Gabriela McBride - 2017 Girl of the Year

*Disclosure–We were provided with this Gabriela McBride doll to facilitate our review. As always, all opinions are our own*

Meet Gabriela McBride^™ American Girl’s 2017 Girl of the Year^™

Avery is an artist. No question about it. The girl LOVES to create. Whether it’s drawing and painting, or dancing and singing, she is happiest when she is being creative! When I learned about Gabriela McBride, American Girl Doll Girl of the Year for 2017, I knew Avery would love her and connect with her story. And oh my goodness, did she! As soon as she saw the box, she was overjoyed! “She is SO beautiful!! She’s an artist like me! She dances like me!! I LOVE HER!” Described in a press release as “a true creative talent who uses the power of poetry to help her break down barriers and overcome a personal challenge with stuttering.” Gabriela, with her curly dark-brown hair and warm brown eyes is beautiful! Like the other Girl of the Year dolls, there are many outfits and accessories available. Accessories include a dance barre, rehearsal and dance outfits, headphones and a microphone! Even more products will be available this spring! According to American Girl “Gabriela’s story will be told in a series of three books published by Scholastic and written by Teresa E. Harris. The first book Gabriela, hits shelves in January and tells the story of a quiet and creative girl growing up in a family of artists. Gabriela inherited a love of the arts from her parents, especially her mother, but spoken word poetry is becoming her own passion. Although Gabriela often finds herself in a battle with her own words because of her stuttering, she discovers that her poetry, filled with wit and honesty, helps her speech flow more easily and gives her the confidence to find her voice to help save her beloved community arts center from being torn down.”The press release also gave the details of an amazing partnership with Scholastic! “To connect both boys and girls with Gabby’s inspiring message, American Girl is partnering with Scholastic, the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books and leader in comprehensive educational materials, to create and distribute Express Yourself, a custom curriculum program that teaches 3^rd-5^th grade students how to use poetry as a tool for self-expression. The free materials will be available on www.scholastic.com starting March 1, 2017, and include teacher lessons and corresponding classroom activities, a poetry poster, plus parent tips and learning ideas to do at home. In addition, to celebrate National Poetry Month, the program also features a poetry contest for students that will run throughout the month of April. The Express Yourself program will encourage all students to find their creative voices and share their own personal stories, while building confidence along the way.”

And guess what?! For the first time—the new Girl of the Year collection will be available for a full 12 months and beyond. This is awesome news, as I know there will be girls–for years to come–who will feel such a connection to Gabriela for all different reasons, and say “She’s just like me!”