American Girlz

Today, Frack and I took my mom and a couple of her friends to Kit Kittredge, the first theatrical release of an American Girl movie. If you don’t have a daughter in the tween range, you may not be aware of the marketing juggernaut that is the American Girl company. The American Girls are a series of dolls, each from a specific period of U.S. history. Each doll comes with historically accurate clothing and accessories, plus a book about her adventures. Each book has some historical information about the period in the back. As a history minor, I was totally geeked out over these and couldn’t wait until Frack was old enough to have a doll.

Once Frack crossed the magic 8-year-old barrier, we looked at the catalogs. We studied the dolls. I was initially partial to Felicity, the doll from 1774 (must have been that pre-Bicentennial trip to Williamsburg, Monticello, etc.–thanks, Mama!), but I have to admit, Kit is most like me: curious, loves to write, loves the Cincinnati Reds. So when Frack picked Kit as her favorite, Santa and I got up close and personal. Kit arrived, and the rest is history.

We tucked ourselves into our seats after pawning the car to pay for popcorn and drinks, and let me tell you–it’s sentimental, it’s good-girls-win, it’s American grit and spunk and how to survive the Great Depression by growing your own veggies and building a chicken coop in the back yard, and it’s a ton of fun. Loved the costuming, loved the period music, loved the casting (Abigail Breslin works so well as Kit!). Total schmaltz, and I enjoyed every sappy second of it. Yay, Kit!

Of course, you have to wonder if this movie works so well because so many of us these days are worried about foreclosure and whether that sunny spot in the back yard would be good for veggies (my city’s zoning nixes the poultry idea). Either way, it’s worth a look. Drag along your daughter, or maybe just yourself. It’s fun to remember what it’s like to be an American girl.