Thirty Years of Mattel Fashion Dolls by J. Michael Augustyniak, Michael Augustyniak (1998, Paperback)

This is a review of "Thirty Years of Mattel Fashion Dolls, Identification and Value Guide 1967-1997". My copy of the book is softcover and illustrated in full color. It originally had a cover price of $19.95 and in my opinion the book is well worth that price. I do often see lower-priced copies for sale on ebay, and if you come across one it is definitely worth getting.

This book does have a chapter about Barbie dolls, but it does not focus on Barbie dolls exclusively. The chapter on Barbies is not comprehensive, so if you are looking for a Barbie reference this is not the best reference to meet your needs.

Having said that, if you buy or sell box lots of Barbies on ebay (or elsewhere) you will probably end up with at least a few miscellaneous non-Barbie dolls that will need identification. That is where this book really comes in handy. Mattel used the same head molds for many dolls, and differentiating between them can get confusing if you aren't familiar with the entire range of dolls that Mattel produced. For example, the "Steffie" head mold was used by Mattel in many different Barbie dolls (Parisian Barbie, Hispanic Barbie & many others), plus for Barbie's cousin PJ, plus in the Miss America dolls, plus in some of the Heart Family series dolls. If you find yourself with an unidentified fashion doll that looks like a Barbie but you can't find her in your Barbie doll reference, you should definitely check this book too.

This book shows you detailed photos of each doll and lists markings. It also lists accessories that came with each doll, and gives other interesting information when applicable.

Contents Include:

Celebrity and Character Dolls
Children's Line (A Few highlights: Rock Flowers, Honey Hill Bunch, Starr, Dazzle, The Heart Family, Spectra, Jazzie, Shani, Lady Lovelylocks, and the Princess of Power action figures featuring She-ra.)
Barbie Dolls
Disney Classics
Disney Collector Series
One of a Kind
Index

This book is highly recommended to serious doll collectors and dealers.

This is the only book that I have found that covers most of the Mattel dolls. They did forget the "Liddle Kiddles". I still highly recommend this book.

I am a fan of Barbie as well as non-Barbie dolls, so this book was a welcome addition to my reference library when originally published. It would have been nice to see photos of the shoes/accessories of the dolls that are featured to be able to verify type, but otherwise the book is great! Many popular doll lines are covered including She-Ra, Sunshine Family, Starr, Celebrity and even some Barbie dolls make an appearance. Nice layout of the book and the photos are nice and crisp. Another thing that I really like about this one is that values are given for items that are in MINT condition as opposed to having been played with, redressed in a non-original outfit, and with ratty hair (there are actually some books that give these types of dolls as examples). This one is a 'must-have' for anyone that sells or collects all types of Mattel fashion dolls!