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Article: Betty Doll's better than Barbie.(memoir/picture book by Patricia Polacco)
- Article from:
- U.S. News & World Report
- Article date:
- April 2, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 All rights reserved. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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When Mary Ellen Barber died in 1996, a picture book was born. Her daughter is author-illustrator Patricia Polacco, acclaimed for titles like Pink and Say, a Civil War saga of two teen soldiers, and Thank you, Mr. Falker, an account of her struggle with dyslexia. Going through her mother's things, Polacco came upon a small, hand-sewn doll, wrapped in a letter to "Trisha." Reading of the poppet's life, Polacco knew she had a story to tell.
Betty Doll's black-and-white art captures the past in rural Michigan, where Mary Ellen grew up. But the doll is full of life--pink skinned and orange haired. She is the girl's playmate, confidant--and savior. Walking home from ...