Doll-A-Day 2017 #5 Bean from Ivy and Bean by Annie Barrows

  Winter has definitely parked it's ice cold butt in Ohio now. It was freezing today and snowing like crazy. Tonight it's 8 degrees! Emma managed to escape today by going to Florida! She'll be back next week when things have died down here!
  Today's doll is 'Bean'.

  Bean is a 12" soft doll based on the character 'Bean' from the "Ivy and Bean" series of books by Annie Barrows, and the illustrations by Sophie Blackall.

Ivy and Bean is a series of books about a pair of unlikely friends who are always getting into adventures.

Bean was made by Madame Alexander.

 Her striped shirt and shorts are removable.

 Her shoes and socks are  not.

  I bought Ivy (My Ivy, that is.) the first Ivy and Bean book when she was little. My motivation was that there was a character named Ivy. The character of Ivy turned out to be the redhead of the pair, and she loved to wear dresses all the time. Both characteristics fit my Ivy at the time. (She still has the red hair, but she outgrew the dresses-all-the-time thing.)

Ken with our Ivy,back when she had to wear a dress every day.

  The character of Ivy is described as being quiet and she loves to read. Bean is the rebellious friend,always causing a disturbance.Bean's not bad, just lively.

   I haven't seen the Ivy doll in person, but we found Bean at Tuesday Morning, and of course I had to get her for Ivy. Ivy is pretty good too, but I think Bean comes closer to the illustrations.

 My Ivy loved the books. She even emailed Annie Barrows to tell her how much she liked them...and Annie emailed her back! Ivy continued to read them even after she was far too old. There are ten books in the series now,and I think Ivy has read them all. She also read the two 'Magic Half' books by Annie Barrows, which were for a little older age group than Ivy and Bean, and she loved them too.I have emailed Annie a few times over the years,and sent her books to sign for Ivy. She always does, and once she even sent Ivy some Ivy and Bean note paper. When I email and ask her if she can sign a book for Ivy,she always remembers her and asks how she's doing now,and when she signs a book she always writes Ivy a little message.

 These days Ivy has moved on to Annie Barrows' books for adults.  "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society", which Annie Barrows finished after her aunt, Mary Ann Shaffer, passed away before completing,is one of Ivy's favourite books. I highly recommend it too. Annie's latest book was "The Truth According to Us",which she kindly signed and sent back to Ivy. Nice lady.