{"product_id":"barbieland-the-unauthorized-history-hardcover","title":"Barbieland: The Unauthorized History - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eTarpley Hitt\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"More than the story of a toy, \u003ci\u003eBarbieland \u003c\/i\u003eis the story of the 20th century.\" --Malcolm Harris, author of \u003ci\u003ePalo Alto\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cb\u003e\"Gutsy in its reporting, sharp and ambitious in its analysis, and funny as hell.\" --Molly Young, author of \u003ci\u003ePrivacy\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cb\u003eThe secret history of Barbie and what Mattel has done to keep her on top. \u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFor nearly seven decades, Mattel billed Barbie as the first adult doll--a revolutionary alternative to the baby dolls before her, which had treated little girls as future mothers rather than future women. But Barbie was no original. She was a knockoff: a nearly identical copy of a German doll now erased from the narrative in favor of Mattel's preferred version of history. It was Barbie's first secret but far from her last. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eBarbieland\u003c\/i\u003e, journalist and \u003ci\u003eThe Drift \u003c\/i\u003eeditor Tarpley Hitt exposes the long-hidden backstory of the world's most famous doll. After snuffing out her predecessor, Barbie climbed to the throne of global girlhood and stayed there, fending off rivals with a mix of strategic marketing, government influence, ruthless litigation, and covert tactics worthy of a classic spy novel. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis lively, authoritative ride through the underbelly of American business pulls back the curtain on the corporate titans, cultural influencers, and toyland rivals who shaped this icon's world--from flawed founder Ruth Handler to convicted Wall Street fraudster (and improbable Barbie savior) Michael Milken to the Bratz doll empire, which once put the brand on life support. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAlong the way, Hitt delves into the stories of the eccentrics and autocrats who brought Barbie to life through sheer force of will: a pair of ex-Nazi toymakers, a toy mogul friend of J. Edgar Hoover's, a swinging missile designer turned Barbie executive married to Zsa Zsa Gabor, and Mattel's mid-century Freudian marketeer, who saw the doll as a psychosexual skeleton key to controlling the American mind. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThrough investigative reporting, global archival research, and interviews with key players from across the Barbie extended universe, \u003ci\u003eBarbieland\u003c\/i\u003e lays bare the unseen--and so often absurd--work that made Mattel a multibillion-dollar business and turned Barbie into an institution: a symbol as synonymous with American soft power as Coca-Cola and McDonald's french fries.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eTarpley Hitt is a journalist in New York, New York, where she is an editor at and contributor to \u003ci\u003eThe Drift\u003c\/i\u003e magazine. She has previously reported on culture and money for \u003ci\u003eThe Daily Beast\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eGawker\u003c\/i\u003e, and her work has also appeared in \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBookforum\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Paris Review\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eAir Mail, Deseret\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eMagazine\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eMiami New Times\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 352\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.18 x 9.21 x 6.39 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e December 02, 2025\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48798922473720,"sku":"9781668031827","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0698\/5629\/7208\/files\/C8ACRJUtxC9781668031827.webp?v=1780501831","url":"https:\/\/barneysbooksellers.com\/products\/barbieland-the-unauthorized-history-hardcover","provider":"Barney's Book Sellers","version":"1.0","type":"link"}