CLEVELAND, Ohio – At 9 years old, I wanted an American Girl doll more than anything. And on Christmas morning 1989, I was overjoyed to discover Kirsten Larson under the tree.

Kirsten was a Swedish immigrant making a new life on the Minnesota frontier in the 1850s. Like the two other original 18-inch American Girls, turn-of-the-century New York socialite Samantha and plucky World War II heroine Molly, Kirsten was 9 years old, with a set of books that described her scrapes, setbacks and adventures.

You could buy all the books, all the accessories and all the outfits – for both the dolls and their owners – only through gorgeous, oversized catalogs I pored over.

I fell in love with the dolls because one of my friends had them. My parents indulged me because they were so wholesome.

My grand

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