Barbie's New York Summer

Barbie #3

by Cynthia Lawrence, Clyde Smith (illustrator)

Teen Journal magazine sponsors an essay contest and, as a winner, Barbie wins a trip to New York where she will spend the summer working on a magazine. In New York she meets Pablo who is handsome enough to make most girls forget Ken Carson.

Genres: Childrens

179 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1962

Reviews

[Gina House · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 🌟 What an enchanting and sweet young adult novel! I was really surprised how much I liked this Barbie book!

At first, I only chose the book because the cover was so cute and I loved Barbie when I was little. So, when I began reading the book, my expectations were pretty low. Or, at least, I expected it to be like many other books based on a brand name.

But, I was delighted by the simple but charming writing style and summer adventure of young Barbie. In this novel, she's in her third year of high school and is offered an opportunity to model and write for a New York teen magazine.

There's a bit of romance, lots of description about New York and the fashion industry, and a side plot concerning her cousin Paul. The tone is light and enjoyable, but it had a lot more depth of feeling than I was expecting.

Even though Cynthia Lawrence's writing style is not quite as sophisticated and clever as that of Susan Scarlett (aka Noel Streatfeild), I would say that it's very close.

I've read many vintage young adult books in the past few months and this one was almost my favorite. (The other book was Four Party Line by Dorothy Gilman Butters.) Reading Barbie's New York Summer truly cheered me up and made me want to know what would happen next in Barbie's life.

I'm hoping to find more books in the 11 book series. There's also an adorable cookbook and a 'The World of Barbie' book which contains the first three in the series, I believe. If you're looking for a quick and lovely young adult book for the summer, definitely give this a try! So fun!

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This charming Barbie YA novel from 1962 was such a cute read! Although Barbie has a pop culture reputation for glamor, this Barbie is a wide-eyed teen learning about New York life, the fashion industry, and herself during a summer magazine internship. The vibe reminded me a little of the Audrey Hepburn movie, Funny Face.

One of my favorite scenes was Barbie’s “pizza pie” night in the West Village with her stage actor cousin and new friends. Nothing overly special happened in the scene, but it felt like a small glimpse of 1960’s New York youth culture. It’s strange to think it wasn’t so long ago when pizza was a new and exciting cuisine, rising in mainstream popularity thanks to Italian American immigrants.

As for the romance, I was surprised Ken stayed in California while Barbie enjoyed a flirty summer friendship with a handsome boy named Pablo. I loved Pablo’s character arc—he was charming, sweet, and three dimensional instead of a stereotypical “Mr. Wrong.” Yet, if I didn’t know Barbie and Ken’s long history, I’m not entirely sure Pablo could be considered “Mr. Wrong” in this book. The plot leaves Barbie’s career and romantic future open to endless possibilities and, personally, I’m sad Mattel never released a Pablo doll because I think he could certainly hold his own against Ken. 😂

With all the Barbie movie hype recently, I had a blast reading a story from Barbie’s history and I wish Barbie’s New York Summer was still in print!

[Ashley Lambert-Maberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's every chance in the world if I were to re-read this again I might not think it deserves 4 stars ... but I enjoyed it very much as a child, and read it more than once. For all I know it's the rare book of its ilk that transcends the genre (is there a genre for it? books based on toys?). I know (because I tried to read Thomas the Tank Engine) that sometimes such books are unreadable ... for all I know Thomas is the other way around, but still, unreadable. But Barbie was great fun. Perhaps it's a guilty pleasure? Anyway, I admit it: I read it, I liked it a lot!

Note: I'm a writer myself, so suffer pangs of guilt every time I offer less than five stars. These aren't ratings of quality, just my subjective account of how much I liked them: 5* = one of my all-time favourites, 4* = enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = disappointing, and 1* = hated it.

[Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is part of the original set of Barbie books from the 50's/60's. They are aimed at young girls. Are they still relevant today? I would say yes, girls (and boy's if they so choose) would love these even today. There is a sensibility about this time I love going back to. The small illustrations are darling. Barbie dates ALOT! LOL. I would recommend these to any one who wants a bit of nostalgia and a quick fun read.

[Cathie Maud · Rating 5 out of 5]

These vintage Barbie books have more substance than the modern Barbie stories. Even though some notions are more archaic now, the rest of the story is still very relevant and endearing.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have carried this book with me for over 50 yrs. The rating is strictly based on the nostalgic feeling it brings me.

[㋛ ㋡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bleak, but… kinda charming?