to help keep Gwynn happy. While she does not initially believe in Gwynn's idea of a "sister brain," she first pretends to for Gwynn's sake, actually does for a moment during Gwynn's skating competition, and fully does after she is lost in the woods.[3] After encountering a search-and-rescue trainer, Corinne decides that she wants to train a search and rescue dog-specifically, an avalanche dog--and the family adopts Flurry, both as a family pet and for her to train. She also finds a way for the three hearts on her and Gwynn's necklace to mean their whole family: one for those no longer there, one for those in the present with them, and one for future people they haven't met yet.
Corinne enjoys skiing, but does not want to take private lessons as she skis for fun and the enjoyment of being outside--one of her favorite places is outside, and she likes to identify the pine trees around her and enjoys being on the mountains, even when she was little. She doesn't care for coconut, and one of her favorite foods is zongzi--rice and other foods wrapped in bamboo leaves tied with string. She (and everyone in her family except Arne) are lactose-intolerant and have to take dairy pills before eating ice cream.
Kavi Sharma 2023
Kavi (KUH-vee) Sharma is a eleven-going-on-twelve year old Indian girl living in Metuchen, NJ--which is close to New York City and thus Broadway. Her full name is Kavika (kuh-VEE-kuh). She enjoys songwriting, showtunes, dance (both hip-hop and traditional Indian dance), and performing. After her twelfth birthday, where she attends a Broadway performance of Wicked, she is inspired to take up performing.
Kavi's book and story is coming out in March!
Historical Dolls
Nanea Mitchell. - representing the World War II era from the Pearl Harbor bombing and America's official entry into the war, including Hawaiian-American culture.
Nanea Mitchell--her first name is Alice, and she goes by her middle name--lives in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her family is racially mixed; her mother is Hawaiian and her father is Scottish-American, making her multiracial. Nanea is very proud of her Hawaiian heritage, with her grandmother she performs hula and studies the history of Hawaii. She is the youngest of three children with an older brother, David, and an older sister, Mary Lou. Nanea is very close with her family--especially her father and her mother's parents. She is close enough to her father to confess when she's done something wrong and ask him for his advice; in turn he understands her intentions and desires to help and shows her how to do her best. Nanea at the start of her stories struggles with being seen as the baby of the family and wanting to appear more mature--partially because Mary Lou often treats her as if she is too young and immature. The two shares a room and while they don't always get along, they share the same taste in music.
Nanea's family has extended relationships beyond blood ties which include her Japanese neighbors, the Suda family. She is best friends with their daughter Lily Suda and with a third friend, Donna Hill, they call themselves the Three Kittens and spend much of their time together when they can. Nanea prides herself on being a star student and one that assists her teacher often. She does well in school and wants to be a teacher. Nanea is very ambitious, often making plans in her mind in order to accomplish her goals--whether realistic or not. She can be very stubborn and selfish at times, getting upset or angry when things don't go her way. She has imaginative and creative ideas, and is very good at thinking on her feet--but can be impulsive and does not always think before she acts. When she makes mistakes, she works hard in order to make things right.
After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor--which Nanea experiences much of firsthand--Hawaii is placed under martial law. These events traumatize Nanea, and she becomes afraid of loud noises and being away from her family in fear they'll be hurt. Various precautions are enacted, such as having to carry gas masks and identification cards regardless of age. Furthermore, many locations are damaged around the city. Suspicions about the Japanese lead to prejudice against Lily's family, and later Donna's family has to to temporarily move to the mainland as only essential people and their families may remain. After the attack Nanea feels she must mature too quickly, and wishes things were like before. Over the course of her stories she becomes closer with those she loves as well as her cultural traditions, and learns to sacrifice personal desires and wants to assist others. She becomes more mature and thoughtful in trying to help her community recover and works hard to cheer up her loved ones and do her part to bring peace back to her island.
She is an avid reader and her favorite books are the Nancy Drew series. She is very talented at her hula dancing, including teaching Mele to dance with her.
Nanea's favorite flavor of shave ice is strawberry.
Rebecca Rubin -
representing American Jewish culture in the early twentieth century/World War I era with focuses on immigration and the silent film era
Rebecca--nicknamed "Beckie" by her family--is a middle child in a Russian-Jewish Immigrant family; specifically, her family are Ashkenazi Jewish. Her mother Vera and maternal grandparents immigrated from Russia, as did her father Louis and his parents. Rebecca's family keep multiple ties to their Jewish faith and Russian heritage; they rest on the Sabbath, celebrate Jewish holidays, and Rebecca knows the tale of Clever Karina enough to recite it as a performance. However due to needs in America, there are compromises her family makes to assimilate, such as her father opening up his shop on the Sabbath for business (as the day off is traditionally Sunday in the Christian faith.) Rebecca's family speaks fluent Yiddish; the books have various Yiddish words integrated into the stories. Rebecca likes coming together with her family for Sabbath dinners.
She wants to be an actress like her cousin Max when she grows up, and enjoys movies like her older twin sisters instead of Yiddish plays. . However, her family does not approve of her following in Max's footsteps; they find acting to be less respectable and want Rebecca to be a teacher. Rebecca acts out plays with her wooden dolls and pretends various scenes of acting when doing chores. She likes to crochet and is very skilled, not needing to read the patterns to make doilies. Rebecca loves to make people laugh and is lively with a dramatic flair; she is courageous and has natural talent.
As the second-to youngest child of five, Rebecca often wants to appear more grown up than she is and stand out; she seeks to be the center of attention or in the spotlight. She is envious of her siblings for getting more attention than she does and feeling overlooked as not unique by being a twin like Sophie and Sadie, studying for a coming of age ceremony like Victor, or the youngest like Benny. She protests when told she's not old enough to do mature things such as light the Sabbath candles like her sisters. Rebecca gets hand-me-down dresses from her twin sisters, leaving her with two sets of nearly all her outfits; she later shares them with her cousin Ana, so they can appear alike.
Rebecca, as a Jewish girl, struggles with trying to fit in with mainstream American/Christian culture while maintaining her connections to her own culture and religious beliefs; for example, she is unsure of how to handle Christmas activities when her family doesn't celebrate Christmas and is uncomfortable when expected to participate, such as making holiday decorations and her teacher Miss Maloney saying that Christmas is an American holiday for everyone (when it is, factually, a Christian one).
Rebecca often accompanies her father to his shoe store, where she helps with chores and other shop needs; she has a knack for business and making money, similar to her father. Rebecca can be bossy, especially when she's directing plays or performances, and tends to want things to go her way. Her favorite subject in school is arithmetic; she is exceptionally skilled at mathematics, and her grandpa calls her a math whiz. Her favorite book is Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm. She would rather spend her time in the splashing waves at Coney Island than be anywhere else. She is thoughtful and generous, but also can be ashamed of negative attention, such as when her cousin Ana stood out in school and she felt embarrassment.
American Girl characterizes her as "confident" and "inspiring" while the American Girl shop section describes her as charismatic.
Samantha Parkington -
representing turn-of-the-century America and the early American Progressive Era
She is one of the first three Historical Characters, representing the Progressive Era/Early 20th Century in America. Samantha was first released in 1986 at the launch of Pleasant Company along with Kirsten Larson and Molly McIntire.
Samantha (occasionally nicknamed Sam) is an orphan who, at the start of the series, is living with her old-fashioned Grandmary. Samantha only remembers her parents faintly; they died the summer after she turned five. She seeks the approval of Grandmary and does not want to disappoint her or worry her. She has been partially raised by her Uncle Gardner who is the major father figure in her life; she wants to please him and does not want to be left out of his life even after his marriage.
Samantha is curious which leads to her asking a lot of questions from the people around her and thus questioning the status quo. She can be very defiant when she feels she has been wronged. She is very interested in her parents and their lives, as they died in a boating accident when she was five years old and is compared in looks to her mother. She has a rough side such as climbing trees and feels it is very hard to be a young lady. She often thinks fancifully, such as when she believes Jessie has left to be an actress and that her uncle may be a spy. Samantha is rather bold and mischievous and playful, generally going places she should not, sneaking off, and even standing up to her mocking neighbor, Eddie Ryland. Samantha is beguiling and bursting with ideas, and is very imaginative.
Samantha is fun and loves to laugh. She is loyal, giving, and helpful. Her friends consider her a life saver because she's all heart and ready to help others.
Samantha likes progress, new inventions, and is interested in how things are changing in all ways at the turn of the century, though it's hard for her to adjust to changes within her family, as Samantha initially felt Cornelia changed her plans in Samantha's Surprise. At times she comes off as very naive due to her sheltered life; Nellie's more difficult life originally served as contrast to Samantha's well-to-do life. She is also very giving, having given up her doll to Nellie soon after receiving it to be a companion to her as well as giving her time to help her become better at school upon her return. She does not think this is merely helping a poorer person (noblesse oblige) and sees her as an actual friend.
She loves to read and her favorite book is The Wizard of Oz. Samantha can play the piano, although she does not think she has much musical skill. She loves to paint and someday wishes that she could be as good of an artist as her mother Lydia Parkington was. Samantha is not extremely skilled at embroidery but does good work; in her first book she completes a sampler, and in Samantha's Ocean Liner Adventure she embroiders a handkerchief. She either wants to be a painter like Mary Cassatt or the first female US President. Samantha is very good at public speaking and knows how to bring attention and persuade people of her ideas easily. She gives a speech in Samantha Learns a Lesson which helps her realize she's good at public speaking. She realizes that she is a great leader in Samantha's Special Talent.[5]
American Girl characterizes her as compassionate and kind. She was also characterized at the American Girl Publishing site as "bright" and "generous."
Molly McIntire - representing the tail end of the World War II era and early post-war era. She is one of the first three Historical Characters, representing the late World War II Era. Molly was released in 1986 at the launch of Pleasant Company along with Samantha Parkington and Kirsten Larson.
Molly comes from a Scottish-American family and lives in the fictional town of Jefferson, Illinois. She often comes up with various plans to draw attention to herself; several times these plans and ideas are either wholly unrealistic or fall through.
To Molly, World War II is mostly a distant inconvenience in her daily life; it is only when she is introduced to Emily Bennett that she sees that the war is truly affecting other people.
She is not very good at math (especially multiplication), dislikes turnips, and is afraid to swim underwater. She struggles with her looks later in the series as she wants to look different, with curls instead of straight hair. She often believes her hair to be like "straight sticks" compared to her teacher Miss Campbell. She frequently becomes set on becoming a "New Molly." Molly and her friends greatly admire their teacher, Miss Campbell, and like thinking about her love life.
Molly is a great tap dancer. In the book, she was the best dancer in her class, even better than Alison. In the movie, she struggles and copies Alison and later becomes the best in her class. She also enjoys camp songs.
Molly misses her father very much. Even though she loves her parents, she often finds it hard to get along with her siblings, often getting into disagreements. Molly also finds it hard to get along with Alison, and even Emily Bennett at one point in the story because of their differences. She can be mean, especially to Alison, and finds it hard to be nice to her. She always wants to be original, and is obsessed with glamour, especially from England. Molly finds it especially hard to be a follower, as was evident in Molly Saves the Day when she envied Dorinda for being the team captain.
Molly is a big schemer, often the ring leader when she and her friends make plans. Molly's mom calls her a chatterbox, in comparison to Emily. She is prone to daydreaming and fanciful ideas.
American Girl characterizes her as "lively" and "lovable." On the original personality quiz, she is described as "feisty." Americangirlpublishing.com also characterizes her as "patriotic", and American Girl e-cards describe her as "fun" and "cheerful."
Samantha (Truly Me doll) - Just Like You #7 was one of the first released American Girl of Today dolls. She was released in 1995 and retired in 2010. She is a Pleasant Company doll.
Truly Me (originally American Girl of Today in 1995; shortened to American Girl Today in 1996; renamed Just Like You[1] in 2006; renamed to My American Girl in 2010; and renamed to the current name in 2015) is the line of clothing and dolls that are intended to reflect a more modern time than that of the Historical Characters.
Samantha (I named her after my aunty is my first American Girl doll. She means a great deal to me since my mommy bought her for me.
My first 6 American Girl Dolls
Sissy Princess Annie
