Honestly, I've never been a big American Girl fan. The dolls were too expensive when I was a kid, and I may have read one or two of the books. I don't think I ever had any of the character paper dolls as a child either. It really bothers me that the paper dolls had 'sticky dots' to attach the clothes instead of tabs or even magnetic paper. I've never liked paper dolls that used any sort of glue like method for attaching the clothing. The think I do appreciate about the American Girls line is that they tried to teach history in a way that would interest young girls.