The Dollmaker was originally published in 1954 to immediate success and critical acclaim. In unadorned and powerful prose, Harriette Arnow tells the unforgettable and heartbreaking story of the Nevels family and their quest to preserve their deep-rooted values amidst the turmoil of war and industrialization. When Gertie Nevels, a strong and self-reliant matriarch, follows her husband to Detroit from their countryside home in Kentucky, she learns she will have to fight desperately to keep her family together. A sprawling book full of vividly drawn characters and masterful scenes, The Dollmaker is a passionate tribute to a woman's love for her children and the land.

In the vein of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas and Number the Stars, this fusion of fairy tales, folklore, and World War II history eloquently illustrates the power of love and the inherent will to survive even in the darkest of times. In the land of dolls, there is magic. In the land of humans, there is war. Everywhere there is pain. But together there is hope. Karolina is a living doll whose king and queen have been overthrown. But when a strange wind spirits her away from the Land of the Dolls, she finds herself in Kraków, Poland, in the company of the Dollmaker, a man with an unusual power and a marked past. The Dollmaker has learned to keep to himself, but Karolina’s courageous and compassionate manner lead him to smile and to even befriend a violin-playing father and his daughter—that is, once the Dollmaker gets over the shock of realizing a doll is speaking to him. But their newfound happiness is dashed when Nazi soldiers descend upon Poland. Karolina and the Dollmaker quickly realize that their Jewish friends are in grave danger, and they are determined to help save them, no matter what the risks.

Named a Best Book of the Year by The Advocate and Tor.com A love story of two very real, unusual people, and a novel rich with wonders that shines a radically different light on society's marginal figures. Stitch by perfect stitch, Andrew Garvie makes exquisite dolls in the finest antique style. Like him, they are diminutive, but graceful, unique and with surprising depths. Perhaps that's why he answers the enigmatic personal ad in his collector's magazine. Letter by letter, Bramber Winters reveals more of her strange, sheltered life in an institution on Bodmin Moor, and the terrible events that put her there as a child. Andrew knows what it is to be trapped; and as they knit closer together, he weaves a curious plan to rescue her. On his journey through the old towns of England he reads the fairytales of Ewa Chaplin—potent, eldritch stories which, like her lifelike dolls, pluck at the edges of reality and thread their way into his mind. When Andrew and Bramber meet at last, they will have a choice—to remain alone with their painful pasts or break free and, unlike their dolls, come to life.

Now in mass market for the first time, USA Today bestselling author Mary Burton presents the heart-stopping next installment in her Forgotten Files Trilogy, where forensic pathologist Dr. Tessa McGowan and agent Dakota Sharp must work together to unravel the mysteries behind the macabre doll-like killings before Tessa becomes the next victim. Dr. Tessa McGowan had never seen anything quite like it. But the mutilated bodies on her exam table tell a stunningly macabre tale. Someone with a twisted mind is kidnapping women and altering their faces to resemble real, life-size dolls. As a forensic pathologist, it's her job to aid the agent leading the case--even if that agent is her estranged husband. Twelve years ago, an unspeakable tragedy destroyed Dakota Sharp's world. Haunted by the ghosts of his past, he's devoted himself to capturing killers. His only regret is that it cost him Tessa. Now, as the Dollmaker case brings them together--and raises his suspicions that he's crossed paths with this deranged psychopath before-- they may just have their second chance. But it seems Dakota's not the only one who wants to make Tessa his own . . . She may be the Dollmaker's next target, but Tessa has no intention of winding up as another toy on his shelf. Can she and Dakota stop this ghastly killer before his next deadly playdate?

Goldie, the dollmaker, created each doll with great love and sincerity, and the pleasure from this and her acquisition of a lamp whose maker was equally careful made her poverty and loneliness bearable.

"Dolls are not a luxury. They are as necessary to a child's life as a loaf of bread . . . What a doll does for a little girl is develop her capacity to love others and herself." -Madame Alexander A wonderful offering for young doll enthusiasts and women's history buffs alike This fascinating book tells the stories of courageous dollmakers, all of whom were-and continue to be-filled with passion, vision, and determination. They are the unsung heroines behind some of the most important dolls of the last hundred years-such as Barbie (Ruth Handler) and Madame Alexander's collection (Beatrice Alexander). Entrepreneurs and feminists of their time, these strong women displayed both creative genius and astute business acumen, serving as excellent role models for today's young female readers.

Profiles five of the women behind the most important dolls of the past century, and introduces six women making dolls today.