Barbie Talks!

Book excerpt: BARBIEr TALKS! is a free-wheeling account of life at Mattel during the “Golden Age” of the sixties and early seventies. This is the first book written by two toy designers who actually worked in the wonderful, top secret circus of Mattel’s Research and Design. BARBIEr TALKS! relates the genius, the hilarity and the craziness that, Gwen Florea and Glenda Phinney encountered in the workplace and their roles in making Talking Barbie a reality. In their well-written intersecting personal memoirs, the authors reveal the inside story of how Barbie got her voice, and why Barbie’s figure took the unrealistic shape that it did. There are both humorous and poignant stories about the antics of the toy designers and executives of Mattel. These historical events are interwoven with an honest and very readable account of the loves, marriages, and the blindly sexist business world, which triggered development of a feminine consciousness in each woman. What do Barbie Dolls do when they grow up? They have amazing lives and achieve their goals! BARBIE TALKS! is a revealing account of two women who came of age in the shadow of Barbie, and reveals a lie to the notion that Barbie was a poor influence for young women. Visit us on the web, www.barbietalks.com and see some of the fun pictures that didn’t make it into the book. We’d also love to hear from you.