History Characters / AmericanGirlsCollection

* ButNotTooBlack: Early concept art of Evette shows her having darker skin, brown eyes and dark brown hair; she was later changed to a medium skin-tone, gray eyes and dark blonde hair.

* TownGirls: Makena is very feminine while Maritza is very masculine; Evette leans more towards feminine than neutral.

* DissensionRemorse: In ''Tenney in the Key of Friendship'', Tenney and Jaya get into argument over Tenney always rehearsing while Jaya was failing on making enough money for the book drive in order to rebuild her cousin's school due to the fact that her whole town was ravaged due to a storm. Tenney feels hurt after the argument. However, she and Jaya soon apologize to each other and make up. Tenney also makes up with Logan, whom she appeared to not get along with too well at first.

* FeudEpisode: In her second book, she has feuds with both Logan and Jaya, but she eventually makes up with both of them.

* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Tenney is surprisingly slightly similar to Taylor Swift with the light blonde hair and the passion for singing and country music.

* ShoutOut: In the second book, Tenney tells Logan that she likes singer-songwriters, such as [[spoiler: Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, and Taylor Swift!]]

* TroubledProduction: It's basically an open secret at this point that Tenney was supposed to be the 2017 Girl of the Year, but following complaints about the lack of diversity in the line, she was swiftly relegated to a new Contemporary line and one of the Truly Me dolls was turned into Gabriela. There are photos that surfaced online for a Tenney movie that was cancelled, likely to keep people from asking why the new white character got one while the black Girl of the Year didn't. There were also rumors of a Jaya doll that was supposed to be produced.

* IntercontinuityCrossover: The stopmotion videos, as well as several promotional materials, include Kira (the 2021 Girl of the Year) for no stated reason.

* ShoutOut: In the second book, Tenney tells Logan that she likes singer-songwriters, such as Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, and drum roll...Taylor Swift!

* IntercontinuityCrossover: The stopmotion videos, as well as several promotional materials, include Kira with no stated reason.

* ShoutOut: Makena's Aunt Belinda is friends with the founder of Harlem Fashion Row. Three of the designers created limited outfits for the characters.

* {{Profiling}}: The Williams's new neighbor sees Makena and Amari trying to get into their house after locking themselves out and assumes they must be robbers and calls the police. While one of the officers realizes they're just children, the other continues pointing a gun at them and threatening them.
--> ''"I rolled over and pressed the pillow around my ears, but Mom’s question was like a song I couldn’t get out of my head. Couldn’t he see that they’re children? Couldn’t he see?"''
--> ''"No, Mom! I wanted to scream. That’s the problem. He couldn’t see that we’re real people, with real names and lives and feelings. All he could see was that we’re Black. I cried sad and mad tears, because none of it made any sense."''

* TextileWorkIsFeminine: Makena is a little fashion designer and influencer.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Makena is the fashionable girly girl to Maritza's sporty tomboy. Evette is more feminine than Maritza but not extremely so in comparison to Makena.

* ButNotTooBlack: Early concept art of Evette shows her having darker skin, brown eyes and brown hair; she was later changed to a medium skin-tone, gray eyes and blonde hair.
* ChildOfTwoWorlds: Evette's paternal grandmother and maternal grandmother hate each other, and haven't interacted since her parents' wedding. She goes out of her way to fix this.

* MakeupIsEvil: Evette is scared away from Ashlyn's new friend Gia after seeing her with "too much eyeliner." This is later subverted as Evette realizes Gia is actually fun to be around.

* RacistGrandma: Evette's paternal grandmother didn't want her son's wedding to be held in his wife's neighborhood, because she saw it as dangerous. This caused a rift between her and her daughter-in-law's family. Evette later confronts her about it and explains that she had made a racist assumption, and they work to mend the rift.
* SunnySunflowerDisposition: Evette's favorite flowers are sunflowers, and she herself is very cheerful and bright. Slightly subverted with Gran-E's sunflower swimsuit representing her childhood trauma.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: While Makena is girly and fashionable and Maritza is tomboyish and sporty, Evette is in-between. She's definitely not a tomboy like Maritza is, but she's not exactly as girly as Makena either. She just has a feminine Meet Outfit and that's it.

* AdaptationalAngstDowngrade: The very serious and relevant plotline about immigrant rights is completely omitted in the stopmotion, which now focuses on raising money for Violeta's hospitalized family, rather than one threatened by deportation.

* {{Catchphrase}}: "Tu lucha es mi lucha." Your fight is my fight.
* CoolUncle: Maritza's deceased aunt.

* PassionateSportsGirl: Mainly about Soccer, but she's also known as a star racer.

[[folder: Tenney Grant]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tenneylogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Tenney on her first book cover.]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Logan Everett]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/loganandtenneylogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Logan and Tenney on the cover of ''Tenney's Journal.'']]

* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: To Tenney.

* DeadpanSnarker: Against Tenney.

* EmoTeen: Logan is actually the oldest of the American Girl dolls at fourteen.

* HiddenDepths: The stereotypical bad boy with a heart of gold.

* TheLancer: To Tenney.

* TroubledTeen: Due to his father rarely being around.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/suzieyang.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Z on her first book cover.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:The three ''World By Us'' girls.]]
* IntercontinuityCrossover: The stopmotion videos, as well as several promotional materials, include Kira for... some reason.
* SimultaneousArcs: Makena and Evette's books take place at the same time.
* TomboyandGirlyGirl: Makena is the fashionable girly girl to Maritza's sporty tomboy. Evette isn't as girly as Makena, but she's definitely not a tomboy like Maritza. She just has a very feminine Meet Outfit.

[[quoteright:329:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/makenalogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:329:Makena Williams.]]
* BigLittleSister: Amari is illustrated as being taller than Makena.

* ButterflyOfTransformation: Makena says directly, "I like wearing butterflies because they remind me that though change can be difficult, it can lead to something beautiful."
* CoolUncle: her uncle Alex, who runs a food truck, and her Auntie Bling, who shares Makena's passion for fashion.
* CostumeEvolution: She wears her meet outfit early in the book, though without words decorating the shirt. She later paints on the words "See Me, Hear Me, Know Me" herself. She then wears the shirt with a Kenyan kente skirt to represent her pride in her heritage.

[[quoteright:348:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/evettelogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:348:Evette Peeters.]]

* YellowEarthGreenEarth: Evette's color pallette is mainly green, though her interest in sunflowers brings a bit of yellow to attention.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/maritzalogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Maritza Ochoa.]]

!World By Us (2021)

This is a character sheet for the Literature/AmericanGirlsCollection. Organized by time period.

!Historical Characters

[[folder: Kaya (1764)]]
!! Kaya'aton'my (Kaya)
[[quoteright:247:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kayalogo.jpg]]

* ActionGirl: Kaya is a very active young girl, fitting with an outdoor lifestyle.
* AllGirlsLikePonies: Kaya loves her horse, Steps High, to the point of endangering her own life to save her. She ends the series with both Steps High and the Appaloosa's colt, Steps High.
* AnimalLover: Owns two horses and a wild dog, which she adopted after befriending the dog's mother. Her collection also includes a bear, deer and rabbit.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Her twin brothers, Wing Feather and Sparrow.
* BadassNative: Swan Circling, and Kaya to an extent.
* BittersweetEnding: A lot of her books end this way, especially following ''Kaya's Escape,'' where she loses her horse and sister. Especially including her mystery, ''The Silent Stranger'' which is set at the end of her story arc, [[spoiler:where she gives up her dog, Tatlo, to a woman who needs him more, and is told she is grown up enough to search for her wyakin.]]
* BraidsBeadsAndBuckskins: The only Native American doll, Kaya, is set in 1764. Guess what she wears.
* BraidsOfAction: Her default hairstyle, considering that she's the [[TokenMinority single Native American]] character in the line. Hair in two braids is the traditional hairstyle of the Nimiipuu.
* CanineCompanion: Tatlo.
* CharacterDevelopment: Kaya learns to be less impulsive and more responsible. At the same time, Two Hawks learns to be more respectful and careful.
* CommonTongue: Completely true and accurate to the time period, the different nations Kaya encounters each have their own language, but those who trade often use a shared sign language. This is how she communicates with Two Hawks (prior to him learning Nimiipuutímt) and Hawk Rising.
* CoolHorse: Her pride and joy, Steps High.
* DamselOutOfDistress: When captured by enemy raiders, she manages to escape and make her way back home with another prisoner.
* DeadGuyJunior: After [[spoiler:Swan Circling dies, Kaya is given her name—the greatest gift a Nez Perce can give. She makes it her goal to grow into the name (she's called Kaya throughout the rest of the series).]]
* EmbarrassingNickname: Her rash decision-making in ''Meet Kaya'' earn her the nickname "Magpie" among the villagers.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: She cares greatly for animals, [[AllGirlsLikePonies especially horses]].
%% * [[ABoyAndHisX A Girl and Her Horse]]: With her Appaloosa mare, Steps High. %% Add more context to describe their relationship and what effect it has on them. %%
* HeroesLoveDogs: Kaya befriends a wild dog enough that the wild dog trusts her with her puppies, and eventually leaves them with Kaya's tribe. One of them, named Tatlo, becomes Kaya's close companion.
* HorsebackHeroism: Rides her horse and horse's colt out of a forest fire.
* HotBlooded: Kaya often acts before she thinks, which gets her into trouble several times through the series.
* IChooseToStay: [[spoiler:Speaking Rain chooses to remain with White Braids's village.]]
* LanguageBarrier: Between Kaya and Two Hawks in the second and third books, and Hawk Rising in ''The Silent Stranger.''
* MadeASlave: After being kidnapped in a horse raid, this happens to Kaya and Speaking Rain.
* MeaningfulName: Kaya'aton'my means "She who arranges rocks." Her mother named her that after seeing a woman doing such while Kaya was being born, and she wished that Kaya would have the same patience and quiet strength as that woman.
* MeaningfulRename: When [[spoiler:Swan Circling dies, she gifts Kaya her saddle, as well as her name for when she is ready for it. Kaya vows that in the future she will be worthy of her hero's name.]]
* NewFriendEnvy: In the short story ''Kaya and the River Girl,'' Kaya becomes insanely jealous of Wishram girl Spotted Owl after her sister, Speaking Rain, befriends her.
* ObnoxiousInLaws: Brown Deer is constantly anxious about what Cut Cheek's aunt thinks of her, and believes that she isn't good enough to impress her.
* OnceDoneNeverForgotten: After Kaya's selfishness gets her and all the other children switched, with Whipwoman saying that a selfish magpie would have taken better care of her brothers that she did, they start calling her Magpie. To make Kaya feel better, her grandmother Aalah shares with her a story from her own childhood about being nicknamed Finger Cakes for stealing finger cakes from her big brother's shoulder bag. She adds that even in her old age, her friends still sometimes teasingly call her Finger Cakes.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: Kaya's full name is Kaya'aton'my (Nez Perce for "she who arranges rocks"), but in-story and in the doll line, she is only ever referred to as "Kaya". [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] on a meta level for marketing purposes, as the target audience is young girls who wouldn't be expected to be able to remember and pronounce a five-syllable name all the time.
* OutdoorsyGal: Loves exploring the wilderness, providing the illustrations with SceneryPorn.
* ThePlague: Kaya's paternal grandmother ("Aalah") shows Kaya and her sister Brown Deer the scars she has on her face from smallpox, warning them that though they got horses from the white traders, they also got a disease that wiped out half their village.
* PuppyLove: Implied in ''Kaya Shows the Way.''
-->''Speaking Rain leaned close. "He said that when he was a young, he could play love songs well because he got so much practice!" she whispered with a smile. "He says that Two Hawks will be old enough to serenade the girls as he once did."''
-->''Kaya studied her friend. He was no longer the angry, stubborn, skinny boy who'd crossed the Buffalo Trail with her. He was taller, his shoulders were broader, and his dark eyes were clear and bright. She realized with surprise that someday he would be a handsome young man. She wanted to tell him that she liked the tune he played, but suddenly she was shy.''
* RedOniBlueOni: Kaya (an outgoing, hot-blooded {{OutdoorsyGal}}) and Blue Oni Speaking Rain (a quiet, reserved and blind girl who initially depends on Kaya for protection).
* RejectedMarriageProposal: Jumps Back to Brown Deer.
* RiteOfPassage: Kaya's MeaningfulRename in her third book.
* ShownTheirWork: Of all the American Girl dolls, Kaya is the only doll with a closed mouth, because showing one's teeth is considered offensive to Nez Perce.
* SmallNameBigEgo: Kaya is prone to boast or brag to seem important.
* TakeAThirdOption: [[spoiler:When Kaya finds Speaking Rain again, she's been adopted by White Braids, whom she vows not to leave. After Kaya gets over being upset about it, she suggests that Speaking Rain spend part of the year with each family. It works.]]
* Tomboy: She is pretty much the most tomboyish American Girl historical character. There is really nothing "girly" or feminine about her. She is very active, adventurous, and outgoing.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The tomboy to Speaking Rain's girly girl.

[[folder: Felicity (1774)]]
!! Felicity Merriman
[[quoteright:268:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/felicitylogo.jpg]]

* AbsentAnimalCompanion: She gets a lamb in her birthday book, who proceeds to never show up again.
* AffectionateNickname: Her family call her "Lissie".
* AllGirlsLikePonies: Has a special fondness for Penny, a pony who was under the possession of [[GrumpyOldMan Jiggy Nye]].
* AllLovingHero: Felicity starts her story desperate to save an abused horse, and quickly becomes friends with people outside of her political sphere. She even [[spoiler:eventually helps redeem Jiggy Nye.]]
* UsefulNotes/TheAmericanRevolution: Her stories are set in the year 1775, at the heart of the Revolutionary War.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Her sister, Nan, is much more proper than her. In the film she seems to have a habit of tattling on Felicity's more unladylike behaviors.
* CheerfulChild: Known as the "merriest girl in Virginia".
* ChildishOlderSibling: The oldest of four, as well as the most impulsive and rebellious. She is very protective of her siblings in the short stories, though.
* ConflictingLoyalty: With her grandfather as a Loyalist and her father as a Patriot. This also becomes an issue after her best friend, Elizabeth's, father is jailed for being a Loyalist.
* CoolHorse: Penny.
* DaddysGirl: She seems to be closer to her father, or at least more "her father's daughter". However, the series goes out of its way to make it clear how much Felicity loves her mother, and to detail [[SilkHidingSteel the important lessons]] her mother has to teach her.
* DancesAndBalls: Felicity gets an invite to a very important ball, and is extremely excited to go.
* TheDefroster: To Elizabeth, and a little bit [[spoiler:to Jiggy Nye in the last book.]]
* FatalFlaw: Her impulsiveness.
* FeminineMotherTomboyishDaughter: Her mother is very content to sew, cook, and take care of children. Felicity, not so much.
* FieryRedhead: Feisty, headstrong, and patriotic; though mostly very cheerful while impatient.
* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: The foolish to Nan's responsible.
* ForbiddenFriendship: Lowkey with Elizabeth, especially as the war goes on.
* AFriendInNeed: When Elizabeth's father is jailed.
* FriendshipSong: In ''Circle of Friends,'' with "Is There Room In The Heart For Two?"
* GenkiGirl: Very spunky and energetic.
%% * [[ABoyAndHisX A Girl and Her Horse]]: Her beloved horse, Penny.
* TheHeart: Always the one to do what is right, no matter the cost.
* HorsebackHeroism: Learns to ride Penny in order to free her. When she later gains Penny back, she rides her in order to save Ben.
* HotBlooded: Not that she flies into a rage, but has a rather pronounced fire in her belly.
* InvadedStatesOfAmerica: Accurate to the time period, as America was first revolting over British rule.
* KidHero: In several books, mainly when freeing Penny and saving Ben.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: Ben often acts as a mentor-figure to Felicity, though they do have their arguments.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Felicity: An American Girl Adventure'' (2005)
* MeaningfulName: Known as the Merriest Girl in Virigina, Felicity's first name means "happiness" and derives from the Latin word for "good luck." "Merriman" literally means "Merry man."
* OnlyTheChosenMayRide: Felicity works hard to earn Penny's trust, and soon becomes the only person who the horse will let ride her.
* OppositesAttract: With Elizabeth.
* TheParagon: Shown clearly in her first book when she frees an abused horse despite knowing that, if caught, she would be hanged. She later does anything to stand up for what she believes in, whether that be sneaking out at night, giving Ben a stern talking-to, or fighting to regain her friendship with Elizabeth.
* PetPositiveIdentification: She knows she's found Penny when the horse comes to her.
* PetsAsAPresent: Her lamb in her birthday book.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Her birthday dress is pink.
* PluckyGirl: A very fiesty and warm-hearted heroine.
* PonyTale: Possibly the most "horse girl" of the American Girl dolls, her first book focuses on her taming a scared horse, who eventually finds her again.
* RebelliousSpirit: She's pretty free-spirited and rebellious for the time period.
* RedheadInGreen: In her riding outfit.
* RedOniBlueOni: The outspoken red oni to Elizabeth's reserved blue.
* RetroactiveRecognition: In the film adaptation, she is played by a teenage Creator/ShaileneWoodley, who would later gain fame through ''Literature/TheFaultInOurStars'' and ''Literature/Divergent.''
* SignificantGreenEyedRedhead: She and the doll for the series had both flaming locks and green eyes.
* SouthernGentleman: Her grandfather could be considered an example.
* SymbolicallyBrokenObject: When she breaks her grandfather's guitar, she breaks his trust.
* {{Tomboy}}: Despite her huge dress collection, Felicity is one of the most tomboyish of the American Girl dolls. In the first book she even steals Ben's breeches.
* TenderTomboyishnessFoulFemininity: Felicity is tomboyish and active but actually very sweet and caring and tries very hard to be as ladylike as Elizabeth and Annabelle during Miss Manderly's tea and stitching lessons, while Annabelle is more proper and ladylike but more snobby and arrogant and always envies Felicity for many reasons.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The tomboy to Elizabeth's GirlyGirl. Would rather ride a horse, sit on her roof, and take long walks rather than sit still and do embroidery.
* TomboyishPonytail: Her default hairstyle.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: She's a hotheaded tomboy who loves the outdoors and horseback riding, and usually balks at being forced to do most ladylike things, but she comes to enjoy Miss Manderly's tea and stitching lessons, and is excited to go to the ball at the governor's palace.
* UnusualPetsForUnusualPeople: Is given a pet lamb by her grandfather for her birthday.
* ValuesDissonance: While it's unclear whether Rose and Marcus are the Merriman's slaves or employees (some books call them slaves, others call them servants), Felicity's grandfather ''definitely'' owns a plantation, meaning the Merrimans are slaveowners. This is never brought up or questioned in the story.

!! Elizabeth Cole
[[quoteright:234:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/elizabethlogo.jpg]]

* AdaptationDyeJob: Elizabeth was originally dark-haired, but shortly after Felicity's movie debuted, she was changed to a blonde.
* AmbiguouslyGay: In the short story, ''Felicity's Valentine,'' she writes a rather... [[LoveLetter interesting secret valentine]] to Felicity.
--> ''"I cannot speak aloud, F.M., though you are next to me. / I must attend unto my work very carefully. / But if my heart could sing, it would, and to the tune you play / for you are dear to me (E.C.) on this and every day. [...] If your heart cannot care for me, then please do not reply. / But oh! my dear, if you do care, then hurry, hurry, fly! / And let me know by note or nod that I am dear to you. / And then what happiness there'll be, one heart made of two."''
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Becomes this to Annabelle after Felicity breaks her out of her shell.
* BestFriend: To Felicity.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: She doesn't take to anyone pushing her and Felicity around, neither her sister, nor her sister's prospective fiancee's sister, or even a grown man that was about to assault Felicity.
* ConflictingLoyalty: Is unsure whether or not she can remain friends with Felicity after her father is jailed, as the Merrimans are known patriots.
* EmbarrassingNickname: "Bitsy", by Annabelle.
* ExtremeDoormat: to Annabelle at first although she eventually learns to stand up to her.
* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: While she is very responsible when compared to Felicity, she's definitely the wildchild between her and Annabelle. In ''Very Funny, Elizabeth,'' however, she manages to convince some visiting nobility that ''she'' is the responsible one and Annabelle the fool.
* ForbiddenFriendship: Lowkey with Felicity, especially as the war goes on.
* HairContrastDuo: The official reason her hair color was changed in 2005, to contrast Felicity's better than brown and red would.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: In the books, re-illustrated after the movie, even before then she was a sweet-natured character.
* OppositesAttract: With Felicity.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Her dolls sport a pink PimpedOutDress, possibly as a contrast to tomboyish Felicity.
* ProperLady: Likes playing with lambs, music, and dolls along with being able to sit still longer than her pal.
* TheQuietOne: She's very soft-spoken and demure compared with feisty, sprightly Felicity.
* ShrinkingViolet: Initially, although this character trait slowly seems to fade away.
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: As Felicity's girlier counterpart, Elizabeth has greater interest in textile work, to the extent of helping sew Felicity's blue ball gown.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The more proper and ladylike girly girl to Felicity's active and spunky tomboy. Unlike Felicity, Elizabeth enjoys activities ladies usually do, such as sewing and tea parties.

[[folder: Caroline (1812)]]

!! Caroline Abbott
[[quoteright:258:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/carolinelogo.png]]

* ActionGirl: While not in combat much, Caroline is a talented sailor on both a ship and a skiff, manages to save her father while lost in the wilderness, and nearly set her shipyard on fire to protect the war effort.
* AllLovingHeroine: Gives milk to the kids who've been messing with her cousins' farm all book.
* BoldExplorer: Dreams of being her own captain of a ship.
* CallToAgriculture: A variation; Caroline is sent to her cousins' farm to escape the dangerous warfront and to help them with their struggles. She's not too pleased about it.
* CheeryPink: She is a bright and good-natured young girl who dresses frequently in pink.
* CountryCousin: Lydia, technically. She and her family move to a secluded farm after fleeing Canada.
* DaddysGirl: Big time; Caroline idolizes her father and dreams of following in his footsteps as a captain and shipmaker.
* DangerThinIce: In ''A Surprise for Caroline;'' she and her friends are stuck on thin ice and have to escape.
* DeathGlare: In the first book, when the British sailors drop her off home. It's even illustrated.
* {{Determinator}}: This girl's age, inexperience, her father's capture, nor her gender stand in the way of her achieving her dreams.
* DownOnTheFarm: In her sixth book, ''Changes for Caroline.''
* ElementalMotifs: Water, constantly. All of her interests lie in the ocean (shipbuilding, sailing, ice skating, swimming), and like the sea, she is wild and free.
* GracefulLadiesLikePurple: Caroline's Holiday Gown, despite Caroline being an adventurous and not-so-girly type.
* GreenEyedMonster: Quite often, particularly when her cousin Lydia becomes friends with Rhonda, a girl staying with the Abbotts, leading her to believe that they're excluding her from their activities.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: She has pale blonde curls and a bright, loving heart.
* HairTriggerTemper: Caroline is often very stubborn, sensitive, and easily offended.
* HotBlooded: She is prone to making rash decisions, often times bordering between brave and foolish.
* IconicItem: Her skiff.
* InnocentBlueEyes: The heroine and a NiceGirl with eyes as blue as her heart is pure.
* KidHero: When saving her father.
* KindHeartedCatLover: Affectionate and sweet, with a black cat named [[MeaningfulName Inkpot]].
* LethalChef: Her least favorite chore is baking, which she isn't particularly good at.
* LightHairedSwimmer: All of her main interests are tied with the ocean- mainly sailing, but she also enjoys ice skating.
* MeaningfulName: Of the NamedAfterSomeoneFamous variant. Caroline Abbott dreams of sailing and being a navigator. Caroline Herschel was a brilliant astronomer who lived in the 1810s.
* OutdoorsyGal: Loves going outside to sail, ice skate, sled, and knows her way around the wilderness.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Her primary outfit is basically all pink - but because Caroline is from a period of time when pink was still considered a very masculine colour; as such, it fits perfectly with her tomboyish personality.
* QuirkyCurls: Wavy, curly blond hair to match her tomboyish personality.
* SentimentalSacrifice: Her beloved skiff, while her father is still missing, to prevent the British from invading. Also nearly happens to her beloved shipyard.
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: Her Mother is quick to say that Caroline knows how to embroider and tie knots better than most girls her age.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Caroline is feminine and likes to sew, but also enjoys ice skating, fishing, and sailing, which makes her slightly less girly in comparison to her older cousin, Lydia Livingston, who is into hair styling. Caroline is also less girly in comparison to her friend, Rhonda Hathaway, who is not into ice skating and is just as feminine as Lydia.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: She's usually outspoken, tomboyish, and adventurous, but also loves embroidery and sewing. Also, she wears pink as her Meet Outfit and has a lot of of feminine dresses to match with the 1810s time period. She sure is a good example of a girl with a girly appearance but a tomboyish personality.
* TrueBlueFemininity: Wears blue for all her formal outfits.

[[folder: Josefina (1824)]]

!! Josefina Montoya
[[quoteright:240:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/josefinalogo.jpg]]

* TheBabyOfTheBunch: Josefina, the youngest of her sisters.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Florecita in particular often managed to trigger Josefina's hidden temper.
* BrainyBrunette: Has long dark hair, is clever, and is an expert ''curandera'' (healer) in training.
* CoolAunt: An example that is very close in age to her nephews, there are some stories where she has a close kinship with her oldest nephew and another where the youngest delights in her piano playing; the last main book had her share her holiday candy with them.
** Tia Dolores functions as an enlivening, active, positive woman who encourages her nieces to take some risks and grow as people, even encouraging them to learn how to read and write.
** Tía Magdalena, Josefina's paternal aunt, is a healer is single and who has lived by herself. She dispenses wisdom and comfort, encouraging Josefina to do work that stands apart from that of other girls and learn how to be a healer herself. She even takes the time to joke with Josefina about how stubborn Josefina's father was in his youth.
* CoolOldLady: Tía Magdalena is a good-humored healer who Josefina confides in.
* DanceOfRomance: Josefina first realizes that her father and Tia Dolores are in love when she sees them dance a waltz together at a fiesta.
* DeathByChildbirth: The goat she fears, Florecita, in ''Happy Birthday, Josefina!'' Josefina then proceeds to raise the baby.
* DeterminedHomesteader: She, along with her older sisters, are very strong and hard-working with Josefina being the most determined and optimistic in her goals.
* DownOnTheFarm: Down on the Rancho, technically.
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: In the first book, Josefina asks her sisters what they hope Abuelito's caravan will bring when he comes. Ana hopes for shoes for her two little boys; she's the oldest and already a mother. Clara hopes he brings the plow Papa needs; she is practical-minded. Francisca hopes for some new lace; she's a bit vain and loves beautiful things.
* FamilyThemeNaming: Josefina and her sisters' names all end with the letter "a".
* FearOfThunder: As revealed in ''Josefina Learns a Lesson''; her mother used to use her rebozo to shield her daughter from it.
* FirstLove: This trope is alluded to in Josefina's stories; her mother has died before the series began. A poem about first love was a favorite of hers (even though she could not read). Her literate aunt wrote the poem down at some point (and uses it to encourage Josefina to read); it is implied that the poem is unique for Josefina's late mother through the series as it takes Josefina's father some time to grow to love her aunt, Tia Dolores.
* FluffyTheTerrible: Florecita the mean, bitey goat has a name that means "little flower" in Spanish.
* FourGirlEnsemble: The Montoya sisters: Ana, the oldest and the TeamMom (almost literally, since their mother is dead and she's already married with two kids); Francisca, the beautiful, fashionable, rebellious one; Clara, the diligent, prudent, preachy one; and Josefina, the youngest and the main character, who's chirpy and cheerful and tries to keep the peace between Francisca and Clara when Ana's not around.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: Despite her mother terrorizing her throughout her childhood, Josefina raises Florecita's infant baby.
* GruesomeGoat: Florecita is a mean goat who belongs to Josefina's family, and Josefina is terrified of her. Subverted later with Florecita's daughter, Sombrita.
* HeadTurningBeauty: Josefina's sister Francisca. ''Josefina Saves the Day'' has Patrick O'Toole, an Americano guest of Josefina's grandfather who is fluent in Spanish and an all-around Nice Guy, who forgets to say "Gracias" when Francisca serves drinks. Josefina thinks that Francisca's looks provoke that reaction often, even in men who speak perfect Spanish.
* IconicItem: Her gold cross/garnet necklace, as well as her and Clara's doll, Nina.
* IMissMom: Most of the series focuses on the sisters trying to find happiness and adjust to a new routine after the death of their mother. Tia Dolores helps bring life and energy back to their lives.
* LovableCoward: Josefina does not think of herself as very brave; she is scared of snakes, lightning, and guns to name some things. She is also afraid of confrontation and tries to avoid any conflict or disagreement.
* LoyalAnimalCompanion: Her baby goat, Sombrita, named "shadow" due to her shadowing Josefina everywhere.
* TheMedic: Josefina is often regarded as being a natural healer, and this trait particularly surfaces once she saves her friend Mariana from a venomous snake bite in ''Happy Birthday, Josefina''.
* MementoMacGuffin: A handmade doll named Niña fulfills this purpose in ''Josefina's Surprise.'' She is both a valuable part of a family tradition and a keepsake from the sisters' mother. The tradition is to for the sister with the doll to hand it down to the next youngest sister when she turns eight years old, but Clara breaks the pattern by hanging onto Niña after their mother dies to have something to hold on to from her mother. She completes her Character Development when she realizes she has Mama's skill at colcha embroidery and finally gives the doll to Josefina.
* MiddleNameBasis: Her full name is María Josefina Montoya.
* MissingMom: Her mother passed away a few years before the start of her series.
* MotherlySidePlait: Used perhaps to highlight her nurturing, maternal personality among her siblings.
* NeverLearnedToRead: Josefina’s mother was illiterate and so are Josefina and her sisters. ''Josefina Learns a Lesson'' revolves around the girls learning to read and write.
* NiceGirl: Incredibly sweet and loving.
* TheQuietOne: Not as quiet as her older sister Ana, but she is a very observant and calm child.
* RageBreakingPoint: In ''Meet Josefina,'' Josefina is too timid to stand up to Florecita. But when she sees that Florecita has eaten the bouquet she meant to give to Tía Dolores ''and'' the flowers Mamá planted, she's so furious that she forgets to be afraid. She yanks the flowers straight out of Florecita's mouth, grabs her by the horns, drags her into the pen and slams the door.
* RiteOfPassage: Each Montoya girl gets the family doll the Christmas turns nine. Josefina missed hers due to her Mama dying that year, and is later given the doll by Clara.
* SentimentalHomemadeToy: Josefina's family has a doll named Niña that was made by her deceased mother and is passed down to each daughter at Christmas the year she turns eight, along with a new doll dress. When Christmas comes and Josefina is old enough to receive Niña, her older sister Clara says she can't find the doll, but it turns out Clara is secretly keeping Niña for comfort because she misses their mother so much. Josefina is upset, but Tía Dolores convinces her to let the matter go for the time being and keeps the sisters busy teaching them colcha embroidery to fix the damaged Christmas altar cloth. Finally, on Christmas Eve, Clara feels she is ready to give Niña to Josefina, and even continues the tradition by making her a new doll dress that matches Josefina's. She explains that she thought Niña was all she had left of their mother, but repairing the altar cloth helped her realize she has their mother's gift for embroidery.
* ShrinkingViolet: A painfully shy, timid girl who only fully opens up to her family members and closest friends.
* SingleSexOffspring: Josefina is one of four daughters.
* SpicyLatina: Averted; Josefina is usually regarded as a calm, natural mediator and the most patient among her sisters.
* StayInTheKitchen: Played with. Josefina and her sisters are shocked when Tia Dolores (politely) makes business suggestions to Papa on how to replace the sheep the family lost in a recent flood; Josefina muses on how their father never discussed business with his wife and Tia Dolores's sister and while she admits the idea was good, she isn't sure it was proper of Dolores to interject. Francisca later accuses Dolores of acting like "the patrona" (Spanish for a woman boss).
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: A major plot point in Josefina's Christmas book is the Montoya sisters, with their aunt's help, repairing the Las Posadas altar cloth that their mother made using colcha embroidery. Josefina sees that Clara is especially good at it, [[spoiler:even sewing a new dress for Niña the doll when she's ready to hand her down to Josefina at last.]] In different books, the sisters learn to make dresses of their own and weave blankets from sheep's wool to sell.
* TokenMinority: The one Latina girl among the historical characters in the series.
* ToyBasedCharacterization: Josefina's family has a doll named Niña that was made by her deceased mother and is passed down to each daughter at Christmas the year she turns eight, along with a new doll dress. When Christmas comes and Josefina is old enough to receive Niña, her older sister Clara says she can't find the doll, but it turns out Clara is secretly keeping Niña for comfort because she misses their mother so much. Josefina is upset, but Tía Dolores convinces her to let the matter go for the time being and keeps the sisters busy teaching them colcha embroidery to fix the damaged Christmas altar cloth. Finally, on Christmas Eve, Clara feels she is ready to give Niña to Josefina, and even continues the tradition by making her a new doll dress that matches Josefina's. She explains that she thought Niña was all she had left of their mother, but repairing the altar cloth helped her realize she has their mother's gift for embroidery.
* TranslationTrainWreck: Related. Instead of being illegible because it was bad, the now out-of-print official Spanish editions of Josefina's books were illegible to kids because they were a little too good. The entire story was translated into 1824-accurate Spanish, which may have been accurate and fascinating, but it was the equivalent of printing both dialogue and prose of Felicity's books in 1770s English, and there's a reason AG didn't do ''that.'' Kids got confused and the translation didn't last long on shelves.
* TrueBlueFemininity: Favors blue skirts and is very gentle.
* WideEyedIdealist: She tends to be very hopeful and optimistic and is TheDeterminator and PluckyGirl amongst her sisters
---> "You find the sweet in the sour," said Clara. "The warm in the cold."
---> "The soft in the hard," added Francisca. "And the light in the dark."

[[folder: Cécile and Marie-Grace (1853)]]
!!Both Marie-Grace and Cécile
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mgandcece.png]]

* BeautifulSingingVoice: Cécile is insecure that her singing voice isn't as good as Marie-Grace, but both girls are talented performers.
* EvilOrphanageLady: Subverted, with all of the nuns at the Holy Trinity Orphanage caring for the children being kind and thoughtful.
* FriendToAllChildren: The two of them become extremely close with the children at the orphanage, to the point where they become the favorite caretakers.
* HeartwarmingOrphan: A lot of the kids at the orphanages the girls volunteer at.
* IconicOutfit: Their shared Mardi-Gras dress.
* InterclassFriendship: Cécile is from a respeected, rich family, while Marie-Grace and her father are poor.
* ItsAlwaysMardiGrasInNewOrleans: The first two books take place over Mardi Gras.
* MasqueradeBall: Both girls' first stories feature their arrival at race-segregated Masquerade balls, where they utilize the masks and low lighting to switch and see what each other's dance is like.
* NunsNRosaries: Both girls are very Catholic, as is basically everyone in the city.
* OppositesAttract: Shy Marie-Grace with bold Cécile.
* OrphanageOfLove: Both orphanages that Cécile and Marie-Grace volunteer at.
* ThePlague: Their story takes place over the 1850s New Orleans Yellow Fever epidemic.
* RedOniBlueOni: Somewhat subverted, while Marie-Grace is more prepared to get dirty than Cécile, she is extremely shy. Cécile is more feminine and proper than her, but is also more extroverted and impulsive. Still, both are colored mainly in pink and blue.
* ThinkingTheSameThought: Both Cécile and Marie-Grace think that Lavinia's outfit looks more like a crocodile than a mermaid, though only Cécile says this out loud.
* TrueCompanions: The girls become this by the end of their sixth book.
--> ''"And don't worry– I'll save some adventures just for you, because you're such a good friend. Maman says true friends are forever. We are, aren't we?"''

!! Marie-Grace Gardner
[[quoteright:222:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mariegracelogo.jpg]]

* AffectionateNickname: The kids at the orphanage call her "Marie-the-Great."
* AmazingFreakingGrace: Sings "Amazing Grace" for her uncle and teacher's wedding.
* CanineCompanion: Her dog, Argos.
* CuteClumsyGirl: Very shy and clumsy.
* DoesNotSpeakCommon: Has trouble learning French, which many residents of New Orleans speak.
* DoorstopBaby: An infant is left on her doorstep, inspiring her to become involved with the local orphanage.
* ExtremeDoormat: Marie-Grace is quite shy and often struggles to come up with the will to stand up for herself.
%% * [[ABoyAndHisX A Girl And Her Dog]]: With her beloved Argos, he accompanies her everywhere she goes. %% Add more context to describe their relationship and what effect it has on them. %%
* GoodWithNumbers: Shopping for the household alone have made her excellent in mathematics.
* GirlyGirl: She and Cecile are the girliest historicals.
* HiddenDepths: From Cécile's observations, Marie-Grace hides an adventurous spirit behind a shy demeanor.
* IChooseToStay: When given the opportunity to leave the city and escape the Yellow Fever plague.
* InterracialAdoptionStruggles: Marie-Grace is desperate to get the baby left on her doorstep, Phillip, into the White Orphanage to prevent his mother's master from finding him. She desperately wants her father to adopt the baby, which he can't due to the lack of time he can be at home.
* LanguageBarrier: Marie-Grace is not very good at French, which is unusual among her New Orleans school.
* TheMedic: Marie-Grace often helps her father who is a doctor, and has shown herself to be very good at healing others.
* MissingMom: Her mother has been dead for four years by the start of her first book.
* MovingAwayEnding: Narrowly avoids being sent away from New Orleans; eventually does leave for a temporary time.
* NaiveNewcomer: Marie-Grace, who'd recently moved to New Orleans.
* ParentalAbandonment: Marie-Grace's father is still alive, but he gets so busy with his doctor work that she only sees him in the evenings. At one point he tries to send Marie-Grace to live with her relatives due to the yellow fever epidemic keeping him away from home so often.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Her dress is pink, though this would have been considered more masculine in her time period.
* OppositesAttract: With the bold and theatric Cécile.
* TheQuietOne: Marie is a rather quiet and shy girl.
* RedOniBlueOni: Marie-Grace's blue to Cecile's red. (Despite that Cecile is wearing blue.) Marie-Grace is shy and timid while Cecile is more talkative and outgoing.
* ReplacementSibling: Wanted Phillip to be one for her deceased brother.
* SouthernBelle: An elegant and ladylike girl.
* ShrinkingViolet: she's quiet, modest, and rather shy compared to Cécile, claiming that years of moving and not having a stable home has changed her.
* StayInTheKitchen: The Gardner family's cook Mrs. Curtis [[RefugeInAudacity makes it known to her employer]], Marie-Grace's father, that girls learn all they need to know at home and that schooling fills a girl's head with "useless nonsense".
* StrangerInAFamiliarLand: Marie-Grace lived in New Orleans as a little kid, but doesn't remember it well and feels out-of-place at first.

!! Cécile Rey
[[quoteright:222:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cecilelogo.jpg]]

* AffectionateNickname: CéCé.
* ApatheticStudent: Dislikes her lessons, especially Writing, despite her talent for it.
* AttentionWhore: Unlike her shy friend Marie-Grace, Cécile is characterized as being confident, curious, and loving the limelight.
* TheBeautifulElite: A lovely, high-class girl.
* BigBrotherMentor: She looks up a lot to her elder brother, Armand.
* BigSisterInstinct: Towards Perrine.
* BlueIsCalm: While more impulsive than Marie-Grace, she has a better handle on her emotions.
* BlueIsHeroic: Will do anything for her friends and family.
* ConstantlyCurious: Very investigative.
* CoolBigSis: Armand is her cool big brother, and she becomes a big-sister figure to young orphan Perrine.
* DeathIsASadThing: Is suddenly hit by the permanance of death when her maid dies from the Yellow Fever, and her brother gets sick from the same illness.
* DontThinkFeel: When she realizes she wants to write her own poem rather than recite a famous one.
* AFriendInNeed: Works to keep Marie-Grace in New Orleans, and to help her when their music teacher falls ill.
* GirlyGirl: She and Marie-Grace are the girliest historicals.
* GorgeousPeriodDress: As she's a higher class than Marie-Grace, she tends to get the fancier outfits.
* HomeschooledKids: Has a tutor, opposed to Marie-Grace who goes to an actual academy.
* KindlyHousekeeper: Both Mathilde and Ellen, the family servants.
* LittleMissSnarker: While normally polite, she has some fun snide remarks. Particularly when switching to Marie-Grace's ball, where she calls out Lavinia's poor costume.
* MostWritersAreWriters: Cécile realizes her true passion lies in writing.
* OppositesAttract: With Marie-Grace. She is much more bolder and assertive than the other girl.
* PerformanceArtist: Budding singer and ambitious actress.
* ProperLady: Though she has her moments of quiet rebellion, Cécile is mainly happy to be a caring, feminine rich girl.
* RedOniBlueOni: Cecile's red to Marie-Grace's blue. (Despite that Cecile is wearing blue.) Cecile is more talkative and outgoing while Marie Grace is shy and timid.
* RegalRinglets: Meticulously curled hair to match her background.
* SouthernBelle: A highly educated, ladylike girl.
* SpiritedYoungLady: A proper lady who also hs bold ideas, a desire to travel, and a creative streak. She is also very outspoken, and will directly call out the racist visitors around her.
* TheStoryteller: Cécile wishes to become a stage actress, and shows a talent for storytelling, recitation, and poetry when she volunteers her time at the Holy Trinity Orphanage.
* TakeAThirdOption: Comes up with a way for Marie-Grace to stay in New Orleans without having to stay home alone.
* ThrowingOutTheScript: Cécile abandons the classic poem she was supposed to recite in favor of her own poem, in order for her words to resonate better with the children she is there to support.
* TrueBlueFemininity: Her dress is blue.
* ValuesDissonance: One of the girls in Cécile's social circle is from a slaveowner family, which makes Cécile uncomfortable. In one of the mysteries, she and her brother have to carry around papers to prove that they are free. She and Marie-Grace switch segregated balls at the Masquerade in order to see what's different about them, only to realize that they are exactly the same and there's no real reason for them to be separate.
* WiseBeyondHerYears: Enough that her older brother and her friend can confide in her.

[[folder: Kirsten (1854)]]

!! Kirsten Larson
[[quoteright:243:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kirstenlogo.jpg]]

* AbsentAnimalCompanion: At the end of ''Happy Birthday, Kirsten!,'' Kirsten adopts a kitten that Missy the barn cat abandoned, intending to hand-raise it. However, it never appears in further books.
* BearsAreBadNews: Kirsten and Peter have to face black bears when they try to collect honey from a wild beehive in ''Kirsten Saves the Day.''
* BearyFriendly: At first, when Kirsten and her brother find a bear cub. Quickly inverted when MamaBear arrives.
* BittersweetEnding: ''Meet Kirsten.'' The final chapter shows Kirsten arriving in Minnesota and becoming friends with her cousins. The previous chapter has Kirsten [[spoiler:dealing with the death of her best friend Marta]]. Her next book does the same, as she's learned English and began to settle in to the point of choosing to stay rather than run away, but her new friend Singing Bird has to leave because the settlers have caused a food shortage for the native population (though, if a reader is familiar with the genocide against Native Americans that would occur in Minnesota the following decade, it may be less sad and more just averting InferredHolocaust, at least in sparing a named character).
* BravingTheBlizzard: In ''Kirsten's Surprise.''
* BreakTheCutie: Once her friend Marta passes away from cholera.
* CagedBirdMetaphor: An inverted example in ''Changes for Kirsten:'' After a long, difficult winter during which the Larson cabin burned down, Kirsten's family has managed to save up enough money to purchase the Stewarts' old house. Kirsten is sad that her friends Mary and John Stewart are leaving to follow the Oregon Trail, but she's comforted by a good-bye letter and a bird-in-a-cage optical illusion toy they left for her.
--> Kirsten looked carefully at the little toy. On one side was a picture of a bird cage. On the other side, a bluebird. When Kirsten spun the toy, the bird seemed to fly into the cage. There it was, safe an happy, like Kirsten in her new home. The secret good-bye from Mary and John made her heart even lighter, like a bird fluttering under her ribs.
* CanineCompanion: The family dog, Caro.
* TheChiefsDaughter: Singing Bird's father is noted to be the chief of her village.
* CountryCousin: Kirsten had not even met her uncle's family prior to the series, as they lived on a separate continent. For obvious reasons, they're more suited to farm life.
* CuteKitten: Missy's unnamed kitten that Kirsten adopts.
* DarkerAndEdgier: The pioneer life in the 1800s is not all picnics and swims in the river. Deaths of children are discussed, and in one of the mini-books, a little boy is orphaned, describing how he saw his own mother be crushed under a boulder and slowly die.
* DeathOfAChild: Kirsten’s best friend from Sweden, Marta, who is the same age of nine, dies from cholera in the middle of the journey to the frontier.
* DeathByChildbirth: Kirsten is afraid of losing her mother this way when one of her schoolmates tells her that her own aunt died giving birth. Luckily, her mother survives the birth and her sister is fine.
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: In ''Kirsten Learns a Lesson,'' when Kirsten learns that the nearby Dakota tribe are normal humans like her, and then learns about how terrible their life has become due to the white settlers. She begins to question everyone's fear of them and the treatement they are recieving. The fact that readers know that Singing Bird is doomed to a DownerEnding doesn't make this better.
* DeterminedHomesteader: Like her brothers and cousins, Kirsten is steadfast when problems come up in the series, even braving a blizzard to seek shelter in a cave.
* FishOutOfWater: When she and family first migrate to America.
* ForbiddenFriendship: With Singing Bird, a Native American Girl. While Singing Bird's father doesn't care, Kirsten is terrified of what her family will think; in a short story, Kirsten's proven to be right, as her mother bans her from seeing her friend and only relents when Singing Bird saves one of her children.
* ForegoneConclusion: Poor Singing Bird; the books avoid discussing this directly by having her and her nation leave to search for food before Kirsten can find out what'll happen to them. Only the year after the books take place, the Dakota nations were forcibly relocated towards the Mississippi River as their land was stolen further. Many indigenous people did not survive the journey.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: Loves many animals, even raccoons and baby bears, to her detriment.
* GirlishPigtails: Wears an unusual braided hairstyle and is rarely seen without them hanging loose or unbraided.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Soft hearted and caring along with possessing blonde hair.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Her family owns both a dog and a cat.
* HollywoodCostuming: Bangs were an unpopular style for girls in the 1850s; Kirsten likely has them as the other dolls first released with her, Molly and Samantha, did as well, and it was easier to make similar wigs.
* HouseFire: In ''Changes for Kirsten;'' perhaps metaphorically [[LetThePastBurn letting the past burn]] before they move into a new home.
* AnImmigrantsTale: Much of the series focuses on Kirsten having to adjust to life in America after emigrating from her homeland of Sweden.
* InSeriesNickname: Kirsten's Indian friend, Singing Bird, calls her "Yellow Hair." Technically, "Singing Bird" is also a nickname, as neither girl can pronounce the other's name.
* IntrovertedCatPerson: A shy and culture-shocked girl with several barn kittens.
* KindHeartedCatLover: Ends up adopting one of the barn cat's kittens, and is often pictured in promotional photos holding the baby cats.
* LanguageBarrier: Firstly between her and her classmates, as she only speaks broken English. She eventually learns more and becomes more fluent. She and Speaking Rain also have a barrier, but start learning words in each others' languages as they become friends.
* NaiveNewcomer: In ''Meet Kirsten'' and ''Kirsten Learns a Lesson''.
* NiceGirl: Very loving and kind to others, even animals.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: When Kirsten brings a raccoon into the house, the raccoon ends up setting the home on ''fire.''
* NothingIsTheSameAnymore: Kirsten ends her first book living in a new country, befriending her cousins, and [[spoiler:mourning her best friend]], and she ends her last book [[spoiler:in a new house again after the previous one burned down]].
* OddFriendship: With Singing Bird, a Native American girl from a neighboring tribe.
* PetBabyWildAnimal: Tries to take care of an injured raccoon. It doesn't end well.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Wears a pink bonnet in her default outfit, and has a pink dress for her birthday. She also states that pink is her favorite color.
* ThePioneer: The story is set during the 1850s during the pioneer era.
* PlayingHouse: Her and her cousins play dolls in the barn.
* PluckyGirl: She's very spirited, optimistic, and determined.
* PutOnABus: At the end of ''Kirsten Learns a Lesson,'' Singing Bird and her tribe leave the area because the deer are gone and they have to travel elsewhere to find food. TheBusCameBack in the short story ''Kirsten on the Trail,'' though it's implied to be temporary.
* RepetitiveName: Her older brother, Lars Larson.
* ReplacementGoldfish: Since Kirsten's doll Sari is in the family's trunk and far away for the first half of the series, Kirsten makes a sock doll from an old stocking stuffed with milkweed floss and calls it Little Sari, until she and her father get the trunks in ''Kirsten's Surprise.''
* SettlingtheFrontier: Kirsten's family immigrates to America to settle on a farm in the Minnesota frontier.
* ShoutOut: Kirsten's first poem recitation for school is ''Literature/TheRimeOfTheAncientMariner.''
* ShrinkingViolet: Not acutely shy, but is pretty quiet.
* StayInTheKitchen: Lars's friend John didn't want Kirsten following them on their trapping trip, expecting her to stay home with the "women and children", Lars argues that Kirsten has keen sense for animals and knows her way around a forest along with possessing extra hands to carry the pelts. Kirsten is puzzled by John's objections.
* SternTeacher: Kirsten has Miss Winston, who at first seems to expect her to learn English too quickly. She mellows out when, like many pioneer teachers who boarded with students' families, she comes to live with the Larsons and gets to know Kirsten better.
* StockAnimalName: Kirsten's horse Blackie.
* SurpriseLitterOfPuppies: The barn cat gives birth during Kirsten's birthday book.
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: Kirsten becomes very interested in quiltmaking while trying to make a present for her teacher, not knowing that her and her friends are actually working on ''her'' birthday present.
* ToyBasedCharacterization: When Kirsten's family has to store their things in a warehouse for a few months, one of the things that has to be put away is her doll Sari. When Kirsten misses Sari, she creates a makeshift doll from an old stocking filled with milkweed floss and calls it Little Sari. Besides the dolls, Kirsten and her cousins also have toys made from things in nature, like doll cakes made from dried mud and doll beds made from woven twigs.
* TrueBlueFemininity: Her first dress in America (inherited from Cousin Inger) is a sky blue with a floral print and her summer dress is white with blue vertical lines.
* UndyingLoyalty: Toward her loved ones, particularly her family.
* VirtuousBees: Kirsten and her family begin beekeeping in order to sell honey.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: At the end of ''Happy Birthday, Kirsten!,'' Kirsten adopts a kitten that Missy the barn cat abandoned, intending to hand-raise it. However, it never appears in further books.
* YouCantGoHomeAgain: Sweden is going through a massive famine, and Kirsten's family are traveling across the ocean to another continent, then going far inland, in 1854. Them going back home is practically impossible and they know it. Also implied with Singing Bird's village, who were driven out of their home due to the white settlers.

[[folder: Addy (1864)]]
!! Addy Walker
[[quoteright:233:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/addylogo.jpg]]

* UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar: The time period in which her stories are set in.
* AncestralName: Addy is named after her great-grandmother, Aduke.
* ArcWords: "Freedom's got a cost," the last words said by Uncle Solomon to Addy and her mother before they escape the plantation and flee to freedom in the North. Every step toward making a new life is hard for the Walker family—finding a job, learning to read, searching for their missing family members, and dealing with prejudice from white Philadelphians—but as long as they have each other, they can overcome anything.
* BigBrotherMentor: Her brother, Sam, who she idolizes.
* BittersweetEnding: ''Changes for Addy.'' Yes, Addy's whole family is reunited once more, but Uncle Solomon dies before he can reunite with the Walkers, and Auntie Lula dies a few days after reuniting Esther with the family. Also used in ''Addy Studies Freedom,'' during the death of Lincoln.
* BlueIsHeroic: In her [=BeForever=] dress.
* {{Bookworm}}: Once she learns to read.
* ABoyAGirlAndABabyFamily: With Sam, Addy and Esther.
* BrainyBrunette: Addy is a very intelligent child and good in school; she learns to read and write within months of starting school, catches up to [[AcademicAlphaBitch Harriet's]] level quickly, does well enough to win a spelling bee in her class, and later is invited to take further education at a prestigious school for black children.
* BreakTheCutie: Downplayed, as nothing ever seems to break her for long, but she's understandably dejected when she realizes that racism is still very much alive, even in the supposedly-free North. In one of the tie-in books, she's also quite shaken by the death of Abraham Lincoln.
* ButNotTooBlack: Averted. [[http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2016/09/the_making_of_addy_walker_american_girl_s_first_black_doll.html One article]] shares that some executives first wanted to give Addy straighter hair to make it "easier" for white girls unaccustomed to textured hair to play with. The advisory board finally said that while some children born into slavery did have straight hair and other "white" features, giving these to the character would necessitate explaining [[ChildByRape exactly why that was]]. The matter was promptly dropped.
* CheeryPink: Once gaining her freedom, Addy is given a dress from Miss Caroline; prior to the [=BeForever=] revamp, said dress was pink and used in all promotional materials.
* ChekhovsClassroom: Early in the first book, Addy remembers an incident where she screamed and cried as Sam was being whipped by their master. Afterward, she was upset and yelled at her parents that they didn't care about Sam because they weren't crying when it happened. Poppa gently tells her that just because they didn't cry, it didn't mean they weren't upset—sometimes, they have to keep their emotions on the inside. Later, Addy has to do this while she's escaping with her mother and she finds herself in the middle of a Confederate soldiers' camp. Because it's nighttime and she's wearing boy's clothing, a soldier notices her but just thinks she's one of their slaves and tells her to bring water. Despite being terrified, she holds it in and brings him the water while trying not to give away that she's not who he thinks she is. She patiently waits until he falls asleep, and walks toward the edge of the camp, knowing she can't run (even though she wants to) or it would look suspicious. Once she's out of their sight, she makes it back to her mother, who tells her she saw everything and how proud she is of her.
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Used with Esther in the stories following the main series.
* ConstantlyCurious: Addy is very questioning of the status quo and also tends to leap before she looks; so far, having a curious outlook on things and wanting to surge ahead.
* CoolTeacher: Addy's teacher Miss Dunn is one. She's a black female teacher, unusual for her time, even in the North. What makes her cooler is that she's quite perceptive and progressive for her time. For example, she's understanding when it comes to the negative impact slavery has had on educational opportunities for the black community, she never shames Addy for poor reading skills as some teachers would, and she catches on to Harriet Davis' mean girl agenda quickly.
* DarkerAndEdgier: Her first book is much darker than other American Girl books, even as other ones don't shy away from history. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]], due to the subject matter.
* DeadGuyJunior: Named after her paternal great-grandmother, Aduke, who was stolen from Africa.
--> ''“My great-grandma must have been brave to come across the water all alone. I’m gonna be brave just like she was,” Addy said.''
-->''“She was brave, Addy,” Momma answered, “and you brave, too. But there’s one thing different about you and your great-grandma. Her journey ended in slavery. Yours, girl, is taking you to freedom.”''
* DeathIsASadThing: In ''Changes for Addy,'' with her aunt and uncle.
* DoesntKnowTheirOwnBirthday: Due to being born enslaved, Addy doesn't know her real birthday. She later picks April 9, the date that they receieved news the Civil War was over.
* DontSplitUsUp: Addy is devastated when she's separated from both of her siblings within a short period of time. There's nothing she can really do about it, though; she's helpless to prevent her brother from being sold to another master, and she and her mother can't realistically take Addy's baby sister with them when they run away.
* EmotionsVsStoicism: Before the events of ''Meet Addy,'' Sam had run away and was caught and was whipped in front of his family. Addy was bawling while her parents looked on with barely a trace of emotion. She tells them how upsetting it was to see they didn't look sad, and her father told her that it's only because they aren't free to express their emotions, and it's only on the inside that they're free.
* FluffyFashionFeathers: Addy's snood from her birthday outfit has some.
* ForceFeeding: In the first book, Addy is worming tobacco plants, gets distracted, and misses a tobacco worm; an overseer finds it and makes Addy eat it.
* AFriendInNeed: When Sarah is unable to go to school, Addy volunteers to help teach her.
* GirlishPigtails: Has her hair in two braids at the beginning of ''Addy Saves the Day.''
* GrowingUpSucks: Lowkey in ''Addy's Summer Place.''
* HonoraryUncle: Uncle Solomon and Auntie Lula, older folks on Master Stevens' plantation who are said to have helped parents Ben and Ruth Walker even before Sam, Addy, and Esther were born. Ruth leaves Esther in their care, and they take it upon themselves to follow her and Addy to freedom and reunite Esther with her family.
* IconicItem: Her cowrie shell, a family keepsake passed down from her great-grandmother. It's strung on one of her brother's old shoelaces and worn as a necklace to remind her of her family.
* IDieFree: Upon hearing that the Emancipation Proclamation was signed, Solomon strutted around his and Lula's cabin, then got down on his knees and thanked God. He helped Lula bring Esther to freedom and died after they reached the last freedman camp on their way to Philadelphia.
* IJustWantToBeFree: When she was a slave, she dreamed of a life where her family lived in a big house while she wore different pretty dresses and did her schooling.
* InnocenceLost: Happens early to Addy, due to being born enslaved.
* InspiringSermon: In ''Addy's Surprise,'' Reverend Drake gives a sermon about how the freedmen escaping slavery and coming to the North need help, and how their fellow people can help them by donating money or welcoming them to the pier. Addy has a dime that she considers using to buy a scarf as a Christmas present for Momma, but ultimately donates it to a freedmen's fund.
* ItWasAGift: Before Addy and her mother escape, Uncle Solomon gives her a half dime along with the words, "Freedom's got a cost." Later, she considers using it to buy a scarf as a Christmas present for her mother, but ultimately she ends up donating it to a freedmen's fund to help newly freed slaves.
* KidHero: Shows remarkable bravery when escaping slavery, even saving her mother when they need to swim and sneak past Confederate soldiers. She also later saves heer church's fundraising box from a thief.
* MeaningfulEcho: In the first book, Addy's brother Sam teaches her a riddle, so in ''Saves the Day,'' when she repeats it and he responds, she knows she's found him.
* MeaningfulName: Her actual first name, Aduke.
--> ''"“Your great-grandma’s name was Aduke. That name got a meaning where she come from. It means ‘much loved.’ I saved her name for you, Addy.”''
* MortonsFork: When Addy is asleep, she hears her parents talking about the possibility of fleeing the plantation and escaping to the North. There's no easy choice—if they get caught, they'll likely be sold to different plantations, but if they wait too long, they might be sold and separated anyway. When Poppa and Sam are unexpectedly sold, Momma decides to run and take Addy with her, but they have no choice but to leave baby Esther behind with Auntie Lula and Uncle Solomon because her crying might get them caught by slave catchers. Her only consolation is that their master is unlikely to sell Esther because he can't make any money selling a baby, but even that doesn't guarantee Esther's safety.
* NeverLearnedToRead: Due to her enslavement. She learns quickly once she's escaped.
* NiceGirl: Sweet, friendly, and good hearted.
* NightSwimEqualsDeath: Subverted, as though they are terrified, her and Momma have to cross a river in order to escape slavecatchers at night.
* PassFail: Is behind Addy's family's troubles in "Shadows on Society Hill"; Uncle Solomon's niece was passing as white and feared Addy and her family would expose her. Addy ultimately does do this but in defending her family rather than any malice and a part of her understands why the woman did it; the "Looking Back" section discusses this phenomenon and its aftereffects.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Her first dress in freedom is a cinnamon pink calico with white pinstripes, and she loved it so much.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: ''Addy Learns a Lesson'' has Sarah drift away from Addy when the latter is taken in by Harriet's tricks. They patch things up, though.
* PluckyGirl: Addy is a very brave and loving child, willing to risk her safety for the safety of others.
* SaintlyChurch: Trinity A.M.E. Church, whose members are active in helping newly freed slaves like Addy and her mother build lives in Philadelphia.
* SignificantBirthDate: Addy chooses April 9, the end of the Civil War, for her birthday.
* SoProudOfYou: In ''Addy's Surprise,'' Poppa starts to shed TearsOfJoy when he finds out that Addy has learned to read.
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: Addy's mother works as a seamstress in a dress shop. Addy herself learns how to sew hems and [[spoiler:ends up making a scarf to give to her mother as a Christmas present]].
* TokenBlack: Among the original American Girl dolls; it would take over ten years for Cécile, the next black character doll, to be introduced.
* ToxicFriendInfluence: Harriet is a mean girl to Addy, and discourages her from making friends with NiceGirl Sarah.
* ToyBasedCharacterization: Addy has owned two rag dolls, both made by her mother. The first, Janie, was made when she and her family lived in slavery. When she's forced to leave her baby sister Esther behind as she escapes, she gives her Janie to hold on to until they're together again. Later, when she and her mother are living in freedom, her mother makes her another doll for Christmas, this one wearing a beautiful purple dress and little hoop earrings, and stuffed with beans. Addy happily calls her Ida Bean. Her love for both dolls is a reflection of her love for her family.
** Also used with baby Esther; when they reunite and Addy cries, Esther gives her the doll to cheer her up, echoing how Addy gave it to her first.
* TragicDropout: Sarah, who loves learning but has to drop out due to her family's economic status.
* TrueBlueFemininity: Her blue school dress that Momma made for her; also used for her [=BeForever=] meet outfit.
* WaterIsWomanly: In the first book, she knows how to swim and is able to use this to save her and Momma; as such, the water is associated with her freedom.
* WaterTriggeredChange: In ''Addy's Summer Place,'' Addy decides she doesn't want to be grown up yet and goes swimming, ruining her hair.
* WhiteSheep: Despite racism and slavery being the norm in 1864, the Walkers can find several white people who treat them kindly or help them, including an old woman who shelters Addy and Momma during their escape, Mrs. Ford the dress shop owner who employs Momma, a shopkeeper in Philadelphia named Mr. Delmonte who is friendly to Addy, and a carpenter willing to hire Poppa despite his skin color.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Samantha (1904)]]

!! Samantha Parkington
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/samanthalogo.png]]

* AdaptedOut: Agatha and Agnes, Hawkins the butler, and Elsa the maid. Agatha's name is used for Alice, a minor character from a short story. Admiral Beemis is mentioned by [[TheGhost never seen]]. Nellie's mother suffers DeathByAdaptation; in the books, she was alive until ''Changes for Samantha,'' while in the movie, she's already dead before Nellie and Samantha meet for the first time.
* AdaptationalNiceGuy: In ''Changes for Samantha,'' Aunt Cornelia and Uncle Gard's maid is antagonistic with Samantha and is the one who eventually goes snooping to find out about Nellie and her sisters. In Samantha's movie, she is much friendlier, is downright ''indignant'' on Samantha's behalf when Miss Frouchy accuses her of stealing, and is happy for Samantha when her speech is chosen for the school assembly; she also has nothing to do with the discovery of Nellie and her sisters, as in the adaptation this comes about due to unanticipated circumstances (namely Bridget becoming seriously ill to the point where Samantha has to come clean in order to get Bridget medical attention) rather than a deliberate act.
* AffectionateNickname: Samantha's Uncle Gard calls her "Sam."
* AllLovingHero: A compassionate and kind girl who speaks up for the impoverished and willingly takes Nellie under her wing as she befriends her and teaches her how to read.
* AlwaysIdenticalTwins: Agnes and Agatha Pitt, who are also TricksterTwins.
* AmbiguouslyChristian: No real mention of religion is made in the books, aside from Samantha partaking in Christmas. She and Nellie both attend Church in the film.
* [[BigBrotherInstinct Big Sister Instinct]]: When she hides the O'Malleys in her attic, she starts acting sisterly towards Bridget and Jenny.
* BirthdayPartyGoesWrong: When Eddie Ryland puts salt in her ice cream.
* TheBully: Eddie Ryland is Samantha’s aggressive next door neighbor who merely exists to be a source of annoyance to Sam.
* CallForward: In Samantha's My Journey book, ''The Lilac Tunnel,'' which is set the summer before her Meet book, Uncle Gard tells her that [[spoiler:Grandmary would never send her away if she finally married the Admiral, and if she did, Gard would have to go with Samantha. In the series itself, Grandmary finally does accept the Admiral's latest proposal and Uncle Gard takes Samantha in]].
* CanineCompanion: While in the books, Jip is Aunt Cornelia's dog, he is included in Samantha's set as her pet.
* CatchYourDeathOfCold: Samantha gets stuck in long underwear most of the time to prevent this.
* CharacterDevelopment: A product of the Victorian Era, Grandmary believes that a lady’s place is at home or in high society. She is raising her orphaned granddaughter to be ProperLady, with sewing lessons and everything. She doesn’t think women should vote or make their own money. However, in “Happy Birthday, Samantha!”, [[spoiler: Grandmary witnesses her new daughter-in-law advocating for women’s sufferage in the park, and is deeply moved by her speech, changing her mind and supporting votes for women.]]
* CompanionCube: Her beloved doll Lydia, named after her deceased mother; later her pink-clad Nutcracker doll.
* CoolBigSis: To Bridget and Jenny.
* CoolTeacher: Samantha's teacher Miss Stevens assists Samantha when she asks for take home school materials to help teach Nellie, who is struggling under a SternTeacher and being a grade behind in public school.
* CoolToy: Samantha really wants a special doll that looks a lot like Lydia, the doll she received as a gift in the first book but gave to Nellie as a sign of friendship. While the doll doesn't move or do anything cool, she has a beautiful dress and comes with a tiny wooden nutcracker. Cornelia, Uncle Gard's then-fiancée, gives Samantha the doll at the end.
* CoolUncle: Views her Uncle Gardner as one.
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Since this is 1904, women still aren’t permitted to vote politically. Aunt Cornelia is fighting to change that. Grandmary thinks that a woman’s place is at home and not at the box office, and shakes her head at the suffragettes for making “spectacles of themselves”. [[spoiler:However, she has a change of heart when she sees Cornelia making a speech for women’s suffrage in the park.]]
* {{Determinator}}: Once Sam gets it into her head to do something from [[spoiler: sneaking out of the house to find out where Jessie went to starting a school to help Nellie]], it's hard to stop her.
* TheEdwardianEra: The time period in which her story takes place.
* EveryProperLadyShouldCurtsey: Since this is the Victorian Era, Samantha is expected to curtsey before her elders.
* FashionHurts: Grandmary's rule for Samantha was to wear long underwear from September to June and is considered passe by Agnes and Agatha.
* ForbiddenFriendship: Samantha is looked at oddly for befriending Nellie, a servant, although no one with the actual authority to forbid it seems to mind, though they warn her not to get too close.
* GirlyGirlWithATomboyStreak: Samantha is usually very prim and proper, and has a love for fashion and dresses. However, she has an action side for climbing trees.
* GirlsLoveStuffedAnimals: Samantha's teddy bear, which was originally the "pet" in her birthday collection.
* GoKartingWithBowser: Samantha usually doesn't get along with Edith, a rude and snobby girl in her class. However, a later book has Edith attending Samantha's birthday party, and the two girls show no animosity towards one another.
* HairContrastDuo: Her dark brown hair with Nellie's light strawberry blonde.
* HappilyAdopted: By her grandmother prior to the series, then her Uncle Gardner and Aunt Cornelia as of ''Changes for Samantha''.
* HeartwarmingOrphan: For her grandmother and uncle.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Her, Agnes and Agatha immediately love Aunt Cornelia's puppy.
* IconicItem: Her heart-locket, though her Lydia doll could count for both her and Nellie.
* InterclassFriendship: Samantha, an upper-class girl, and Nellie, a poor immigrant girl. Some of Samantha's peers sneer at her for being friends with a servant girl, but she couldn't care less.
* KidHero: When she breaks Nellie and her sisters out of an abusive orphanage and hides them in her attic.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Samantha: An American Girl Holiday'' (2003).
* LonelyRichKid: Possibly implied in the main series - Samantha is not frequently shown hanging out/playing with girls of her social class outside of school, even when Nellie enters her life, and it seems the guests invited to Samantha's birthday party (not counting Agnes and Agatha) was done out of social obligation. Outright stated so in Samantha's My Journey book (which is set during summer), where Samantha tells the reader insert she feels Grandmary's large house has too much space and it makes her feel lonely, especially when school's out.
* LuddWasRight: Samantha's grandmother believes this, anyway.
* MyBelovedSmother: Has the equivalent of one in her grandmother, who raised her after she was orphaned at a young age.
* Nephewism: First raised by her grandmother, then adopted by her uncle.
* NiceGirl: A very sweet and generous girl who possesses a strong sense of justice.
* NoCommunitiesWereHarmed: Samantha's Mount Bedford is a fusion of Bedford and Mount Kisco, New York.
* OffToBoardingSchool: Samantha fears this will happen to her in one of the paths of her My Journey book. [[spoiler:Actually, the conversation she overheard was about Agnes and Agatha going to boarding school. She later goes to a boarding school as a teenager in the ''Titanic'' bonus book, but she seems much happier going with her new sisters]].
* OrphansPlotTrinket: Samantha’s locket with her parents’ picture seems like a perfect fit, but since she still has other family, just not parents, and a warm and loving home, and she knows how her parents died, it serves no real plot significance. However, in the fourth book, Samantha finds a sketchbook her mother made of the three of them—three-year-old Samantha and her mother and father—having vacation on Teardrop Island, it inspires her to journey to Teardrop Island in the hope of jogging any lost memories of her parents.
* OutdoorsyGal: The first time we see Samantha, she is falling out of a tree.
* ParentalAbandonment: Her parents died when she was a toddler.
* ParentalSubstitute: Samantha is raised first by her grandmother and then her aunt and uncle, since her parents died when she was five. In the movies, Uncle Gard seems to be this for her to some degree even before she goes to live with him.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Samantha's room at Grandmary's mansion is decorated in pink, her white nightgown has a pink ribbon trim, and her birthday outfit is a white and pink vertical pin striped dress.
* PluckyGirl: A sweet girl who nevertheless is quick-thinking, intensely curious, and TheHeart of her family.
* PrettyInMink: Some of her outfits, most notably the white fur hat with a puffball at the top and white fur muff she wears in ''Changes for Samantha''.
* PrizedPossessionGiveaway: In ''Meet Samantha,'' Samantha begs Grandmary to buy her an expensive doll she saw in town, and agrees to work really hard at her various chores to earn the doll, which she does. She even [[DeadGuyJunior names the doll after her mother Lydia, who died when she was five in an accident.]] When her impoverished new friend Nellie has to go back to the city and is scared she will have to work in a NightmarishFactory again, [[SpoiledSweet Samantha gives Nellie the doll]], knowing Nellie loves it and it will comfort her. Extra heartwarming when considering that this is the first and likely only doll Nellie would've ever known due to her family's poverty.
* ProperLady: Grandmary could be the poster woman for this trope. She also expects Samantha to act like one as well, even though she’s only nine. It’s justified, since Grandmary grew up in the early to mid-Victorian Era, and even by the time she’s caring for Samantha, society is still pretty strict on proper behavior, even for young girls.
* PursuingParentalPerils: "My parents died in a boat accident returning from an isolated island in a storm? Guess what I'm going to do!"
* RaisedByGrandparents: Lived with her Grandmother since she was 5 up until prior events to "Changes For Samantha".
* RavenHairIvorySkin: An attractive feature she possibly inherited from her late mother.
* RedOniBlueOni: The passionate red to Nellie's practical, calmer blue.
* RetroactiveRecognition: In her film, she is played by Creator/AnnaSophiaRobb in her first lead role. The very next year, she would break out in ''Literature/BecauseOfWinnDixie'' and ''Film/CharlieAndTheChocolateFactory'', then later in ''Literature/BridgeToTerabithia'', ''Film/RaceToWitchMountain'', ''Film/SoulSurfer'' and ''Series/TheCarrieDiaries.'' In October 2022, Robb dressed again as Samantha for Halloween.
* RousingSpeech: When she's meant to give a speech on progress, Samantha instead [[ThrowingOutTheScript throws out the script]] and gives the entire room of upper-class people a scalding lecture on child labor.
* SeriesMascot: Samantha used to be it — she was even in the company logo!
* ServileSnarker: Elsa, Samantha's maid, is harsh (though she loves her family, for whose sake she's working) and is fed up with Samantha's antics.
* ShadowArchetype: Edith Eddleton to Samantha. They are both wealthy, upper-class girls, but Samantha befriends Nellie and her sisters while Edith looks down on them for being servants.
* ShoutOut: Samantha's favorite book is ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz.''
* SiblingTeam: [[spoiler:Her and Nellie in the mystery books.]]
* SpiritedYoungLady: Samantha seeks the approval of Grandmary and does not want to disappoint her or worry her. She loves to paint and someday wishes that she could be as good of an artist as her mother Lydia Parkington. She has a rough side such as climbing trees and feels it is very hard to be a young lady.
* TamperingWithFoodAndDrink: In ''Happy Birthday'', Eddie ruins the molded ice cream at Samantha's birthday party by pouring rock salt in it.
* TechnologyMarchesOn: Inventions like bicycles, motorcars, and electricity are gaining widespread use. This gets a bit of a LampshadeHanging in ''Samantha Learns a Lesson'' when she's considering what new piece of progress to write her essay on.
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: She has to learn how to sew samplers.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Samantha loves peppermint ice cream.

!! Nellie O'Malley
[[quoteright:257:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nellielogo.jpg]]

* BewareTheNiceOnes: A sweet, quiet, good-natured young girl; she however can stand up to intimidating, strange men, her uncle, and even kicked a crooked butler when he was threatening hers and Samantha's own safety along with calling out some adult's behavior.
* BigSisterInstinct: She'd do anything for Bridget and Jenny.
* TheBusCameBack: Nellie was written out after ''Samantha Learns a Lesson'' when Samantha's head writer was replaced (twice), only to be brought back right at the end.
* CallingTheOldManOut: In ''Nellie's Promise'', she finally calls her Uncle Mike out on how terribly he treated her and her sisters.
* DeathByAdaptation: Her mother.
* DemotedToExtra: Samantha's first two books focused on her relationship with Nellie (a poorer Irish immigrant child her age) and had an antagonist in Edith Eddleton, a well-to-do girl with a snobbish attitude. However, the plotlines and focus on class issues proved controversial; the first author, Susan S. Adler, was replaced for the third book which barely included Nellie and changed Edith from an antagonist to a minor acquaintance. Valerie Tripp wrote the last three books: Nellie is never mentioned by name in ''Happy Birthday, Samantha'' (leading to the fan theory that Grandmary, who was still slowly getting through her classism, didn't allow Samantha to invite her to her birthday party and made her invite Edith instead), and is entirely absent from ''Samantha Saves The Day,'' before coming back into the spotlight (at the center of a non-class-related plot arc) in ''Changes for Samantha.''
* DeniedFoodAsPunishment: In ''Changes For Samantha'', she is regularly punished by the cold headmistress and given little to no food during her stay at Coldrock House.
* DontSplitUsUp: Nellie is chosen to go on the orphan train to find work, but her sisters must stay behind at the orphanage because they’re too young. Samantha helps Nellie and her sisters escape before they are separated.
* TheDutifulSon: Pretty much everything she does is focused on the well-being of her family, especially her younger sisters.
* TheEdwardianEra: The time period in which her story takes place.
* FriendlessBackground: Samantha is her first true friend.
* GadgeteerGenius: Once she's adopted and safe, she beecomes very handy with machinery and repair. Her new AffectionateNickname is "Nellie-O'Malley-All-Mended."
* GoodWithNumbers: Despite having no formal education at the start of the series, she can do math problems in her head in seconds. This is because she used to have to purchase food for her family, and had to be able to determine the cost of things quickly.
* HairContrastDuo: Her strawberry blonde hair with Samantha's dark brown.
* HappilyAdopted: By Samantha's Uncle Gardner and Aunt Cornelia as of ''Changes for Samantha''.
* HeartwarmingOrphan: Samantha's beloved friend who is orphanaed and later adopted as her sister.
* HiddenDepths: She's surprisingly adept at math for a girl who was her own teacher.
* HollywoodHistory: Although it makes a lovely story, it's unlikely that a society as class-driven as Samantha's would have seen a rich couple adopting immigrant street orphans. However, considering how liberal Uncle Gard and Aunt Cornelia are for the Edwardian era, it's not exactly out of character for them to say, [[ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight "Screw Society, we're taking the kids."]]
* InterclassFriendship: Samantha, an upper-class girl, and Nellie, a poor immigrant girl. Some of Samantha's peers sneer at her for being friends with a servant girl, but she couldn't care less.
* LateArrivalSpoiler: Nellie's collection looked way too nice for a poor servant when her doll was out, serving to spoil the ending of ''Changes for Samantha,'' where [[spoiler:Samantha's aunt and uncle adopt her and her sisters]].
* [[MrFixit Ms. Fixit]]: Little Miss Nellie-O'Malley-All-Mended is noted to be incredibly handy within the Edwards household.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Although Nellie and her sisters had no choice in the matter, the name ''Coldrock House,'' run by a Miss ''Frouchy,'' implies anything going on there won't be good.
* NiceGirl: Very nice and hard-working, protective of her sisters.
* NightmarishFactory: Unfortunately accurate to the time period. Nellie has to work in a factory in order to help provide for her family, where she works long hours for little pay, and could be replaced if she made a single mistake. She mentions she keeps her hair short because she once saw a girl get scalped by a machine, but had to keep working.
* OrphanageOfFear: Downplayed. The Coldrock House For Homeless Girls isn’t terrifying or haunted, but the girls are abused. Any small gifts or luxuries, like sweets or gloves, are withheld and/or confiscated. The girls are trained to become servants and “know their place”, and punished for small offenses. Little Bridget is sickly and cannot do her chores, but the matron, Miss Frouchy, accuses her of laziness, and gets mad if her sisters try to help her.
* OrphansOrdeal: Goes through quite the TraumaCongaLine due to being a poor immigrant orphan in the early 1900s.
* ParentalAbandonment: The O'Malley parents die shortly before ''Changes For Samantha'', leaving Nellie and her sisters at the mercy of a greedy uncle and an OrphanageOfFear. After being adopted by the Edwards, Nellie still struggles with fears of being abandoned again, getting distressed that she will be left behind by her new family.
* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: [[spoiler:Nellie's adoptive brother, William, is born when she's about 11-12.]]
* PromotionToParent: Her parents both fall ill, leaving her to be the adult figure for her sisters.
* SiblingTeam: [[spoiler:Her and Samantha in the mystery books.]]
* SingleSexOffspring: One of three sisters, later [[spoiler:one of four once Samantha adopts her. Later inverted in the Mystery novels when Cornelia gives birth to a son]].
* StrangerInAStrangeSchool: A mundane variant. In ''Nellie's Promise,'' Nellie may be HappilyAdopted by a rich family, but she's completely out of place at a fancy school that doesn't teach anything she feels is practical. She also doesn't fit in when talking about prior birthday celebrations, as she was working in a factory.
* TraumaCongaLine: While dealing with the struggles of being a poor girl in a society xenophobic towards Irishmen, which Nellie obviously is, she mentions she keeps her hair short after seeing a girl get ''scalped'' at work, but she has to perform child labor to provide for her family. She struggles in school to the point of bullying, is moved away from the only friend she's ever made, has her parents die, is adopted by an abusive uncle and has to parent her traumatized sisters, and then the girls are given up to a horrible orphanage that doesn't feed them well and threatens to spit them up. ''Then'' they run away and hide in another girl's attic, and Nellie goes back to hard and exploitative factory work. After [[spoiler:their adoption, Nellie also has to face her abusive uncle once more in order to get custody for the Edwards, deals with her sisters crying at night, and when according to the ''Real Stories from My Time'' series, when she turns sixteen she ends up ''on the sinking Titanic.'']]
* WiseBeyondHerYears: Keenly aware that not everything adults do is right (i.e. segregated neighborhoods, child labor, other Edwardian Era social ills) and behaves maturely for her age along with being proficient in math.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Rebecca (1914)]]
!! Rebecca Rubin
[[quoteright:246:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rebeccalogo.png]]

* AlliterativeName: Her full name start with R's.
* AllJewsAreAshkenazi: Rebecca and her family are all Russian Ashkenazi Jews. The only other Jewish dolls in the lineup (Lindsey and the Hoffman twins) are also Ashkenazi.
* AlwaysIdenticalTwins: Her sisters, Sadie and Sophie.
* AnImmigrantsTale: Her cousin, Ana. Also touched on with her parents and grandparents.
* BrainyBrunette: She thinks fast, helps her cousin learn English, secretly sold her doilies, and saves her cousin.
* CannotSpitItOut: Her secret about [[spoiler:appearing in a silent film]], for the last two books.
* ClassicallyTrainedExtra: One of the women Rebecca meets in the movie studio seems to be gunning for a higher role than she was hired for.
* TheCobblersChildrenHaveNoShoes: Discussed in ''Meet Rebecca'' where a poor woman comes with her son to get his ill-fitting shoes adjusted. She comments that one would think her son would have more shoes since his father works in a shoe factory, Rebecca's father (a shoemaker and shop owner) comments he used to work in one and had to use cardboard to walk about.
* CrisisMakesPerfect: In ''The Crystal Ball,'' after watching Harry Houdini perform, Rebecca spends the whole book trying to figure out how to escape from having her hands tied behind her back like he could. She struggles with barely a hint given to her by Sadie and Sophie, but when the culprits have her BoundAndGagged and are going to skip town if she doesn't escape and expose them, she finally figures it out in time to get free.
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: A complete aversion to "EveryoneIsChristianAtChristmas," in her winter book, her entire class is required to do a Christmas project. When her friend objects, stating that her family is Jewish, her SternTeacher sharply tells her that Christmas is an ''American'' holiday and so they all must celebrate. Rebecca feels pressured to go along with the crowd when her teacher announces that her class will be making a Christmas decoration to take home, and the other Jewish girls in class just go along with it or risk being publicly shamed. On the other hand, Rebecca is concerned that her family will be angry and ashamed of her for coming home to them with a Christmas decoration, especially after her mother scolds her sisters for singing carols and wearing festive red and green ribbons. Ultimately, their grandmother is pleased that she obeyed her teacher and created something beautiful in the process.
* DramaQueen: Rebecca is often described as having "a flair for the dramatic".
* GoodWithNumbers: Her favorite subject in school is arithmetic, so much that her grandfather often calls her a "math wiz".
* GorgeousPeriodDress: Her movie dress is deliberately glamorous.
* GreedyJew: Averted, considering that Rebecca is usually very thoughtful and generous.
* HanukkahEpisode: Her third book, in deliberate contrast to the other characters' Christmas books.
* HaveAGayOldTime: In the Rebecca mystery ''The Crystal Ball,'' one paragraph mentions "the gay crowds". Since this story takes place in the 1910's, the language is accurate for describing a cheerful group of people. On the other hand, the story was published in 2012 - and today's average tween and young teen reading this book is likelier to be much more familiar with a very different meaning for the word "gay". This also pops up in the main Rebecca series.
* ImmigrantParents: Her family emigrated from Russia when she was young.
* ImmigrantPatriotism: She is very proud of her adopted country the United States.
* InstantMessengerPigeon: Rebecca and Ana help care for the messenger pigeons on the roof of the apartment.
* JewishAndNerdy: She's a math wiz.
* KidHero: Climbs a ''ferris wheel'' to save her cousin. Also in her amped-up mystery novels.
* KindHeartedCatLover: While she doesn't own the cat, she helps care for her neighbor's cat after she gives birth to two kittens. The kittens are sold as hers in the collection.
* MatryoshkaObject: In the introductory [=BeForever=] commercial, Rebecca, being Russian, plays with a matryoshka doll and hands it off to the modern girl. She also has a set of the dolls mentioned in her stories and included in an accessory set.
* MiddleChildSyndrome: Rebecca Rubin suffers shades of this. Her older twin sisters Sadie and Sophie always leave her out. Victor gets more attention than she does because he's at bar mitzvah age, and little brother Benny is coddled as the baby of the family. Ana's arrival helps somewhat but Rebecca maintains the struggle to get her share of attention.
* TheMovieBuff: A very early example, as films were a completely new medium. She's obsessed with silent films and loves to go see them, and dreams of being an actress.
* NaturalizedName: Rebecca's school friend, Rifka, is remained to "Rose" by her teacher, who wants her to sound more American.
* [[NiceJewishBoy Nice Jewish Girl]]: Rebecca practices Judaism and is extremely kind-hearted.
* NightmarishFactory: Rebecca finds out her counsins' family works at one.
* OhGodWithTheVerbing: Somewhat from her grandparents. Sometimes the verb is a noun.
* PerformanceArtist: Desperately wants to be a silent film actor, despite her family's disapproval. She tries to earn money for her cousins' immigration through street performance, only to get reprimanded by her Bubbie. [[spoiler:She gets her first shot at her dreams when visiting a movie studio with her cousin.]]
* PinkMeansFeminine: Her movie dress has a pink upper half.
* PluckyGirl: Our dramatic and kindhearted young protagonist.
* PoliceBrutality: Rebecca is shocked when she attends a protest for workers' rights and sees the police beating the protestors. She is informed this always happens.
* QuirkyCurls: Has fashionable curly hair.
* RousingSpeech: She almost gives one at a strike, before [[PoliceBrutality being knocked out by a police officer.]]
* RunForTheBorder: Rebecca's cousins are forced to flee Russia due to a rise in anti-Semitism and the threat of Ana's older brother being drafted into the military.
* ShoutOut: Rebecca's favorite book, which shares her name, is ''Literature/RebeccaOfSunnybrookFarm.''
* StrikeEpisode: ''Changes for Rebecca.''
* TheStoryteller: One of the first things she does in the book is tell a shadow-puppet story with her actor cousin.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Rebecca was released around the time of Samantha's retirement; while she herself isn't exactly a substitute for Samantha, her cousin Ana, who is a shy and sickly immigrant who is forced to work at a NightmarishFactory to provide for her family, rings very similarly to Nellie, who was retired with Sam.
* UncreditedRole: She's told that she won't get in the credits of the film, as actors rarely did at this time. She's fine with it, cause it means it's less likely her immediate family will find out.
* WideEyedIdealist: She's very fanciful and romantic and often fantasizes about following in her cousin Max's footsteps to become an actress.
* YiddishAsASecondLanguage: Often, as the Rubins are Russian-Jewish immigrants.
* YouAreTheTranslatedForeignWord: Sometimes she and her family are explicitly said to be speaking in Yiddish, but Ana and her immediate family in particular are said to be learning English, and it's not always clear whether Rebecca or any of her family are speaking Yiddish or not.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Claudie (1922)]]
!!Claudie Wells
* [[BigBrotherInstinct Big Sister Instinct]]: Claudie, to her little brother, Jody.
* CanineCompanion: The boarding house dog, Dizzy Dot.
* {{Cliffhanger}}: Unlike most of the American Girl dolls, Claudie was only released with her first book, which ends on a cliffhanger as she packs to visit Georgia. Her next book wouldn't be released for half a year.
* CloseKnitCommunity: Everyone in Claudie's neighborhood does their best to help each other.
* CoolUncle: Cousin Sidney is mentioned to always bring Claudie and Jody new toys when he comes to visit.
* CopeByCreating: Implied or stated that a lot of the artists in Claudie's life deal with their stress through the arts. Though they all love what they do, too.
* CuteClumsyGirl: Not very coordinated, and absolutely adorable.
* CynicIdealistDuo: With Gwen in the first book. Gwen starkly points out that they may not sell enough tickets to make rent, and Claudie simply responds that they at least have to try.
* DaddysGirl: While close with both of her parents, she adores her father.
* DadTheVeteran: Her father served in World War I and suffers from PTSD.
* DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife: Claudie is trying to figure out what her hidden talent is.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Spends a lot of time playing with Dizzy Dot.
* HeyLetsPutOnAShow: To save her boarding house.
* ICantDance: Claudie feels insecure because she's not as good at dancing as her best friend, Nina.
* IconicItem: Her notebook.
* IJustWantToBeSpecial: Claudie is desperate to find her own "special thing."
* IntrepidReporter: Her Mama.
* LethalChef: Only a bit; she can put things together fine, but often gets too distracted daydreaming to do things on time or remember to do certain steps, and she's a bit too shaky to do good icing art.
* PerformanceAnxiety: Claudie stresses that she gets scared when reciting a book report for class, let alone performing on her own.
* ReclusiveArtist: Gwen, who lives in Claudie's bording house but mostly spends her time holed up in her room. Claudie is told she doesn't like children.
* TheRoaringTwenties: Claudie lives in 1922 Harlem.
* SavingTheOrphanage: Her first arc is focused on saving her boarding house from eviction.
* ShellShockedVeteran: Claudie's father deals with insomnia and nightmares due to his time in World War I.
* ShoutOut: Claudie reads through ''The Brownies' Book,'' gets a Baby Ruth bar when she takes her little brother to see Joe Williams in the Lincoln Giants baseball game, and then goes to visit her mother at work at the ''Amsterdam News.'' She also learns "When the Saints Go Marching In" on cornet.
* ShrinkingViolet: Claudie is incredibly shy and has trouble speaking to people.
* SmallTownBoredom: Claudie's Mama says she came up north because she didn't want to be a farmer for the rest of her life.
* TheStoryteller: Seems to be Claudie's "special thing," as she is often daydreaming and making up stories, which she tells to her brother through a puppet theatre.
* SweetBaker: Her father works in a bakery decorating cakes.
* StarvingArtist: Claudie's boarding house of artists all struggle to keep up rent.
* ThisIsMyStory: Claudie begs her mother to take her to Georgia so she can understand where she came from, and therefore understand her own story.
* ToyBasedCharacterization: Claudie doesn't realize how good of a storyteller she actually is, cause she considers her puppet theatre "just a thing" she does for Jody.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Kit (1934)]]

!! Kit Kittredge
[[quoteright:257:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kitlogo.png]]

* AbandonedPetInABox: How she finds Grace, her basset hound.
* ActionGirl: In her main series, she jumps a train and escapes the police. In her mysteries, she pulls quite a few more stunts.
* ActionizedAdaptation: The film adaptation of Kit's series of novels added some relatively mild chase and action scenes in the film's climax, where Kit and her friends chase after and confront Mr. Berk, along with his assistant Frederich and Miss Bond, who turned out to be the ones responsible for the robberies involving hobos.
* AdaptedOut: In Kit's movie, Charlie and Aunt Millie both function as TheGhost; they're referred to, but you only see Charlie in a photograph in the background. Other characters have their significance cut down (Uncle Hendrick and Roger each only have a scene or two) but remain in the story. However, she's the only one whose movie doesn't adapt out her pet.
* AffectionateNickname: "Kit" is not actually her real name. It's Margaret Mildred Kittredge. Dad used to sing her a song with the lyrics "Pack up your troubles in your old kit bag and smile," and she loved the song so much the nickname stuck.
* AlliterativeName: Both "Kit Kittredge" and "Margaret Mildred."
* BathroomBreakOut: Kit pulls this off with a window in ''Kit Saves the Day.''
* BoyishShortHair: Hair cut into a bob.
* TheBully: Classmate Roger.
* CanineCompanion: Grace the basset hound.
* ChekhovsGun: In ''Danger at the Zoo,'' Kit's friend Stirling is leading a Zoo Guide tour and introduces the crowd to Rascal the baboon, who, [[FaceOfAThug despite his scary looks, is so fond of children]] that [[PapaWolf he throws things when he sees children being roughly handled]]. Later in the story, one of the zoo policemen grabs Kit, who he thinks is up to no good, preventing her from chasing the thieves who have been breaking into the zoo; as luck would have it, he does this in front of Rascal's cage and the baboon beans him in the head with a thrown ball, causing him to release Kit.
* CoolBigSis: GenderInvertedTrope – Kit's older brother Charlie is open and honest with his sister about what their family is going through.
* CoolOldLady: Aunt Millie.
* DaddysGirl: She is close to her Dad and would write newspaper articles for him to read after work.
* DadTheVeteran: Her father was in World War I.
* DoNotCallMePaul: Finds Margaret Mildred to be too "flouncy".
* DontYouDarePityMe: She also dislikes feeling dependent on charity from others, or being a "moocher", as she has called it.
* FeminineMotherTomboyishDaughter: Kit's mother redecorates her entire room to be pink and girly... which Kit ''despises.'' It's pretty clear that Margaret WantedAGenderConformingChild.
* FeudEpisode: ''Kit's Surprise,'' with Ruthie.
* GenreShift: Kit's movie is mostly a historical drama, but detours into a kid-power mystery adventure with villains [[CanonForeigner not present in the books.]]
* GirlinessUpgrade: In the [=BeForever=] revamp, most of her outfits are fancy and pink, stuff she is noted to ''hate'' in the books. One of these outfits can even be spotted on ''Ruthie,'' the much more GirlyGirl of the two, in the film adaptation.
* GoGetterGirl: Absolutely determined to be a reporter.
* GoingForTheBigScoop: She is interested in everything and fancies herself a reporter and factual writer.
* TheGreatDepression: The setting of her story (1932-1934).
* HairContrastDuo: Bright blonde Kit and dark brunette Ruthie.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: She is idealistic, good-hearted, compassionate, devoted to her family, and has light wheat hair.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Sees poor abandoned Grace on the street and instantly decides to keep her.
* IconicItem: Her typewriter. In her collection, she also gets her treehouse.
* IntrepidReporter: Her main personality trait. She wants to be a reporter desperately, is always diving in for a "scoop," looking for writing tips, and typing her own personalized newspaper in the attic.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Kit can be very mean and bad tempered sometimes, but she feels very worried about her father not coming home, and she truly cares about people and doesn't like hearing about other people suffer. Also, Kit is going through a lot during the Great Depression, so we can forgive her and have sympathy for her.
* KidDetective: Has the most mystery books of any American Girl, at seven. A lot of her IntrepidReporter snooping leads to her adventures.
* LittleMissSnarker: To an extent; she's mainly just brutally honest.
* LiveActionAdaptation: So far the only theatrical American Girl film: ''Kit Kittredge: An American Girl'' (2008)
* MasculineGirlFeminineBoy: To an extent with Stirling. He's gentle, quiet and artsy, but the two of them can bond over a love of baseball.
* MeaningfulName: Kit's middle name is "Mildred" meaning "gentle strength" and she is as big-hearted as she's strong and determined, something she has inherited from her namesake aunt.
* NotTheIntendedUse: In-universe with Kit's Aunt Millie who used fabric from feed sacks to make Kit's birthday outfit. TruthInTelevision as housewives repurposed flour sack fabric into articles of clothing since the early 20th century. This led George P. Plant Milling Company and other firms to sell flour and feed packaged in dress-quality sacks especially during the Great Depression and World War II when fabric was in short supply.
* OppositesAttract: Tough, practical Kit is friends with frail, sensitive Stirling and GirlyGirl dreamer Ruthie.
* OutdoorsyGal: She loves country life, [[NatureLover the great outdoors]], and adventures, often mentioning that she feels "stuck" with endless chores since her home became a boarding house.
* PassionateSportsGirl: Kit is very into baseball, especially her home team the Cincinnatti Reds.
* PetTheDog: Uncle Hendrick gets a mild one in ''Kit's Surprise'', when he tells Kit to keep the money he was going to pay for a shoe shine after she did it herself (because the store was out of business), and allows her to earn more money in this fashion going forward. It's not exactly a massive expression of generosity (if he were truly generous, he'd help the family out more substantially and without expecting anything in return -- God knows he has the money to do so), but despite his miserly ways, he chooses to be what he would consider fair to Kit (paying her the same as he would pay a professional for the same task) rather than take advantage of her by taking the money back, even though it's to his own (admittedly slight) detriment.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Averted and enforced in-universe. Her post-2008 clothes often come in pinks, not to her taste but to the taste of her more traditionally feminine mother.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: In ''Kit's Surprise'', Kit and Ruthie fight because Ruthie's attempt to cheer Kit up and save their Christmas tradition by giving her a hand-me-down dress makes things worse, with Kit finding the gesture short-sighted and patronizing.
* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: Kit's older brother, Charlie, is already in college, while she's only nine.
* PrejudiceAesop: In learning that homeless and poor people are still people, and not lazy or criminal by default. A main focus of the film.
* QuirkyHousehold: Due to the amount of borders, there tend to be a lot of interesting characters running around.
* RedOniBlueOni: RedOni Kit and BlueOni Ruthie.
* SavingTheOrphanage: A lot of what Kit and her mother do is in order to pay rent and save the house. This is the main plot in the film adaptation.
* ShoutOut: Kit's favorite book is ''Myth/RobinHood,'' but she also reads ''Literature/Heidi, Literature/ALittlePrincess'' and ''{{Literature.AliceInWonderland}}.''
* SlobsVsSnobs: Given how the series focuses on TheGreatDepression and on a family acclimating from an upper-middle class lifestyle to one where they open their home up to borders, it's bound to come up:
** Margaret's elderly Uncle Hendrick's response to his nephew-in-law losing his car dealership and paying his workers with his savings was to lament how he always knew how foolish he was, rub their faces in it, and talk about how he "won't throw good money after bad" and believes hobos and other poor people are lazy and don't deserve help.
** A less hostile situation between Margaret and Aunt Millie, not that they are snobby or slobby but Margaret came from a wealthy background and while she did acclimate quickly to her new lifestyle and accepted people to room and board at her home, she is not pleased about Millie (a former schoolteacher from a rural town in the Appalachian Mountains) bringing her thrifty but "country" ways like keeping chickens and maintaining a vegetable garden in broad sunlight.
* SnoopingLittleKid: What can we say, she's ConstantlyCurious.
* StealthMentor: In ''Changes for Kit'', Uncle Hendrick makes Kit type down his letters to Mr. Gibson, the newspaper editor. He emphasizes to her many times that a letter to the newspaper must begin with "To the Editor," make one point using simple and direct language, use less than 250 words, be signed at the bottom, [[GrammarNazi and spell every word correctly]]. Kit is eventually inspired by his advice to write a letter of her own about the plight of hobo children affected by the Depression, which gets published in the newspaper and inspires many more people to donate clothing to the soup kitchen.
* SweetPollyOliver: Kit is told to pretend to be a boy when the hobos are caught by police, because they will take her away. This also happens in her film [[spoiler:with Countee, played by Willow Smith]].
* {{Tomboy}}: Doesn't like pink or ruffles, and cares little for baking, dusting, flouncy dresses, and dance class.
* TomboyishBaseballCap: For her Reds fan outfit.
* TomboyishName: Kit, not Kitty.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Kit is usually more tomboyish in comparison to Ruthie, due to her love of baseball and her huge dislikes of the color pink and fancy things. However, in the end of Kit's Surprise, as Ruthie walks Kit home as she happily agrees to go window shopping with Kit, Kit asks if she could have her old Christmas dress. Surprisingly, Kit has some more feminine outfits in the movie unlike in the illustrations of her books.
* TreehouseOfFun: Kit dreams of having a treehouse throughout her series, decorating her attic room to look like one. She finally gets one in the short story aptly named "Kit's Tree House." In the film adaptation, she's had a treehouse the whole time, and uses it for club meetings.
* TropeyComeHome: In ''Missing Grace.'' Subverted in that [[spoiler:it turns out Grace was ''kidnapped,'' not lost]].
* TruthInTelevision: Kit's dream of being a journalist is child's play compared to [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hilde_Lysiak Hilde Lysiak]], an American child author whose exploits have gained national attention such as when she covered a grisly murder of all things at ''nine years old''.
* UptownGirl: Quite possibly Kit's parents; with her mother expecting her to act ladylike and being the one in the family to have a rich, snobby relative.
* WhamLine: When Kit goes to the soup kitchen and serves soup to a man [[spoiler:who turns out to be her father]].
* YouthfulFreckles: A splash across her nose.

!! Ruthie Smithens
[[quoteright:257:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ruthielogo.jpg]]

* {{Bookworm}}: Both she and Kit read a lot, though Ruthie brings up her fantasy stories more often. Kit sees her as a creative writer.
* CheerfulChild: It's hard to get her upset.
* TheCutie: Sweet, Innocent, Dreamy, Loving, and a bit naive.
* FeudEpisode: ''Kit's Surprise,'' with Kit.
* GirlNextDoor: Lives very close to her best friend, Kit. Their other bestie, Stirling, ends up boarding at Kit's house with his mom.
* GracefulLadiesLikePurple: Her Meet Dress is a deep purple.
* HairContrastDuo: Bright blonde Kit and dark brunette Ruthie.
* TheHeart: Between her friend group.
* HiddenDepths: She tells Charlie that she is aware that people aren't always so good and of how bad things are in the Depression (even sympathizing with how the teenage boy lost his chance to go to college because of his family finances) but tells him fairy tales motivate her to be a good, kind, loving person and to think positively about others.
* InterclassFriendship: While Ruthie and Kit are both considered middle-class, Ruthie's father has a financially stable job during the depression and thus she can afford more than her friend can and has less worries and responsibilities. This causes tension that comes to a head in ''Kit's Surprise.''
* InvisibleParents: Despite living next door to Kit, and her parents being mentioned a few times to explain her economic situation, they don't make any direct appearance and aren't even named. Ruthie doesn't even have portraits of them in her book, unlike the other American Girl dolls.
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: ''Meet Kit'' has a doozy of an example which encapsulates the entire historical line. After Ruthie learns from Kit that Kit’s dad has lost his job, they try to think of ways Kit can help her family. Ruthie says she’s read books about what people do when they have no money, but the girls are concerned, as the characters in those books live in “olden times”, and reading their stories doesn’t help Kit and Ruthie figure out what they can do to improve their situation in the then-present. It's an example that works on a couple of levels, as it speaks to both the impact people made before Kit's time which made it what it was and the impact people have made since then which has shaped the present in America and throughout the rest of the world.
* LongHairIsFeminine: Has longer and curlier hair than her {{Tomboy}} best friend.
* LongingForFictionland: She was jealous of Kit at one point in the story as she looked at Kit's new lifestyle as being busy, interesting, and exciting, compared to the quietness of her own household.
* NaiveEverygirl: She loves romance, [[GratuitousPrincess princesses]] and movie stars and is depicted as an avid reader of fairy tales.
* NiceGuy: Very sweet and caring, if a little insensitive at times.
* OnlyChildSyndrome: While Ruthie isn't vindictive, she is the only child of a rich family and thus lives in a bit of a bubble.
* OppositesAttract: Tough, practical Kit is friends with frail, sensitive Stirling and GirlyGirl dreamer Ruthie.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: In ''Kit's Surprise'', Kit and Ruthie fight because Ruthie's attempt to cheer Kit up and save their Christmas tradition by giving her a hand-me-down dress makes things worse, with Kit finding the gesture short-sighted and patronizing.
* PluckyGirl: At age 9, she traveled with Charlie Kittredge, to his Aunt's home in the Appalachian Mountains to get help for Kit's family.
* PrincessPhase: Loves princesses, fairy tales, and glamorous movie stars.
* PurpleIsPowerful: She's a lot stronger than everyone thinks, as Charlie finds out in her book.
* RedOniBlueOni: RedOni Kit and BlueOni Ruthie.
* RegalRinglets: Her default hairstyle throughout the stories.
* SpoiledSweet: Unlike Kit, Ruthie's family is not financially affected by the Depression, which allows Ruthie to continue going to the movies and engaging in paid hobbies such as dance, tennis, vacations, and horseback riding lessons. Even so, she is generous to the Kittredge's and willingly tries to aid them in whichever way she can. In her story, she is sweet and friendly to working-class inhabitants of rural Kentucky and doesn't look down her nose, instead finding a storybook quality about their village, fascinating in how friendly the folks are, singing along on wagon rides, and being non-show offy about her privilege in general.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The fairy tale buff Girly Girl to Kit's no-nonsense Tomboy.
* WideEyedIdealist: Ruthie has an idealized worldview; due to this, she sometimes offends Kit by trying to help in not-so-tactful ways.
* YellowPurpleContrast: She is often illustrated with a dress of pale yellow and purple.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Nanea (1941)]]

!! Nanea Mitchell
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nanealogo.png]]

* AbortedArc: After Pearl Harbor happens, Nanea completely abandons about her quest to win a bike. This is done intentionally to show how fast she had to grow up, as shown late in ''Growing Up With Aloha'' when she offhandedly mentions to her mother that she forgot all about it.
* AdaptationalHairstyleChange: In the original unillustrated books, Lily was described as having bangs. When the illustrations were added, she doesn't have them.
* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: Nanea gets peeved that her beloved teacher Miss Smith gave her usual classroom role of "right-hand girl" to the new girl Dixie, "Someone who didn't even know everyone's names? Someone who liked tap dancing?" All of this is treated like SeriousBusiness.
* AwakeningTheSleepingGiant: The trope-namer occurs in Nanea's story when Pearl Harbor is bombed and America enters the war.
* BabyOfTheBunch: The youngest of her family, she starts the series upset at being treated like a baby, and wanting to be more grown-up. With the arrival of the war, [[GrowingUpSucks she soon reverses this wish]].
%% * ABoyAndHisX: Gender inverted with her and her dog Mele. The pair are very close and she was frantic after the dog had disappeared for a bit after the attack. %% Add more context to describe their relationship and what effect it has on them. %%
* BrainyBrunette: A very good student (her teacher considers her a big help), loves school, and has dark hair.
* CanineCompanion: She is extremely close with her dog Mele, and dances with her. When she thinks that the army is scouting her dog, she is distraught.
* CharacterDevelopment: The events of the series cause her to grow up, perhaps too fast.
* CharityBall: TruthInTelevision, Nanea and her class do shows for the soldiers stationed on their island.
* CheerfulChild: A friendly, sweet, and well-meaning girl who enjoys even some mundane bits of her life on the island; this trait of hers gets tested after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
* ChoreographyPorn: Detailed descriptions of her beautiful hula dances.
* DaddysGirl: Very close to her father and goes fishing with him.
* DadsOffFightingInTheWar: While not fighting, her father serves as a doctor at the army base. [[spoiler:Her brother eventually goes off to fight as well.]]
* DogsLoveBeingPraised: Big time with Mele, who dances with Nanea and then goes and greets the soldiers watching.
* DotingGrandparent: Her Tutu, who teaches her hula and consoles her in times of crisis.
* {{Foil}}: A Doylist foil to Molly; while Molly lived in an area relatively unaffected by the war that was coming to an end, Nanea witnesses America's entry into the war on her home turf.
* ForegoneConclusion: At the beginning of her story, Nanea's family hopefully discusses if the war might end soon. Later we see her write the date on the school chalkboard– December 6, 1941. Sorry, guys, this won't end well.
* FriendToAllChildren: Helps her mother babysit at meetings.
* GracefulLadiesLikePurple: Nanea wears a long purple dress on the cover of "Hula for the Home front" and it has a {{pink|MeansFeminine}} floral pattern.
* GrowingUpSucks: As she finds out once the war hits.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Not just Nanea; the soldiers she meet later all fawn over the little pup.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: Accidentally alienates Lily for a time after failing to recognize the seriousness of Lily's father being jailed for his heritage.
* MiddleNameBasis: Her full name is Alice Nanea Mitchell. The use of a Western first name was due to a law passed in 1860 by Kamehameha IV decreeing that Hawaiian royal subjects were to take their father's given name as a surname, and adopt a Christian (i.e. English) first name.
* MovingAwayEnding: Her first book ends with her best friend, Donna, having to evacuate Hawai'i.
* MultiEthnicName: "Alice Nanea Mitchell," as she is both Hawai'ian and Scottish. Her brothers are David Kekoa and Mary Lou Noelani.
* NaiveEverygirl: She doesn't understand her friend Lily's stress about her father's imprisonment until Lily snaps at her. She later also thinks that perhaps collecting bottles can keep Donna in Hawai'i.
* NewFriendEnvy: With Dixie– the fact her other best friend just moved away and seems to be [[ReplacementGoldfish being replaced]] isn't helping.
* NothingIsTheSameAnymore: Nanea feels as if her entire world has changed since the attack, as symbolized by her seeing her burnt school.
* RelativelyFlimsyExcuse: Nanea's mother pretends to be Mr. Suda's sister in order to get a meeting with him.
* ShoutOut: Her favorite books are ''Literature/NancyDrew.''
* SweetAndSourGrapes: She starts out yearning to be seen as more mature, then the island is attacked and the War starts, which forces her to take on more responsibilities and be lauded as more grown-up. But she now has to face the prospect of being separated from friends [[spoiler: and her brother]].
* TeachersPet: Gets upset when her teacher gives anyone else accolades.
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: Sews her own pouch for her ID badge, and shows the kids she babysits how to do the same.
* ThisIsMySide: Shares a room with her sister, Mary Lou.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Her and her "kittens" always order the same shave ice when they go to the beach– strawberry for Nanea, lemon for Lily, and orange for Donna.
* TraumaButton: After seeing the attacking planes fly overhead, Nanea is jumpy around loud noises. Her mystery book opens with her terrified that someone is attacking again, only to settle when she finds out it's just her sister and friend dancing downstairs. After the attack, her best friend Lily also hates the sound of sirens.
* TropeyComeHome: Mele goes missing the night the Pearl Harbor attack happens, which understandably stresses Nanea out a lot. She later finds and saves her.
* TownGirls: Neutral-Nanea is one of the "three kittens" with feminine Lily and {{Tomboy}} Donna. After Donna leaves, they end up befriending another tomboy, Dixie.
* UsefulNotes/WorldWarII: The time period in which her story is set. Her story focuses on the war in the Pacific, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and the aftermath of that attack as it affects the local population.
* YoungestChildWins: She is the main character and the youngest of three, but the first half of her story focuses on how she tries to get her parents to see her as not a baby anymore.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Molly (1944)]]

!! Molly [=McIntire=]
[[quoteright:233:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mollylogo.jpg]]

* AbsentAnimalCompanion: Her dog is never mentioned again following ''Happy Birthday, Molly!''
* AdaptedOut: Her youngest brother, Brad.
* AdaptationalJerkass: In Molly's books, Allison Hargate was mostly SpoiledSweet and occasionally a little bossy. In the movie, she's more snobbish and condescending towards others.
* AffectionateNickname: Her dad calls her "Olly-Molly."
* AlliterativeName: If one counts the "Mc" in her last name.
* AmericaWonWorldWarII: In ''American Girls Revue,'' her song begins with "Hurray for the USA! We won the war!"
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Considered this by [[AloofBigBrother Jill]]. Inverted with Ricky in the first book, who's older than her but constantly gives her a bad time. Five-year-old Brad is described in his mini-bio as "a little pest" but is actually little more than a LivingProp.
* BigDamnReunion: In the books, [[spoiler:she ends up being the only one home to welcome her father due to her illness, making her missing out on Miss Victory a blessing in disguise]]. In the film, [[spoiler:her Dad comes home just in time to see her dance as Miss Victory; she doesn't realize until she goes backstage and puts on her glasses]].
* BlindWithoutEm: Molly hates swimming due to the way it fogs up her glasses. In the film, we see her temporarily without glasses, only seeing blurry shapes.
* BrainyBrunette: In the film, she's one of the finalists in her schoolwide spelling bee.
* CaptureTheFlag: Molly's color war in ''Molly Saves the Day,'' which amps up to ridiculous degrees.
* CatchYourDeathOfCold: Molly sleeps with wet hair to set it in pin curls for a performance, but catches a cold and [[GameBreakingInjury can't be in the show at all.]]
* CharacterDevelopment: She starts out as very naïve and unaware of things, but gradually becomes more perceptive as the stories goes on.
* CheerfulChild: A very optimistic and imaginative young girl given to flights of fancy.
* ClothesForChristmasCringe: In ''Molly's Surprise,'' when the McIntire children are talking about Christmas presents, Jill comments that they're probably going to get boring presents like socks and handkerchiefs because, during wartime, nobody has money to spare for fun presents.
* ColorMotif: Almost all of her outfits are specifically red, white and blue, the American colors to represent the patriotic atmosphere of World War II.
* CompanionCube: Her doll, a gift from her dad.
* CoolTeacher: Ms Charlotte Campbell, Molly's idolized teacher.
* CoolToy: Molly does not want a specific doll, but makes the distinction that she wants one she can "have adventures with" instead of a baby doll, which is presumably what she had been given for Christmas before. She gets her wish, thanks to Dad, who sends Christmas presents for the whole family. Molly's present is Katherine, a doll representing a WWII nurse.
* DadsOffFightingInTheWar: Literal, for her whole six-book series.
* DadTheVeteran: Her father serves as an army medic for most of the series.
* DaddysGirl: She's incredibly close to her father and heavily impacted once he is sent to work at the Army's medical branch overseas.
* DancingWithMyself: In the film, while practicing for her Miss Victory audition.
* DeathGlare: Molly's family housekeeper Mrs. Gilford gives her one when she complains about having mashed turnips for dinner. Dr. McIntire used to call it the "Gladys Gilford Glacial Glare."
* DiscreetDiningDisposal: When Molly complains about her vegetables, her mom confesses to having done this as a child.
* DreamingOfAWhiteChristmas: In Molly's Christmas story, it doesn't snow until around the middle of the story; Molly upon seeing the snow, excitedly goes out to play in it with her older sister Jill.
* EtTuBrute: In the Color War, Linda blows the whistle on Molly and Susan sneaking around, as she's on a different team than them. Molly responds by later [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes exploiting Linda's biggest fear and dumping bugs on her head]], which leaves her crying.
* EveryoneHatesMathematics: Math is definitely not Molly's best subject. In Molly Learns a Lesson, she guesses the wrong answer when Mrs. Campbell asks her what eight times seven is. When she learns the right answer, she writes down in her notebook that eight times seven is fifty six.
* FakeBrit: Molly and her friends fake British accents while anticipating the arrival of Emily.
* FashionHurts: In ''Changes for Molly,'' she becomes obsessed with curling her hair so she'll be more likely to get picked for the lead role in a patriotic dance for her tap class. After trying various increasingly uncomfortable methods, she resorts to one that involves sleeping with soaking-wet hair, which causes her to catch a cold and not be able to perform at all.
* GenkiGirl: She's perky, talkative, and excitable.
* GirlishPigtails: Her trademark hairstyle throughout the line.
* HalloweenEpisode: Her Meet book.
* HeartfeltApology: Her and Linda when they realize they took Color War too far.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Pretends to have a dog until she gets a puppy for her birthday.
* ICantDance: In the books, Molly dances just fine, but in the films, she is a poor dancer until she gets her practice in.
* IconicItem: Her heart locket.
* ImaginaryFriend: She and Emily pretend to have dogs until they get real ones.
* InformedFlaw: Brad is described as a 'little pest' to Molly, but he never does anything in the books to antagonize or even annoy Molly.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: She and her friends, all white, dress up as hula dancers for Halloween. She also doesn't understand why the ''[[BlitzEvacuees blitz evacuee]]'' staying with her might not want to play bomb shelter, or why she's so quiet and upset all the time.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Molly can sometimes be mean and have jealousy issues of others, and she can be very whiny, but she truly misses her father and becomes more mature and sweet starting from the end of Happy Birthday, Molly.
* KidsHateVegetables: Molly is disgusted by the sight of the orange colored blob of mashed turnips that the family's housekeeper Mrs. Gilford had made for dinner and refuses to eat it. Mrs. Gilford tries to shame Molly for being wasteful and unpatriotic, as this is taking place during World War II and the turnips came from their very own "victory garden".
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Molly: An American Girl on the Home Front'' (2006)
* MiddleChildSyndrome: In ''Changes for Molly,'' her father's letter describes the changes he expects to see in the other three, but seems to have tacked her on almost as an afterthought, mentioning her "in the same sentence as pot roast".
* NoCommunitiesWereHarmed: Jefferson, Illinois isn't real, but is based on Jefferson County.
* PaletteSwap: Molly and Emily's pet dogs Bennett and Yank in the collection are merely palette swaps of each other, bearing the same coat pattern with the colors inverted.
* PetsAsAPresent: She gets her dog, Bennett, for her birthday.
* PragmaticAdaptation: Molly's movie is primarily focused around ''Changes for Molly'' and an expansion of the Emily storyline from ''Happy Birthday, Molly!'' It also includes Aunt Eleanor's scene from "Molly Takes Flight," and occasional brief scenes or mentions from the other books.
* PrincessPhase: Her and her friends fantasize about the English princesses and wish to be like them. In the first book, they consider dressing as Cinderella for Halloween.
* RedOniBlueOni: The red impulsive oni to Emily's calmer blue.
* RegalRinglets: Wants curls like {{Creator/ShirleyTemple}}'s instead of her own straight hair.
* ShoutOut: Her and her friends are huge movie fans, so they reference a lot of 1940s films, specifically Creator/ShirleyTemple in ''Changes for Molly.'' In the film they have an argument about ''Series/Lassie.''
* SpannerInTheWorks: In the game of Color War played in ''Molly Saves the Day,'' the Red Team captures every member of the Blue Team except for Molly and Susan, who didn't get caught with the group because Susan's bad canoeing leads to the two girls falling into the lake on the way to the beach. Molly is ultimately the player who devises a plan to free her entire team, capture the flag, and return to the camp victorious.
* SpellingBee: Added to the film, where Molly's school participates in one every school year. Molly and Emily are the finalists, which upsets Molly as Emily never studies, but before a winner can be declared, the bee is interrupted by news that Ms Campbell's fiance has died.
* StayInTheKitchen: Molly's series is set in World War II and features many women working outside the home (Mom as a nurse) and even in traditionally male jobs (her Aunt Eleanor). But when the books get to the ending of the war, she witnesses propaganda telling women to give the men "their jobs back" and her friend's Mom is upset about how the factory she's working at is laying off women who've been devoted to the job and loved it.
** Molly's brother Ricky expresses this attitude in the movie (when he mocks his mother for going to work in a factory) and in the mystery ''The Light in the Cellar'' for why he and a friend will take credit for solving a mystery that Molly and her friends spent more time gathering clues for (and noticing there was something wrong in their town). Even to the point where he outright disrespects his older sister Jill for exerting authority (given their mother put her in charge).
* StockYuck: Molly's first book begins with her refusing to eat the mashed turnips that Mrs. Gilford, her family's housekeeper, has prepared for dinner. Mrs. Gilford is unsympathetic, scolding her for wasting food during wartime and forbidding her to leave the table until they're finished. Her mother, when she arrives home, uses some sugar and spices to make the turnips more palatable. She also tells Molly about her own childhood experience with refusing to eat sardines on toast.
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: The girls have a hard time knitting for the war effort.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Molly is the energetic tomboy to Emily's sweet and gentle girly girl.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Molly is usually very energetic and tomboyish. However, she doesn't mind getting dressed up for special occassions, such as dressing up in special costumes with Linda and Susan on Halloween, and also as a princess during her birthday that she shares with Emily, and as Miss Victory for a school performance on stage.
* TownGirls: Neutral-Molly with Linda and Susan.
* VillainyFreeVillain: Alison Hargate in Molly's series is probably ''supposed'' to look like a Spoiled Brat (and comes off that way in the movie), but is more of a Lonely Rich Kid set apart because people like Molly think she's bragging whenever she so much as speaks honestly about her life.
* WeNamedTheMonkeyJack: Molly and Emily name their dogs after each other, though they don't literally call them Molly and Emily at least. (Molly's dog is named Bennett, Emily's last name, while Emily's is named Yank after a slang term for Americans.)
* WideEyedIdealist: She has a very fanciful perception of Britain and is obsessed with glamour, while generally unaware of how the war's circumstances have truly impacted people throughout the world.
* UsefulNotes/WorldWarII: The time period in which her story is set. Her story focuses on the home front and the war in Europe.

!! Emily Bennett
[[quoteright:252:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/emilylogo.jpg]]

* AbsentAnimalCompanion: Her dog is never mentioned again following ''Happy Birthday, Molly!''
* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: While she was already pretty traumatized by the bombings in the books, the film ups it by having her mother killed in one of the attacks.
* AdaptationalHairstyleChange: She was originally portrayed as having a bob-like hairstyle. Following the film and doll release, she was re-illustrated to have shoulder-length hair.
* AscendedExtra: Emily was originally a minor character who stayed with Molly's family for two weeks. She was later made into a doll, given her own book and starred prominently in the movie.
* BeYourself: Both her book and expanded role in Molly's film have her pretending to be more impressive than she is in hopes of fitting in with the girls her age.
* BlitzEvacuees: A resident of London who comes to America, primarily to stay with her Aunt.
* BlueIsCalm: Quiet, shy Emily wears mainly blue.
* BookSmart: In the film, she shrugs off studying for the school Spelling Bee, saying it would be pointless. She then ends up as one of the finalists, and might have won had it not been interrupted.
* BritishStuffiness: She fits into this initially, only to open up when more familiar with the [=McIntire=] family and tries to live up to the "stiff upper lip" persona with mostly successful results.
* CelebrityLie: In Molly's movie, Emily pretends to be nobility, pressured into it because she doesn't want to let down the American kids who built up high expectations for her.
* DeathByAdaptation: Her mother, who was alive but barely mentioned in the books, is killed as an AdaptationalAngstUpgrade.
* DefrostingIceQueen: She's rather stoic and aloof when she initially comes to live with Molly's family, but eventually comes to open up to them more.
* EnglishRose: What Molly and her friends assume Emily will be like before they meet her. Well, except for Susan, who expects a starving waif instead.
* EveryProperLadyShouldCurtsy: One of Molly's friends tries to curtsy while wearing pants when she meets the English girl Emily, and she says that she thought English girls always did that.
* FakeBrit: Her film actress was actually Australian.
* FieryRedhead: Averted, even when she is angry or stressed out, her demeanor is very calm and she has copper colored hair to contrast with the impulsive brunette Molly.
* FishOutOfWater: Once she comes to stay in America with the [=McIntire's=].
* FlowerMotifs: When Molly is confused by Emily being so shy and quiet, Mrs. [=McIntire=] compares her to a flower that hasn't bloomed yet, but needs time and care to open. In her own book, Emily is shown to enjoy gardening.
* FriendToAllChildren: Is actually very sweet towards Brad.
* GoodWithNumbers: She is adept at mathematics and even takes time to help Molly on her dreaded times tables.
* GracefulLadiesLikePurple: Sports a purple dress for Christmas in the film and in her collection.
* GreenThumb: Helps out with Victory Gardens in ''Brave Emily.''
* HeroesLoveDogs: Is gifted a dog and names it "Yank," after her American friend.
* ImaginaryFriend: An imaginary dog, until she gets a real one.
* MissingMom: Her mother is killed off in the films. In the books, she's separated from her family, but chokes up while reading a letter from her Mum.
* NaiveNewcomer: When Molly and her friends exaggerate their practice times, Emily thinks they're being serious and ups her practice numbers in hopes of fitting in.
* NotSoStoic: She has been asked to act like a brave little soldier and so does not show her emotions much, although her armor tends to crack every now and then, allowing her true persona to shine through.
* PetsAsAPresent: Her dog, Yank, a gift from Mrs. [=McIntire=].
* PrincessPhase: She admits in the film that she was scared the girls wouldn't like her if she wasn't a princess. Molly responds by telling her that she'll "always be a princess to me."
* TheQuietOne: Even after opening up to the [=McIntire=] family and her peers, she still doesn't call attention to herself.
* RedOniBlueOni: The calm and collected blue oni to Molly's impulsive red.
* ShoutOut: In the film, her favorite book is ''Literature/AChristmasCarol.''
* ShrinkingViolet: She's initially very quiet and shy and rather difficult to get to know.
* SnowballLie: Misunderstanding Molly and her friends, Emily pretends she practiced on the flutophone more than she did, which ends up getting her a starring performance... when she's not that good at it.
* SpellingBee: Added to the film, where Molly's school participates in one every school year. Molly and Emily are the finalists, which upsets Molly as Emily never studies, but before a winner can be declared, the bee is interrupted by news that Ms Campbell's fiance has died.
* TakeAThirdOption: Done by the company when pushing Molly for a movie and new collection. Molly has two best friends in her series, so rather than choosing between Susan and Linda, the company instead made one-book character Emily an Ascended Extra. The movie focuses heavily on her and Molly, she was included in one of Molly's mystery books, and she received her own book.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Emily is the sweet and gentle girly girl to Molly's energetic tomboy.
* WeNamedTheMonkeyJack: Molly and Emily name their dogs after each other, though they don't literally call them Molly and Emily at least. (Molly's dog is named Bennett, Emily's last name, while Emily's is named Yank after a slang term for Americans.)
* WeWorkWellTogether: When she ends up having to perform her flutophone in public, Molly and her friends cover her mistakes by joining her as a band.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Maryellen (1954)]]
!! Maryellen "Ellie" Larkin
[[quoteright:284:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/maryellenlogo.png]]

* TheFifties: Her time period.
* FiftiesHair: Wears her hair with short bangs and a long, curly ponytail.
* AdaptedOut: Her youngest brother in the film.
* AffectionateNickname: Her family often calls her "Ellie"; her older sister amends this with rhymes, such as "Ellie-jelly." Her next-door neighbor greets her with "What's up, doc?"
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Hates when her little siblings try to join in on her fun with friends, especially Beverly. Meanwhile, Joan considers her to be one.
* {{Bookworm}}: Her sister, Joan, who is said to be a LethalChef because she gets too distracted by reading to remember to turn the stove down. She dreams of being a teacher.
* BlitheSpirit: Unique, with big ideas, her own writing style, and wants to stand out from the crowd.
* {{Bridezilla}}: Of a Mother of the Bride sort in Maryellen's second book. Mrs. Larkin is planning to go out for a fancy wedding with home-tailored dresses and a fancy church wedding for oldest sister Joan since Mr. and Mrs. Larkin didn't have the wedding they wanted because of the Depression, Joan wants and succeeds in getting a nice but simple backyard affair.
* CanineCompanion: Her dog, Scooter.
* CheerfulChild: She is a good-natured and optimistic girl with big ideas and who enjoys pastimes.
* CheeryPink: She loves the color pink and wears a pink blouse with her poodle skirt and is a cheerful child herself.
* UsefulNotes/ColdWar: While not a huge part of her series, Maryellen mentions having to go through bomb drills in school, in case of attacks from "communist Russia."
* CoolBigSis: Maryellen's older sister Carolyn gets along great with her, as opposed to their older sister Joan.
* CutAndPasteSuburb: Maryellen laments living in one of these, where all the houses look alike. This prompts her to try and paint the front door red.
* DadTheVeteran: Mr. Larkin fought in World War II.
* DiggingToChina: Davy and some of Maryellen's siblings start digging a hole to China at the beach in her first story.
* DirtyCommunists: Maryellen's school story talks about the Cold War and centers around an allegory for the same.
* DreamingOfAWhiteChristmas: Subverted in her Christmas story, in which she has to travel to grandparents in another state in order to see snow for the first time.
* DumbBlonde: Averted, she's a strawberry blonde and very intelligent with an interest in science.
* {{Fangirl}}: A big TV and film fan, she really loves the ''Series/DavyCrockett'' serial and ''Radio/TheLoneRanger'', even making up episodes of the latter where she stars in it.
* FieryRedhead: Downplayed. She has light red hair, is very competitive, can be impulsive at times, but is not extremely short-tempered.
* FirstSnow: In her Christmas story, when she travels to her grandparents'. She later brings snow back in a cooler for her siblings to see.
* HeroesLoveDogs: She has an old weiner dog, Scooter, who she loves.
* HeyLetsPutOnAShow: In order to raise awareness for the new polio vaccine, Maryellen and her friends put on a performance instead of a birthday party.
* HeartIsWhereTheHomeIs: The lesson Maryellen learns over Christmas, when she realizes despite traveling to see snow, the snow doesn't make Christmas, her family does.
* ImportantHaircut: Her trademark bangs are cut by her on the morning of the first day of school, because she wants to look special. Unfortunately, this turns into a TraumaticHaircut as she cuts the bangs wrong and they're too short, making her look awful.
* InformedAttribute: Similar to an InformedDeformity, Maryellen is stated to have a weak leg due to her brush with polio prior to the series. However, this is mentioned only twice and never becomes a problem for her in any way. Many fanworks redesign her to have a leg brace.
* InnocentlyInsensitive: Her best girl friends, the Karens, buy poodle skirts to match Maryellen on the first day of school... not realizing she was excited for the skirt because it would make her stand out.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Maryellen can sometimes be a little bossy and whiny whenever things don't go her way, but she then apologizes for being a pain.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Maryellen 1955: Extraordinary Christmas'' (2016)
* MaltShop: Her Big Ticket Item in her collection is a 50s diner complete with working Jukebox radio.
* MassiveNumberedSiblings: Has the most siblings of the American Girl dolls, as she comes from a family of six. She's the third, and has severe MiddleChildSyndrome from it.
* MiddleChildSyndrome: The mid-born child of her many siblings, she for once would like to be known more for who she is as a person.
* TheNewRockAndRoll: Maryellen's sister Carolyn is really into the current popular music.
* NostalgiaFilter: Most of her books focus on the lifestyle of the 50s, with mentions of overcoming misogyny. The books only briefly mention polio and xenophobia against Italians, and never mention the racism and segregation of the time period. The Cold War is also a brief afterthought.
* NuclearFamily: Maryellen's mother could have gone back to work, but quit her job in solidarity with the other female workers, so now she has a working dad, stay-at-home mom, and many, many siblings.
* OnlyInMiami: Averted. She and her family live in Daytona Beach, which is in the central part of Florida.
* PimpedOutDress: Gets a classic Poodle Skirt for her collection, as her outfit for the first day of school.
* PlatonicBoyGirlHeroes: Maryellen is best friends with the boy next door, Davy. Though her sister tells her that boys and girls can't be friends past a certain age, her and Davy work out their differences and remain best friends.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: Her and Davy having a falling-out when she refuses to talk to him on the first day of school. She later has a fallout with the Karens as well. All of these get patched up.
* PluckyGirl: Nothing, not even being the middle child and a polio survivor, can stop her from achieving her dreams and being her own person.
* PrejudiceAesop: She becomes good friends with Italian immigrant Angela, but her other friends (both named Karen) believe they can never be friends with an Italian person, as they were enemies in World War II. They later learn to get along with Angela.
** Throughout the series, Maryellen worries that boys and girls can't be friends, as her sister told her once. She eventually not only befriends Davy, but his "annoying" friend Wayne, and they work together to prove their misogynistic classmates wrong.
* RetroRocket: Maryellen joins science club, inspired by the idea of space exploration, and builds a model rocket with her team.
* RoadTripPlot: For her fifth story (the middle section of her second book), she and her family go on a road trip in a camper.
* ShipperOnDeck: For her older sister Joan and her boyfriend Jerry, she even privately tells Jerry that he should go ahead and "pin" Joan already. Her efforts ensure that Joan did get "pinned" and later engaged.
* ShoutOut: Her favorite series are ''Series/DavyCrockett'' and ''Franchise/TheLoneRanger,'' and she dreams up episodes where she gets to be the hero. Her next-door best friend Davy greets her with "What's up, doc?", referencing WesternAnimation/BugsBunny.
* SignatureScene: In her first book, Maryellen tries to make their house stand out by painting the door red, which fails drastically. This moment was later made the cover of her abridged book as well as the poster for her film.
* StayInTheKitchen: Her mother stated she quit what would've been a great job in aircraft because her fellow women workers were being fired to "make way for the men" and she refused to stay. Later, Maryellen is forced to be secretary by the boys in her science group until she quits.
* SternTeacher: Maryellen dislikes her new teacher, who calls her by her siblings' names. The teacher makes her stay after class with Angela, only to later reveal she did that as she believed Maryellen would be the best to help her.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Is tomboyish, but also likes fashionable looks like bangs and poodle skirts.
* TomboyishPonytail: Has a ponytail and is chided by [[AloofOlderBrother Joan]] for being a tomboy.
* TenderTomboyishnessFoulFemininity: Maryellen is tomboyish, and can be a little bossy sometimes, but her oldest sister, Joan, is more feminine but even more bossy than she is. Also, Joan often tries to outdo Maryellen, which makes Maryellen annoyed.
* TropeyComeHome: Scooter goes missing while the family is on a road trip, and Maryellen and Joan have to work together to fetch him. He later goes missing again in ''The Runaway.''
* UnwillinglyGirlyTomboy: While not in the books, where she enjoys pink and skirts, in the film she is told not to wear pants as it's "unladylike" and made to change out of them. At the end of the movie, though, her mother whispers to her that she bought her the pants she liked, and Maryellen squeals with delight.
* WeddingEpisode: Maryellen's second book features a segment largely based aroud Joan's wedding.
* YouGoGirl: Maryellen splits from her assigned team for the rocket project after they ignore her due to her gender, and she forms her own inclusive team to compete.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Melody (1964)]]

!! Melody Ellison
[[quoteright:287:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/melodylogo.png]]
* TheSixties: Her time period, focusing on the UsefulNotes/CivilRightsMovement.
* SixtiesHair: Has relaxed hair in a long flipped out bouffant.
* AdaptedOut: In her InNameOnly adaptation, almost everyone from her huge family is cut out, leaving only her, her mother, and her grandfather. This cuts her beloved grandmother, her three siblings, her father, her dog, her best friend cousin and her parents, and her two best friends from school, Sharon and Diane. Her best friends are replaced by white classmate Tricia.
* AdaptationalHairstyleChange: While she does have her main bouffant at the end of the movie, through many scenes she has her hair in short, high pigtails, while she normally wears braids in the books.
* AffectionateNickname: Melody's family calls her [=DeeDee=], and her grandmother calls her "little chick" as she calls all her grandchildren chickadees.
* BeautifulSingingVoice: She's often told how wonderful her voice is, and she gets a solo at Church at the beginning of her first book. Her brother lets her record for one of his tracks; he has a good voice as well.
* BigBrotherMentor: She loves her brother Dwayne, who loves music as much as she does, and is upset when he and their Dad fight over his choice to pursue music rather than college.
* BigSisterInstinct: Inverted example. When she finds out the bank she made her first savings account at refused to hire her sister due to her race, she goes and withdraws all her money.
* {{Bookworm}}: Her sister, Lila.
* BreakTheCutie: The news of the church bombing from Birmingham, Alabama was enough to leave her voiceless.
* CanineCompanion: Her dog, Bo.
* CheerfulChild: Sweet, adorable, optimistic, and passionate; She is a bright ray of sunshine isn't she?
* CoolBigSis: Yvonne, a college student involved in Civil Rights protests and the first girl in their immediate family to wear a natural afro. Her brother Dwayne is also a Cool Big Bro as he becomes a traveling Motown singer and even invites his sister to the studio.
* CountryCousin: Val, who used to live in rural Alabama. Technically, her ''parents'' are Melody's country cousins, as Val is her second cousin, but they're close enough in age that they just call each other cousins.
* TheCutie: A sweet, smiling, bright-hearted girl.
* DadTheVeteran: Her father was a mechanic in the Tuskegee Airmen.
* DeathOfAChild: While not any named characters, Melody hears about the bombing in Alabama that killed four little girls and is traumatized and too terrified to go to Church.
* DesperatePleaForHome: Her cousin Valerie admits that since she had to leave Birmingham, she hasn't been able to feel at home anywhere.
* DirtyCommunists: When Melody first hears about the bombing in Alabama, she asks if it's the Russians. It's the KKK.
* DisabledInTheAdaptation: As her actress, Creator/MarsaiMartin, wears glasses in real life, [[RealLifeWritesThePlot Melody was given glasses for her film]].
* TheDiva: Her first impression of classmate Diane Harris.
* DotingGrandparent: Big Momma.
* FlowerMotifs: As a passionate gardener. She honestly gardens more than she sings.
* GirlishPigtails: Often wears her hair in two braids.
* GreenMeansNatural: Her Meet Dress is a bright green, and she loves to garden. She also has a [[YellowEarthGreenEarth lime]], flower-decorated Easter dress.
* GreenThumb: Melody loves to garden and spends a lot of time doing so. She uses her talent to spruce up the neighborhood playground and save it from being destroyed.
* HeroesLoveDogs: With her dog, Bo.
* IconicItem: Her upright piano.
* InNameOnly: As mentioned above, almost everyone in Melody's cast was adapted out for her film. The film features some events in the book, such as the Birmingham bombings and shoplifting accusations, fused into a new storyline about Melody standing up to racism in her school. Melody is more outspoken and also now shows an interest in clothing design, and Frances is a StrugglingSingleMother. CanonForeigner characters include her teacher Miss Abbot, bully Donald, and new best friend Tricia.
* InspiringSermon: In her second book, after hearing her pastor lecture about making a difference in the community, Melody becomes more active and looks for ways to help others.
* KidHero: Organizes a community cleanup for the local playground. She also begins attending protests with her sister.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Melody 1963: Love Has to Win'' (2016) InNameOnly.
* MeaningfulName: She is a singer....
* NiceGirl: One of the nicest girls around.
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed / Trumplica: The class bully in the Melody movie is a tall blond blue-eyed boy named Donald. Apparently his name was supposed to be Douglas, but on set the crew kept slipping up, so his name was changed to Donald.
* PinkMeansFeminine: An outfit that she borrows from her sister to record a song has a lot of pink florals. Her cousin Val also wears pink often.
* PluckyGirl: She is very optimistic and normally is non-plussed about racism and storms destroying plants.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: When Melody is too scared to perform her solo, her friends and cousin agree to go up with her and stand together with her.
-->Melody tugged at one of her braids. "But what if I lose my voice again? What if I think about the [four little] Birmingham girls and–"
-->"We'll all go inside together," Sharon said. "You don't have to be scared."
-->''"We're'' four little girls," Val pointed out.
* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: Yvonne and Dwayne are college-aged while Melody is nine. Her first cousins are also old enough to have a child her age.
* PrejudiceAesop: In her books, she faces several discriminatory storekeepers and businesspeople and participates in protests against them. Her cousin Valerie had to move to Detroit because her home in Alabama was becoming too dangerous for black visitors; soon afterwards, the Birmingham Bombings happen. Val's parents also have trouble finding a house that will sell to a black family. In the film, Melody protests against segregation and for equal rights.
* SaintlyChurch: New Hope Baptist Church.
* SavingTheOrphanage: Plans a cleanup of the local playground to prevent it from being torn down or abandoned.
* ShoutOut: A lot of 60s Protest songs, such as "Lift Every Voice and Sing." Melody, Lila and Val also dress up as the Marvelettes. Melody also watches Martin Luther King Jr's famous "I Have a Dream" speech on TV.
* ShrinkingViolet: Melody doesn't believe she could be a good leader due to her shy nature.
* SignificantBirthDate: January 1, representing new beginnings.
* TraumaButton: After hearing about the Birmingham Bombings, she is too traumatized to go into church without crying. When she finally returns, she is supported by her friend group.
* TrueBlueFemininity: Has blue checks on her green dress and is very much a sweetheart.
* WideEyedIdealist: Has the belief that one day her race will be treated equally.
* YoungestChildWins: She is the baby of the family and the hero.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Julie (1974)]]

!! Julie Albright
[[quoteright:226:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/julielogo.jpg]]

* TheSeventies: Time period.
* SeventiesHair: Has long, sleek hair that goes down to her back, as was popular in that decade.
* AcademicAthlete: A PassionateSportsGirl who also happens to be the elementary school's student body president.
* AllGirlsLikePonies: Though she's scared of horses at first, she ends up befriending the scary one.
* AmericanEagle: Her birthday book focuses on saving some endangered bald eagles.
* AmicablyDivorced: Julie's parents get along decently whenever they meet. Ms. Albright also scolds Tracy for her BrattyTeenageDaughter behavior towards her father. They're more standoffish in Ivy's film.
* BlitheSpirit: Heck, her first book is about Julie trying to have her new school accept girls onto the boys-only basketball team.
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Tracy is angsty, rebellious, and obsessed with popular music and boys.
* BullyingTheDisabled: The Water Fountain Girls mock Joy for being deaf, and Julie choosing Joy as her Vice Class President makes her unpopular at first.
* BunniesForCuteness: Her beloved rabbit, Nutmeg, who she keeps at her dad's house.
* CheerfulChild: A fun-loving, happy, spirited girl, full of energy and new ideas.
* ClashingCousins: Doesn't get along with her cousin at first in ''Julie's Journey.''
* CompanionCube: Her beloved doll.
* CoolToy: Though Julie's Chinese doll Yue Yan is far more important to the story (meaning of that she actually appears), the doll that actually got merchandised as part of her Christmas collection was her Barbie styling head, due to it having been a real-life Cool Toy. Before it was retired, ads in the catalogue tried to use this to play on parents' nostalgia — did ''your'' mom have a Quick Curl Barbie Beauty Centre as a kid?
* DemotedToExtra: Despite her multitude of books, her official film appearance was in her best friend ''Ivy's'' adaptation, in ''Ivy & Julie: A Happy Balance.''
* DifferingPrioritiesBreakup: It's said that Julie's parents divorced because they each had different ideas of what a woman could/should do.
* FormerBigot: In the first book, the school basketball coach refuses to even consider Julie for the basketball team due to her gender, even throwing away her petition. By the second book, he considers Julie their best player.
* GameBreakingInjury: In her second book, Julie is knocked out of the game by an angry misogynistic opponent. When she asks her coach if they won anyway, he says that no, because they lost their best player.
* GenderNormativeParentPlot: Lowkey in the first book. While her Dad likes playing basketball with her, he isn't too keen on her joining the all-male basketball team.
* GreenAesop: Her [[BirthdayEpisode Birthday Book]] is focused on wild animal conservation.
* HairContrastDuo: Dark-haired, practical Ivy and bright-blonde, dreamer Julie.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: A good-natured child that cares about people being treated respectfully, who also possesses light blonde hair.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Enjoys dog-walking with her friend, Joy. The dogs were sold with her collection.
* HorsebackHeroism: In ''Julie's Journey.''
* LovableJock: The most obvious jock out of the Historical Characters, with her love of basketball.
* NewAgeRetroHippie: Her [=BeForever=] Meet outfit is very inspired by Hippie fashion, with a giant flowery peace-sign on her shirt.
* PassionateSportsGirl: For basketball.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: Ivy at first doesn't understand Julie's drive to join the basketball team and they have a disagreement over it.
* PluckyGirl: Nothing, not even sexism or mean classmates can stop her from achieving a goal.
* PonyTale: ''Julie's Journey.''
* PunnyName: Albright ("All Bright").
* {{Qipao}}: Gets to wear one when she attends Ivy's Lunar New Year celebrations.
* RedOniBlueOni: Somewhat subverted; in the Lunar New Year celebration, passionate and headstrong Julie is in blue, and practical and collected Ivy is in red.
* ShoutOut: Julie is a huge fan of ''Series/TheBradyBunch'', and reads ''Literature/LittleHouseOnThePrairie.''
* StayInTheKitchen: Lampshaded; her parents divorce since her Dad wanted a housewife while her Mom wanted to start a business and Julie has a hard time joining the basketball team because she's a girl.
* SternTeacher: Ms. Duncan, who is extremely fond of traditional, sentence-writing detention and gives out said detentions like lottery tickets.
* StockAnimalDiet: Julie feeds her rabbit some carrots in her second book.
* StudentCouncilPresident: Julie runs for Class President in her last book, giving her an interest in politics.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The Tomboy to Ivy's and Tracy's {{Girly Girl}}s.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Julie is usually considered tomboyish in comparison to Ivy due to her love of basketball and hanging out with boys. However, she also enjoys baking with Ivy, making bracelets, and dressing up with Ivy for Chinese New Year.
* TreasureHuntEpisode: ''The Puzzle of the Paper Daughter'' has Julie and Ivy searching for a doll Ivy's grandma once owned, racing against an unknown third party who wants it for the valuable treasure hidden inside.
* YouGoGirl: Julie's efforts to joint the basketball team serve as a kid-friendly representation of second-wave feminism.
* WhiteSheep: The first boy to encourage Julie in her basketball efforts is classmate TJ.
* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: Becomes terrified of horses, then has to ride one in ''Julie's Journey.''
* WideEyedIdealist: Seen through her efforts to join a basketball team that bars girls and help a disabled classmate.

!! Ivy Ling
[[quoteright:221:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ivylogo.jpg]]

* SeventiesHair: In some books, she has her hair cut in a pageboy that mimics [[https://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?q=nancy%20drew%201974&rs=typed&term_meta=nancy%7Ctyped&term_meta=drew%7Ctyped&term_meta=1974%7Ctyped Nancy Drew]].
* AdaptationalHairstyleChange: While her style changes throughout the books, she always has bangs. In the film, no bangs, and a long ponytail in the book where she had shoulder-length hair.
* ArcWords: "Dragons make their own luck."
* BreakoutCharacter: Despite only having one book in comparison to Julie's multiple, she is still incredibly popular, even post-retirement. When her doll wasn't even being sold, her book was adapted to film!
* ChekhovsClassroom: Ivy complains at the beginning of her book about having to go to Chinese School every weekend and learn Cantonese. Then, later in the book, when she finds a woman has lost her child in Chinatown, and they can only speak Cantonese, she is able to translate for her and help the family reunite.
* CompanionCube: Her beloved doll.
* DragonsUpTheYinYang: Ivy's brother tells her that "Dragons make their own luck," which becomes her mantra.
* FamilyHonor: Ivy seems to have a deep connection to her Chinese heritage, although Chinese school is somewhat boring to her and she doesn't like to eat Chinese food every single day.
* FriendlyLocalChinatown: Literally lives in the Chinatown area of San Francisco.
* GirlyGirlWithATomboyStreak: Ivy is definitely the more girly girl in comparison to her sporty and tomboyish best friend Julie,due to her love of baking and making bracelets. However, she has a sporty side for gymnastics, and she sometimes enjoys playing baskeball with Julie, even though Julie always beats her at it.
* HairContrastDuo: Dark-haired, practical Ivy and bright-blonde, dreamer Julie.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Her book is about her juggling her individual interests with her family obligations.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Downplayed, because she is usually a hardworking girl with a caring heart. In Meet Julie, Ivy gets upset with Julie when she feels she is getting dragged along over Julie wanting people to sign her petition to join the boys' basketball team and storms off. However, Julie then receives mail from Ivy which is a petition with her name on it in order to be Julie's friend again.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Ivy & Julie 1976: A Happy Balance,'' an adaptation of her book.
* NervousWreck: When she has to decide between her gymnastics tournament and her family reunion.
* ThePerfectionist: She loves gymnastics and hates to mess up in front of a crowd.
* {{Qipao}}: Her Lunar New Year dress, also used for her family reunion.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: Ivy at first doesn't understand Julie's drive to join the basketball team and they have a disagreement over it.
* ThePowerOfFamily: Ivy learns to appreciate her family and its history throughout her book.
* RedIsHeroic: Her formal qipao is a bright red, representing the lucky Chinese color.
* RedOniBlueOni: Somewhat subverted; in the Lunar New Year celebration, passionate and headstrong Julie is in blue, and practical and collected Ivy is in red.
* ShoutOut: Loves to watch ''Series/TheBradyBunch'' with Julie. Her brother also idolizes Creator/JackieChan.
* TokenMinority: She serves as Julie's Chinese best friend in the line, and also happens to be the single historical Asian character to have been produced to date.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The gymnastics loving girly girl to basketball loving Julie's Tomboy.
* TreasureHuntEpisode: ''The Puzzle of the Paper Daughter'' has Julie and Ivy searching for a doll Ivy's grandma once owned, racing against an unknown third party who wants it for the valuable treasure hidden inside.
* TwoTimerDate: Ivy finds out that her big gymnastics meet is the same night as her very important family reunion; this is the main plot point of her book and film.
* WhenYouComingHomeDad: Ivy's mother is studying to be a lawyer and thus is very busy, often leading to Ivy taking care of her little sister. Her mother later expresses how much she appreciates Ivy for helping her out, and Ivy understands how excited her mother is to be continuing her schooling.

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Courtney (1986)]]
!!Courtney Moore
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/courtney_bio.png]]
* TheEighties: No, duh! She loves ''Pac-Man'', is a ValleyGirl, has EightiesHair, and her signature collection is described as "totally rad", "ultimate", and "awesome".
* EightiesHair: Has long, bouncy, curly hair with volume to high heaven. Makes sense, since her time period is the 1980s. Her stepsister Tina also begs for a perm.
* AfraidToHoldTheBaby: Tina is very skittish around Courtney's guinea pig. She eventually gets over this.
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: Happened to Isaac in his previous town, after his HIV was discovered. When it's found out in Orange Valley, he's already in the hospital and then confined at home, so the mobs turn their anger towards Courtney, his one visitor and staunch defender.
* AmicableExes: Her parents are completely amicable and communicate often.
* BadHairDay: For the newspaper photo reporting on her Mom's campaign. Her mom barely manages to fix it.
* BewareTheQuietOnes: She is a sweet, cheerful, quiet young girl who keeps to herself but when two TV reporters ask her mother questions about how she would balance motherhood and being a mayor [[DoubleStandard (not that they'd ask a male candidate such questions)]], she speaks up to them and tells them her mother is a hard-worker and good mother and she has a husband who can help out with domestic tasks.
* BeYourself: When Courtney opines that she can't end her dream videogame amicably because that's not what every other video game is like, Tina responds, "Yours doesn't have to be," giving her an epiphany.
* BlandNameProduct: Some of her other favorite video games are "Gorilla Run" (highley likely to be VideoGame/DonkeyKong) and "Space Blaster", which could be any well known space shooting game but is likely ''VideoGame/{{Galaga}}.''
* BlendedFamilyDrama: Mainly with her sister, Tina.
* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Somewhat Tina, who is argumentative, hot-tempered, and into fashion and pop culture.
* BreakingTheGlassCeiling: Courtney's mother runs for mayor, which would make her the first mayor of their town.
* CategorismAsAPhobia: Everyone who hates Isaac does so because they're afraid he will infect them; this is portrayed more as a problem of misinformation than the actual bigotry involved in the HIV scare.
* CheeryPink: She is a bright, happy girl who enjoys vivid colors like pink. She even wears pink tights on her cover for ''Courtney Changes the Game'' and pink scrunchies or hair bows.
* ChildrenAreInnocent: Her half-brother, Rafi, is just too damn cute.
* ConspicuousConsumption: Courtney, her stepsister, and her best friends spend most of their time at the Mall.
* CoolTeacher: Her first teacher, Mr. Garcia, who tries to do the moonwalk to impress the kids. Her second teacher staunchly defends her and Isaac.
* DanceSensation: Tina really loves to dance and often pulls Courtney up to dance with her.
* DeathIsASadThing: Courtney is traumatized, and Tina re-traumatized, as they watch the Challenger explosion live. Didn't help that Courtney thought that Christa [=McAuliffe=] looked like her mother...
* DeathOfAChild: While he doesn't die onscreen, Isaac confides to Courtney that with his diagnosis, he isn't going to live long. On the drive home, Courtney starts crying over how unfair it is that he is likely to die at his young age.
* DenserAndWackier: Her collection is extremely bright-colored, very focused on the nostalgia of the 1980s.
* DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment: One of the pretend snacks that came with Courtney's lunch box has the label "Cheese Flavored Cheese Puffs."
* DisappearedDad: While her Dad is very present in her life, he has to move farther away, which makes their visits less frequent. She is very upset over this.
* DoomedByCanon: Doomed by ''Reality.'' When the book opens with Courtney excited for the ''Challenger'' launch, audiences flinch, dreading what's coming.
* FashionHurts: Courtney gets her ears pierced in her first book, and the book describes her ears as bright red and throbbing in the moments afterwards.
* {{Fashionista}}: She is always dressed in the stylish (and garish) designs of the decade.
* GamerChick: She has one of the highest score on the local ''VideoGame/PacMan'' arcade cabinet. She also gets the idea to create her own video game, ''Crystal Starshooter'' (though she only plans the game and does not do the programming herself).
* GirlyGirlWithATomboyStreak: Courtney is into fashion, stuffed animals,American Girl dolls, and girly cartoons like Care Bears and Strawberry Shortcake. However, she also has a gamer girl side for games in the arcade, such as Pac Man.
* [[GoodStepmother Good Stepfather]]: Mike D'Amico is thoughtful, kind, friendly, and extremely supportive of his family.
* IconicItem: Her Pac-Man video game set. Her sister Tina also has her favorite ceramic unicorn from her mother.
* IMissMom: Stepsister Tina's main angst throughout the first book.
* InspirationallyDisadvantaged: Isaac, Courtney's new best friend who is shunned for his HIV.
* IntercontinuityCrossover: Was placed in 1986 solely for this reason. In her second book, she discovers an early American Girl catalogue and becomes obsessed with Molly, as she relates to her missing her father. She begs for the doll, and while it's expensive, her father gives it to her for Christmas. Her and her best friend Sarah also pour over the catalogue, with Sarah favoring Kirsten, and the boys draw parody art of the pioneer.
** As a cute little detail, in Courtney's collection, when buying her mini-Molly, she comes with a doll-sized catalogue, with Courtney having circled all the stuff she wants. Most girls who got these catalogues can relate.
* NegatedMomentOfAwesome: Maureen ends up losing the election offscreen inbetween books, basically rendering that an AbortedArc.
* NiceGirl: Sweet, helpful, cheerful, and very accepting when she learns one of her new friends has HIV straight away.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Courtney tries to clean up her and Tina's room to make her stepsister happy, but ends up breaking her Carousel Horse figure, a gift from her dead mother.
* NoCommunitiesWereHarmed: Courtney's Orange Valley is clearly San Fernando Valley.
* NostalgiaFilter: Her second book deals with the HIV/AIDS scare. She and Isaac are indeed brutally bullied and shunned, ''but'' the book places most of the blame on the confusion within the panic, and the lack of widespread information. Any homophobia tied into the scare was only briefly mentioned in the ''Looking Back'' section. On a related note, Reagan is also portrayed as way cooler and better than he was.
* OpenMindedParent: Courtney's mother and stepfather are all immediately accepting of Isaac and defend him when the town turns against his family. Her father isn't involved, but he takes her in for a while when things get too dangerous for her in town and helps her research everything they can find on HIV to spread correct information.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: Her and Sarah have a fallout over Courtney keeping Isaac's secret. It later turns out that Sarah isn't intentionally bigoted towards him, but was more upset that Courntey didn't tell her; Courtney replies that it wasn't her secret to tell.
* PullingYourChildAway: A boy is pulled away from Courtney during a protest outside her school.
* TheQuietOne: Very shy around everyone but her close friends. After standing up for her mother on live TV, her classmate states that he had no idea she could be so bold or loud.
* ShoutOut: Courtney ''adores VideoGame/PacMan'' and is super good at the game. She also knows of ''Mrs. Pac-Man'' but doesn't find her to be adequate female representation, as she's just Pac-Man with a bow. She also goes to her friend Kip's house to play ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros.''
** Her stepfather works at the mall and offers to rent their favorite movies for movie night- for Tina, ''{{Film/Footloose}},'' and for Courtney, ''Film/TheGoonies.''
** The Moore-D'Amico kids also all love "[[Music/CyndiLauper Girls Just Wanna Have Fun]]."
** Courtney's collection features ''Franchise/CareBears'' pajamas with a matching sleeping bag. She is also a fan of ''Franchise/MyLittlePony.''
* ShrinkingViolet: She is normally a shy and quiet girl who keeps to herself, yet surprises herself when she speaks up for her mother in a live TV interview when she feels her mother is being treated unfairly.
* StayInTheKitchen: Courtney's mother Maureen is running for mayor of their town. During a TV interview when the reporters ask Maureen if she's capable of being a good mother and a good mayor, normally shy Courtney speaks up and says her mother is capable of both.
* SweaterGirl: Sarah Barrett is almost exclusively illustrated in sweaters.
* TechnologyMarchesOn: Courtney is very excited to use a rare Computer at her Dad's office.
* ThisIsMySide: Tina really dislikes sharing a room with Courtney.
* TotallyRadical: As befitting a character from the 1980s.
* ValleyGirl: She lives in a suburb in San Fernando Valley, likes going to the mall arcade, enjoys fashion, and uses the slang of the era. However, she is much more intelligent and ambitious than the usual trope.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Isabel and Nicki (1999)]]
!!Isabel and Nicki Hoffman
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/isabelnickigirlpower.png]]
* AllJewsAreAshkenazi: Isabel and Nicki are Jewish through their father, and both are very white.
* AmbiguouslyChristian and AmbiguouslyJewish: At this point in the girls' release, it's unknown whether they are religiously Jewish or Christian. They celebrate both Christmas and Hanukkah.
* BirthdayBuddies: Obviously, as twins. They were both born on May 22, 1990.
* CatDogDichotomy: With Isabel being a KindHeartedCatLover and Nicki being a dog-lover.
* ConvertingForLove: Subverted with the Hoffmans' parents; their dad is Jewish and their mother is Christian, and the girls were raised in a happy interfaith household.
* HairContrastDuo: Isabel's light blonde to Nicki's brunette.
* IntercontinuityCrossover: Isabel and Nicki enjoy playing on the American Girl site and receiving American Girl Magazine.
* MenLikeDogsWomenLikeCats: While both Isabel and Nicki are girls, the more feminine Isabel loves cats and the more masculine Nicki is a dog lover.
* MillenniumBug: A minor plot point in the series, as Nicki is afraid the Y2K bug will end the world.
* NinetiesHair: Mainly Nicki's grunge style and dyed hair, though Isabel has shades of this, too, with her tennis pigtails.
* PetsAsAPresent: They get their dog and cat for the first night of Hannukah.
* PolarOppositeTwins: Evoked quite a lot in the advertisements; Isabel is a pink, preppy, extroverted girl, while Nicki is a grunge, quiet, introverted girl.
* RedOniBlueOni: Extroverted Red(/Pink) Isabel with Introverted Blue(/Purple) Nicki.
* ShoutOut: SO MUCH.
** Isabel is a hardcore stan of the {{Music/SpiceGirls}}, while Nicki loves {{Music/NoDoubt}} and Isabel's friends are fans of {{Music/NSync}}.
** Nicki's favorite show is ''{{WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls1998}}'' and she names her dog after one of the main characters. Isabel does the same with ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer.''
** Nicki mentions reading ''Addy Learns a Lesson.''
* SiblingYinYang: Evoked quite a lot in the advertisements; Isabel is a pink, preppy, extroverted girl, while Nicki is a grunge, quiet, introverted girl.
* SimultaneousArcs: While their first book featured both [=POVs=], the dolls were originally released with separate journals taking place over the same month.
* ThisIsMySide: Each mark territory over half of their room.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Nicki's skateboarding tomboy and Isabel's fashionable girly girl.
* TotallyRadical: Very 90s! (Despite technically being Y2K dolls.)
* TwentyMinutesIntoThePast: The closest Historical Character release to their original time period, at ~23 years.
* TwinTelepathy: Very minor case, but Isabel insists that her and Nicki know what each other are thinking. Nicki seems more skeptical.
* YouGoGirl: Incredibly ham-fisted, with Isabel and Nicki both setting "Girl Power" goals, and Nicki trying to prove that girls can skateboard, too.
* YoungerThanTheyLook: The dolls' painted faces and styles make them look more like teenagers than nine-year-olds of the time period, with the eye-paint resembling makeup and outfits closer to something a teenager would wear; Isabel's meet outfit is very similar to Cher from ''{{Film/Clueless}}.''

!!Isabel Hoffman
* AlphaBitch: The new member of her friend group, Cammy.
* ArtsyBeret: For her Meet outfit.
* CheeryPink: An optimistic girl clothed constantly in pink.
* DIYDisaster: Decides to cheer herself up by completely redoing her room in pink, which works... until her grunge sister, who she shares a room with, arrives.
* GirlyGirlWithATomboyStreak: Isabel is definitely the more girly twin due to her love of pop music, pink, the Powerpuff Girls, and fashion. However, she also has a sporty side when playing tennis.
* GirlishPigtails: When playing tennis.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: This sweet, friendly girl has bright blonde hair.
* KindHeartedCatLover: With her new cat, Buffy.
* PassionateSportsGirl: Becomes one after she takes up Tennis.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Incredibly girly, incredibly pink.
* RedOniBlueOni: Isabel's red (extrovert) to Nicki's blue (introvert).
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Not only shares the name of 2014's Girl of the Year Isabelle, she has the same hair and eye color, as well as the same color scheme and interest in fashion and dance.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Isabel is the fashionable girly girl to Nicki's skateboarding tomboy.

!!Nicki Hoffman
* AloofDarkHairedGirl: Introverted and alternative Nicki.
* BlueIsCalm: The more grounded one in comparison to her sister, also clothed more in blue than Isabel's pink.
* BlueIsHeroic: Despite her favorite color being purple, her color scheme in marketing is mainly blue.
* BraidsOfAction: Wears two braids when skateboarding.
* BrainyBrunette: Though she dyes her hair later.
* CanineCompanion: With her new dog, Blossom.
* CoolBoard: A passionate skateboarder.
* DaddysGirl: Implied.
* DeadpanSnarker: To a point.
* GameBreakingInjury: She twists her ankle before the Y2K celebration, where she wanted to prove that "girls could skate, too."
* HeroesLoveDogs: With her new dog, Blossom.
* {{Hipster}}: A little bit.
* IAmBecomingSong: Nicki is a songwriter who ends up giving her dad one of her songs to perform.
* LikeFatherLikeSon: Nicki and her father are both really into the Grunge scene.
* MysteriousPurple: Her favorite color is purple, and she's often hiding in her room and avoiding people.
* NonconformistDyedHair: Has two bleached streaks. At the end of the first book, Nicki also dyes her hair purple temporarily.
* PurpleIsPowerful: As Nicki is finally coming out of her shell, Isabel helps her dye her hair purple.
* RedOniBlueOni: Nicki's blue (introvert) to Isabel's red (extrovert).
* SiblingSenioritySquabble: According to Isabel's journal, Nicki insists that she should get to do things first because she is five minutes older.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: While not as obvious as Saige, this Nicki shares several similarities to the first Nicki, the 2007 Girl of the Year Nicki Fleming: firstly, the exact same name spelling for no apparent reason. Secondly, both Nickis have brown hair, blue eyes, some serious anxiety and a huge love for dogs. They're also both the oldest siblings in their family.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Nicki is the skateboarding tomboy to Isabel's fashionable girly girl.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Nicki is definitely the more tomboyish twin due to her love of skateboarding and her dislikes of almost all of the "girly" stuff that Isabel likes. However, Nicki's favorite color is purple, which can be considered as a girly color. Also, Nicki likes the Powerpuff Girls as much as Isabel does. (Nicki's favorite character is Blossom.)
[[/folder]]

!Girls Of The Year
[[folder: Lindsey (2001)]]
!!Lindsey Bergman
[[quoteright:278:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lindseylogo_8.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:278:Lindsey on her book cover.]]
* AlphaBitch: Blair Kolinski and Missy Rizzo.
* AllJewsAreAshkenazi: Lindsey, along with the only other Jewish dolls so far, is Ashkenazi.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: She acts as this to her older brother, Ethan.
* BoyishShortHair: She is one of the only two American Girl Dolls with short hair, following Kit.
* CanineCompanion: Her dog, Mr. Tiny (surprisingly not made into a plushie), who is her best friend. She is distraught upon losing him and offers to trade her prized scooter for his safe return.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Lindsey thinks her life is always going to turn out like her fantasies. She's never right.
* CoolUncle: A bit of a subversion, with Lindsey being the Cool Niece who helps her recently-divorced Uncle open up.
* CuteClumsyGirl: Lindsey.
* DidntThinkThisThrough: Lindsey never thinks before she acts.
* EccentricArtist: Downplayed, but a lot of Lindsey's interests lead towards artistic endeavors, such as decorating the trash cans or becoming very invested in her collage.
* EndearinglyDorky: Lindsey to a T.
* EpicFail: Everything Lindsey attempts.
* EvenTheDogIsAshamed: From Lindsey's book, after everyone gets mad at her for ruining the pet parade.
-->It didn't get any better when I got home, either. Mom met me at the door with her own version of the asparagus face. Even my dog, Mr. Tiny, the most loyal and fabulous wiener dog in the history of the world, lowered his tail and slunk down to the basement at the sight of me.
* FatalFlaw: Lindsey's inability to think things through results in all of the problems in her book.
* TheHeart: Nobody realizes Lindsey is this to the rest of her family until she needs to cheer up Ethan, her mother, and then her Uncle.
* HiddenDepths: Lindsey's brother Ethan is mainly just annoyed at her for most of the book, until he has a stress-breakdown related to his bar mitzvah and refuses to talk to anyone ''but'' Lindsey.
* JewishAndNerdy: Lindsey is the first American Girl doll to have a laptop, in a time period where personal laptops weren't always accessible. This is likely due to the fact her father is a tech company engineer.
* JewishMother: While her mother isn't a stereotypical depiction, she becomes quite nervous and controlling as Lindsey's brother's bar mitzvah approaches.
* JewishSmartass: Lindsey isn't ''trying'' to be a smartass. She's just not really able to understand what's appropriate and inappropriate to say.
* KidsAreCruel: Lindsey and her best friend, April, are relentlessly bullied.
* LoserProtagonist: Nothing ever seems to go right for this poor girl.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: The story of her life. She can't ever seem to do anything right; her protest against the Pet Parade just turns everyone against her, she tries to set up a teacher with another MARRIED teacher... and most famously, her attempts to make her neighborhood look happier with her smiley-face stickers ended up getting her neighbors threatening to sue.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Everything Lindsey tries to do backfires spectacularly.
* PetTheDog: Lindsey's rude neighbor, Josh, plays into this trope almost literally when he finds and returns Lindsey's lost dog.
* PluckyGirl: Lindsey.
* QuirkyCurls: She has extremely curly hair, though it's quite short.
* ShipperOnDeck: Lindsey tries to force a relationship between two of her teachers.
* StrangeMindsThinkAlike: Lindsey and April are the only ones who understand each other at their school; they are also the school weirdos.
* ATragedyOfImpulsiveness: Everything Lindsey tries.
* Tomboy: She is the most tomboyish out of all the other Girls of the Year. She climbs trees, she dislikes girly stuff (including tutus on guinea pigs), and she rides her scooter.
* TenderTomboyishnessFoulFemininity: Lindsey is very tomboyish, and also very sweet, energetic, and joyful, and she stands up for April, a girl who often gets picked on by Missy and Blair, two girls who are Alpha Bitches.
* TropeyComeHome: Mr. Tiny goes missing, devastating his owner.
* TroubledProduction: Lindsey was first released only ten days before September 11, 2001. While this isn't CONFIRMED to be the reason she had low sales...
* WellIntentionedExtremist: A very sanitized version of this trope, as this book was written for little girls, but the book begins with Lindsey interrupting the pet parade to try and protest for animal rights... resulting in mass chaos.
* TheWoobie: Nothing ever goes right for Lindsey, no matter how well-intentioned her goals are. By the time she has a breakdown in the school bathroom upon seeing the school bully get an award for her art, let alone what happens AFTER, you feel horrible for this poor kid.
* YesMan: Missy Rizzo, Blair's best friend who really only repeats what she says.
* YouthfulFreckles: Lindsey has a splash of freckles across her nose.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Kailey (2003)]]
!!Kailey Hopkins
[[quoteright:258:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kaileylogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:258:Kailey on the American Girl site.]]
* CapitalismIsBad: Kailey and Tess are at first excited about the prospect of a new mall in their town... until they find out that the mall will destroy the local ecosystem.
* CommonalityConnection: Kailey manages to connect with Mr. Drake over their love of the tide pools.
* ConflictingLoyalty: Kailey is adamant about saving the beach from the new mall, but Tess really wants the mall and is less sympathetic to Kailey's cause after breaking her arm on the beach.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Downplayed, as Mr. Drake turns out to be quite reasonable.
* DissensionRemorse: Kailey and Tess.
* EarthyBarefootCharacter: While Kailey's doll comes with sandals, she is usually illustrated as barefoot on the beach.
* GreenAesop: Kailey fights for the creatures living on the beach's tide pools.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Kailey is a bright blonde girl with a heart for every living thing on the beach.
* InjuredLimbEpisode: Kailey's best friend, Tess, breaks her arm for half the book.
* KidHero: Kailey spearheads her environmental campaign against the new mall.
* LighthairedSwimmer: Blonde beach girl.
* NatureIsNotNice: Tess falls from the rocks on the beach, breaking her arm in an immensely painful way.
* NatureLover: Both Kailey and her mother are fascinated by Marine Biology; Kailey spends a lot of her time on the beach inspecting the tide pools.
* ObnoxiousInLaws: Part of the reason Mr. Drake sees sense about not destroying the tide pools is because his mother-in-law, Julia, gives him a talking-to.
* OceanAwe: Kailey spends a good chunk of the book talking about how beautiful the beaches are.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Kailey is a bit of a tomboy due to her sporty attitude and not a fan of shopping, while her best friend, Tess, is a huge fan of shopping.
* ToylineExclusiveCharacter: Kailey was given a golden retriever dog, Sandy, in her small collection. This was strange, considering she did not have a pet in the books; meanwhile, the last Girl of the Year, Lindsey, had a plot-important dog who got ''no'' plushie.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Marisol (2005)]]
!!Marisol Luna
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/marisollogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:280:Marisol and Rascal on Marisol's book cover.]]
* AmbiguouslyGay: Marisol, a very sporty girl, claims she will never have a boyfriend (her Dad playing pretend with her was her "first and only boyfriend") and instinctively pulls away when a boy pulls her in to dance. As well as this, Gloria Mendoza and Clara G move in together after reconnecting; Clara used to be Gloria's student, but their ambiguous ages could imply this is a romantic connection.
* ChoreographyPorn: A good portion of the book is spent describing different dances.
* CoolTeacher: Marisol's homeroom teacher was voted best teacher of the school the previous year. She also helps host Marisol's going-away dance-off.
* DancePartyEnding: Marisol's class has a going-away surprise party for her featuring a celebratory dance.
* DecemberDecemberRomance: Marisol's neighbor, Roberto Mendoza, is sixty years old, and decides to marry one of the women from his local senior centor. This manages to free up his caretaker daughter Gloria to teach dance in Marisol's new neighborhood.
* KindheartedCatLover: Rascal, Marisol's cat, used to be a stray, but Marisol took care of him and took him home.
* MovingAwayEnding: The whole book leads up to the Luna family's move to a new neighborhood.
* PassionateSportsGirl: Marisol describes herself as incredibly good at any sport that requires a ball.
* TakeAThirdOption: Marisol is told that her new neighborhood doesn't have a dance studio, so she may have to give up dancing. She instead manages to convince her neighbor to open a dance studio close enough for her and the other kids in the neighborhood.
* TropeyComeHome: Rascal goes missing shortly before the family moves, to Marisol's dismay.
* TroubledProduction: Marisol's book was criticized for a moment in which her parents explain they are moving because the neighborhood is dangerous and hard for kids to play in. Residents of the area protested, seeing this as a negative and inaccurate portrayal of their neighborhood. American Girl responded as such:
-->''"We feel that this brief passage has been taken out of context in the book...In the story you'll see that Marisol's parents want to have a house and a yard, and a place for her to play. As well as [those], there are some other reasons, too, that they are talking about moving."''
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Jess (2006)]]
!!Jess [=McConnell=]
[[quoteright:280:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jesslogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:280:Jess McConnell on the American Girl site.]]
* ActionGirl: Jess is an enthusiastic soccer player who is excited to go kayaking and climbing.
* AdventurerArchaeologist: Jess would like to be this.
* TheBabyOfTheBunch: Jess struggles to be seen as grown-up when her parents and siblings just see her as the baby of the family.
* BigBrotherBully: In his letter to Jess, her brother reminds her of her past failings and calls her by a nickname she hates.
* BraidsOfAction: Jess's doll comes with her hair in braids, as do most of her illustrations.
* CommonalityConnection: Jess and Sarita, over soccer.
* CoolBigSis: Jess's sister's letter is very sweet and heartfelt.
* CultureClash: Jess is shocked to see a woman breastfeeding in public.
* FishOutOfWater: This is the first time Jess has been out of the country and on one of her parents' archeological expeditions.
* GoingNative: Jess often imagines herself as a Maya princess. She does end up staying with an indigenous Maya family for a little bit, becoming best friends with the daughter, Sarita.
* HomeschooledKids: Jess is homeschooled during her trip to Belieze, though she checks in with a teacher by emailing her assignments.
* MultiEthnicName: Jess's middle name, "Akiko," refers to her mother's Japanese heritage, while her last name, "[=McConnell=]," is more European, for her father's Irish/Scottish heritage.
* PassionateSportsGirl: Jess and Sarita bond over their love of soccer.
* PetBabyWildAnimal: Jess temporarily helps raise a parrot while in Belieze.
* TreasureRoom: Jess and Sarita fall into a room full of ancient pottery.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Nicki (2007)]]
!!Nicki Fleming
[[quoteright:283:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nickilogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:283:Nicki and Sprocket on Nicki's book cover.]]
* AllDogsArePurebred: Somewhat averted. Sprocket is said to be a mixed-breed dog, however he has the appearance of a purebred Bernese Mountain Dog.
* AllGirlsLikePonies: Nicki is quite the horse girl. She even has her own beloved horse, Jackson, who she rides when she feels down.
* AlphaBitch: Heather.
* BigNo: Nicki struggles with saying "No" throughout her first book, until she finally does so in order to protect Sprocket.
* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler: The second book ends with Nicki learning to let Sprocket go and do what he was trained to do, even though she will miss him.]]
* BrokenAce: Because of the fact she does everything for everyone.
* CanineCompanion: Sprocket, as Nicki trains him to be a service dog.
* {{Catchphrase}}: For Nicki's brother, Adam: "No way, José."
* CharacterTics: Heather constantly taps her pencil, as if to the beat of a song in her head.
* CopeByPretending: Nicki tries this for a little while. It doesn't work well.
* DogsLoveBeingPraised: Nicki always says "Good dog" to Sprocket whenever he does something right.
* TheEeyore: Poor Nicki spends most of the second book completely depressed over [[spoiler:the departure of Sprocket.]]
* ExtremeDoormat: At the beginning of the series.
* FarmersDaughter: Nicki lives on a pig and horse farm, and dresses like it in all of her marketable outfits.
* InterclassFriendship: Nicki and Becca both dislike the rich people moving into and gentrifying their neighborhood. While Heather turns out to be just as much of a rich brat as they thought, Kris becomes a close friend of theirs.
* LongLastLook: [[spoiler:When Nicki sees Sprocket for the last time.]]
* NearAndDearBabyNaming: Nicki's mother asks her to name her [[spoiler:baby sisters,]] and she [[spoiler:names them after her best friends, Becca and Kris.]]
* NewFriendEnvy: Becca gets very jealous whenever Nicki hangs out with Kris in both books.
* NiceGirl: Nicki can't say "No," no matter what, out of fear of disappointing someone.
* OutdoorsyGal: Her main interests are skiing and horseback riding; she also spends a lot of time sitting outside and sketching.
* PassionateSportsGirl: For skiing, though it doesn't appear much in the books.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: Her best friend, Becca, gets very jealous of Nicki's new friend Kris in both books and threatens to ditch Nicki due to it.
* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: Nicki is ten years old when her youngest siblings are born.
* PreciousPuppy: Sprocket brings Nicki hope, fun, and a love she's never felt before. Too bad he'll inevitably have to leave...
* RichBitch: Heather.
* SamaritanSyndrome: The entire first book features Nicki being unable to say "no" to anyone, to her own detriment.
* SelectiveObliviousness: In ''Thanks to Nicki,'' Nicki's mother talks very happily about how well Sprocket's training went and how they should train another dog... while Nicki and Adam are both completely depressed right in front of her.
* StoicWoobie: Throughout most of her stories, Nicki is trying to act like she is fine despite her anxious and depressive thoughts.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Only a few years before Nicki's debut, Canadian doll brand Maplelea debuted Taryn Brady, an Appalachian brunette girl with a Bernese Mountain Dog and an interest in art and nature. Funnily enough, fifteen years later Nicki would get her own suspiciously similar substitute in Corinne, and her name reused for Nicki Hoffman.
* TearJerker: The entire second book, basically.
* TooUnhappyToBeHungry: Nicki in the second book, while her Mom obliviously talks about how great Sprocket's training went.
* TrainingThePet: She has to train Sprocket to be a service dog as a favor to her mother.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Mia (2008)]]
!!Mia St. Clair
[[quoteright:237:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mialogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:237:Mia on the American Girl site.]]
* AlphaBitch: Vanessa Knowles.
* TheBabyOfTheBunch: Mia is the youngest of her family and the only daughter. When her brothers accidentally hurt her in a game, her mom chastises them, telling them that Mia is weaker than they are.
* BullyTurnedBuddy: Vanessa starts to be a little nicer to Mia following their heart-to-heart in the hotel.
* {{Catchphrase}}: "No guts, no glory."
* {{Cliffhanger}}: Between the first and second books.
* CoolTeacher: Mia's new coach, Emma Schubert.
* CuteClumsyGirl: Mia is constantly messing up her skating routine. She also begins the book by almost running over someone with a zamboni... oops.
* EmbarrassingAnimalSuit: Mia has to dress up as Zuzu the mascot Squirrel.
* FieryRedhead: Mia has bright red hair.
* IHaveBrothers: Mia has three older brothers, who she attributes to her tough attitude.
* IJustWantToBeLoved: Mia finds out that her rival, Vanessa, acts out due to the fact her parents never give her attention.
* LikeBrotherAndSister: At the end of the second book, Mia tells Anya that she's one of the St. Clairs now.
* LikeFatherLikeSon: Mia's best friend Anya is an ice skater; her mother is said to have been a skater in Europe.
* LivingLegend: We find out that Coach Schubert used to be an Olympic Ice Skater.
* LonelyRichKid: Vanessa Knowles.
* TheMentor: Coach Schubert gives a lot of time to Mia.
* PassionateSportsGirl: Mainly for ice skating, but she also loves ice hockey and used to play.
* PerpetualPoverty: Mia and her family often work odd jobs in order to make enough money to survive.
* RaceLift: Early prototype images of Mia show she was originally supposed to be Indian-American. By her final release, she was changed to a white ginger.
* RedheadsAreUncool: Mia mentions in the first chapter of her first book that she's often teased for her red hair.
* ResentfulOutnumberedSibling: Downplayed for the most part, but Mia does sometimes feel left out as the only girl.
* SecondPlaceIsForWinners: [[spoiler: In the second book.]]
* SiblingTeam: Mia and her brothers all play ice hockey together.
* WorkingClassHero: Mia and her family are quite poor.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Chrissa (2009)]]
!!Chrissa Maxwell, Gwen Thompson and Sonali Matthews
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/chrissalogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Gwen, Chrissa and Sonali in the books.]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/2022_4_1_b042e3b4_4992_4ded_b4f2_e324d4b2d50b_png_2000x1125.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Sonali, Chrissa and Gwen in the movie.]]
* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: Chrissa for being the new girl, and Gwen for being poor.
* AlphaBitch: Tara.
* BetaBitch: Jadyn. In the second book, [[spoiler:she becomes the main Alpha Bitch after Tara starts trying to befriend Chrissa]].
* BitchInSheepsClothing: Tara is able to get away with a lot of her bullying due to her reputation.
* BulliedIntoDepression: Happens to Chrissa throughout her story. Implied to be part of the reason Gwen is so depressed all the time as well.
* BullyMagnet: Poor Gwen.
* BullyTurnedBuddy: Moreso in the film than in the books, but this happens to all of the Mean Bees.
* CoolOldLady: Chrissa is very close with her Nana.
* {{Cyberbullying}}: As cyberbullying was just starting to become a problem in this time period, Chrissa's entire second book is focused on it.
* DisappearedDad: Gwen's dad; in the books he abandons his family, and in the movie he has died.
* EccentricArtist: Chrissa's teacher.
* ElegantClassicalMusician: Gwen's a violinist.
* EnemyEatsYourLunch: In the film, the Mean Bees steal Chrissa's cookies. Luckily, she had some saved up.
* EveryoneLovesBlondes: The class bully and popular girl, Tara, is blonde. So is her second-in-command, Jadyn, in the film.
* FakeNationality: Indian Sonali was portrayed by Mexican Ariela Barer.
* FightingBackIsWrong: Subverted, in which Chrissa learns that speaking up is not the same as "snitching."
* FriendshipTrinket: Chrissa, Gwen and Sonali's headbands.
* GirlPosse: The Mean Bees.
* HomeworkSlave: Implied in the film, as Sonali has to swiftly leave Chrissa's house to help Tara with homework.
* ImportantHaircut: Gwen excitedly wants Chrissa to help her get bangs after things start looking up for her. This is unfortunately ruined by Tara's intervention.
* JoblessParentDrama: Gwen's mother struggles to find a job while the two of them live in the homeless shelter.
* KidsAreCruel: Chrissa and Gwen are relentlessly bullied by the Mean Bees.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong.''
* NewFriendEnvy: In the second book, Sonali and Gwen become distant from Chrissa when she starts trying to befriend Tara. Justified, considering what she'd done to them. This plotline is cut for the movie.
* NiceGirl: Chrissa is extremely nice and outgoing and desperate to make friends, which makes the bullying hit all the harder.
* ReformedBully: Sonali first, and then Tara and Jadyn.
* RetroactiveRecognition: The three actresses who played the dolls in the film were Creator/SammiHanratty, Creator/KaitlynDever, and Creator/ArielaBarer.
* StreetUrchin: Gwen lives in a homeless shelter with her mother.
* StrugglingSingleMother: In the books, because Gwen's dad abandoned them. In the film, because he died.
* TerribleTrio: The Mean Bees, until Sonali leaves them.
* ThrowingTheFight: Chrissa used to let Tara win at swim meets in order to avoid worse bullying. She eventually gets brave enough to swim on her own.
* TraumaticHaircut: For Gwen.
* TroubledProduction: There was a ''huge'' hullaballoo over Gwen being a homeless character... represented by a $100 doll, with no proceeds going towards homeless charities. Oops.
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: In the first book, Tara pushes Gwen into the swimming pool, despite the fact the poor girl can't swim. It's entirely possible she expected her to drown.
* UnconfessedUnemployment: Gwen keeps her homelessness a secret. Which makes sense, considering how relentlessly she's been bullied.
* UnusualPetsForUnusualPeople: Chrissa's grandmother owns llamas. While this interests Sonali, Tara only uses it against her, calling her "Chrissa the Llama Girl." This ends up being the final straw.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Lanie (2010)]]
!!Lanie Holland
[[quoteright:259:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lanielogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:259:Lanie on the American Girl site.]]
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Emily to Lanie.
* BizarreTasteInFood: Emily will only eat pizza... so everyone has to make every food they make into some kind of pizza-shape.
* BunniesForCuteness: Lanie has a pet rabbit named Lulu.
* ButterflyOfTransformation: Rather overt, as Lanie's study of butterflies connects to her relationship to her family.
-->''"I looked at Emily, who was gazing in wonder as the monarchs’ new wings lifted them into the air, and it struck me: in a way, Emily herself had new wings—and in a way I guess I did, too. Like the butterflies, we had changed—and in the process, we had discovered a wider, more wonderful world right around us."''
* CoolUncle: Aunt Hannah to Lanie.
* CrankyNeighbor: Lanie's next-door neighbor, who often argues with her over the state of her garden or her control over her rabbit. At one point she threatens to call the HOA on the Hollands.
* DissensionRemorse: Lanie snaps at Dakota over email, and then immediately feels bad about it.
* DumbBlonde: Completely and intentionally subverted, with Lanie being a bookish and scientific blonde.
* FriendToBugs: Lanie loves insects, unlike her little sister.
* GreenAesop: Lanie's books were made to encourage conservation efforts among the target audience.
* GreenMeansNatural: Lanie's "meet outfit" is a green dress with blue accents.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Lanie is bright and cheerful and friendly to all animals and insects.
* OutdoorsyGal: To Lanie's chagrin, she's the only one in her family.
* PetTheDog: After Lanie makes an attempt to connect with her neighbor, it actually works.
* PlentyOfBlondes: Lanie, her mother and her little sister all have the same blonde hair.
* PrettyButterflies: Lanie has a huge interest in monarch butterflies and their conservation. Butterflies decorate a few of Lanie's outfits.
* QuirkyCurls: Lanie's a weird nature girl and science enthusiast with incredibly curly hair.
* QuirkyHousehold: Mrs. Holland is an architect, and she designed her family a strange, three-story house, with a working dumbwaiter for Lanie's rabbit.
* ScienceHero: Lanie and her Aunt Hannah.
* Tomboy: Lanie is pretty much the most tomboyish Girl of the Year that was released in the 2010s, due to her energetic and outgoing personality, not minding getting her hands dirty, and her dream of being a scientist.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Kanani (2011)]]
!!Kanani Akina
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_1eecdf338adf53002080be803a54ee06_e96956b1_500.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:A promotional image of Kanani.]]
* AllLovingHero: Kanani wants to spread the spirit of aloha to everyone she meets.
* CanineCompanion: To the point where Kanani's dog came with her basic accessories.
* ClashingCousins: Rachel is very snippy and distant for most of the first book, until she and Kanani manage to connect.
* EndangeredSpecies: Kanani rescues a baby monk seal on the beach, and then gets involved in conservation efforts.
* FamilyOfChoice: Kanani considers everyone in her town to be her family.
* LongHairIsFeminine: Kanani has the longest hair of any American Girl doll.
* MultiEthnicName: Her name reflects bother her Hawai'ian and Japanese heritage.
* NewFriendEnvy: In the second book, when Kanani's best friend finds someone to surf with.
* OceanAwe: When Kanani shows Rachel around the islands.
* ParentWithNewParamour: Rachel's mother drops her off in Hawai'i while she goes off to have a honeymoon with her new husband.
* SecretDiary: It turns out that Kanani and Rachel's grandmother gave them both identical diaries, which results in Kanani accidentally reading Rachel's.
* SturdyAndSteadyTurtles: Kanani is told a story about a turtle in order to convince her to keep moving forward.
* SwitchingPOV: This is the only Contemporary character book that uses third person instead of first.
* TrueBlueFemininity: Kanani's meet outfit features a long, flowing blue dress.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: [=McKenna=] (2012)]]
!![=McKenna=] Brooks
[[quoteright:313:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mckennalogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:313:McKenna on the American Girl site.]]
* AdaptationalJerkass: Lowkey, as American Girl clearly doesn't want their main doll to be a jerk, but the movie makes [=McKenna=] much more prideful in herself and her achievements. In the book, her injury was an accident; in the film, it was due to her overestimating herself.
* AllGirlsLikePonies: [=McKenna=] and Josie are overjoyed to go to a therapy horse barn.
* DiagnosedByTheAudience: In canon, [=McKenna=] is only said to have issues with her reading comprehension. Many people in the fandom believe she may have dyslexia.
* DreamCrushingHandicap: Josie intially thinks that her paralysis will prevent her from becoming a horse rider. She discovers differently in the second book.
* FollowInMyFootsteps: Toulane's mother wants her to be a gymnast, but Toulane wants to do rhythmic gymnastics.
* GameBreakingInjury: [=McKenna's=] initial injury prevents her from practicing gymnastics for an extended period of time.
* InspirationallyDisadvantaged: [=McKenna's=] tutor, Josie, serves as somewhat of a downplayment of this trope. While she is seen having her own interests and personality, her main role in the story is to help [=McKenna=] overcome her own ableism.
* NewFriendEnvy: [=McKenna's=] best friend, Toulane, towards Josie.
* LiveActionAdaptation: The second Girl of the Year to get her own TV movie, following Chrissa.
* PassionateSportsGirl: For Gymnastics. She describes it as her whole life.
* PhysicalTherapyPlot: [=McKenna=] begins taking physical therapy after her ankle heals.
* RaceLift: Toulane is played by filipino actress Ysa Penarejo, while she has no stated ethnicity in the books but is illustrated as white.
* SecondPlaceIsForWinners: [[spoiler: In the second book.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Saige (2013)]]
!!Saige Copeland
[[quoteright:338:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/saigelogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:338:Saige and Picasso on the first book cover.]]
* AdaptationalJerkass: In the film, Dylan is a bit more malicious in trying to get Tessa's attention away from Saige. In the book, it seems to be a simple misunderstanding.
* AllGirlsLikePonies: Saige is even more of a horse girl than Nicki; while Nicki's horses were rather incidental to the plot, Saige is constantly at her grandmother's farm learning how to train horses, paints the horses for inspiration, and [[spoiler:gets her own horse for her birthday]].
* AnimalLover: Horse Girl Saige, as well as her new friend Gabi, who knows how to train horses and dogs.
* CoolHorse: Picasso is actually able to paint.
* CoolOldLady: Saige is extremely close with her grandmother, who is an artist who raises horses and rescues kittens.
* CuttingCorners: Saige is distraught that she will have to go a year without art class, due to the school not being able to afford a permanent art teacher.
* GameBreakingInjury: Mimi is put out of commission for quite some time after getting tripped by her new kitten.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''An American Girl: Saige Paints the Sky.'' Confusing, because that is also the name of the second book.
* NewFriendEnvy: Saige becomes insecure after her best friend, Tess, makes a friend at music camp.
* PerformanceAnxiety: Saige struggles with this throughout her story.
* PetsAsAPresent: Is given a horse for her tenth birthday.
* PonyTale: Saige's second book focuses a lot on her training horses.
* SavingTheOrphanage: Saige puts on an art show in order to raise money for her school's art class.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Saige is a brunette horse girl with an interest in art, extreme social anxiety, and a black-and-white dog... very similar to 2007's Nicki Fleming.
* WhiteStallion: Saige's horses.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Isabelle (2014)]]
!!Isabelle Palmer
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/isabellelogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Isabelle in ''Designs by Isabelle.'']]
* AdaptedOut: One of her best friends, Gabriel the aspiring Magician, is absent in the film.
* BalletEpisode: Isabelle's books are way more focused on Ballet than Marisol's, which were focused on Ballet Folklorico.
* ChoreographyPorn: Most of the books feature heavy descriptions of Isabelle's dance practices and performances.
* CoolBigSis: Jade.
* CuteClumsyGirl: Isabelle is constantly falling over herself in her attempts to dance.
* CuteKitten: Isabelle's new kitten, Tutu.
* DaintyLittleBalletDancers: Isabelle is shy and awkward. Subverted with her best friend Luisa, who is an ActionGirl who'd fight just about anything or anyone.
* DanceSensation: In the film.
* DancingWithMyself: Isabelle often dances to de-stress.
* EveryGirl: Isabelle isn't especially talented at dancing like everyone around her is. [[spoiler:She does later discover her own talent and passion for sewing and designing.]]
* EveryoneLovesBlondes: While Isabelle has her own issues with getting attention, her big sister Jade, who looks just like her, is the darling of everyone around them.
* FashionDesigner: More of a costume designer, but she is interested in general fashion.
* FeudEpisode: In the movie, Isabelle and Jade have an argument when Isabelle tells Jade that she feels tired of being in her shadow, when Jade gets upset and tells her that everyone pays attention to Isabelle's feelings more than hers, leading Isabelle to accidentally break their nutcracker. In the end, however, Isabelle apologizes to Jade and understands that Jade has anxiety just like she does, and Jade tells her that she's glad that Isabelle didn't give up in the show in Anna Hart. The two sisters hug and make up.
* GrowingUpSucks: Jade is terrified of getting taller in fear that she'll lose the dance roles she's been working so hard for.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Isabelle is a sweet, quiet, shy blonde.
* ICantDance: Isabelle is much less of a natural dancer than her sister, Jade. In fact, in promotional material for the film adaptation, most of what her parents talked about was how much worse she was than Jade. Yikes.
* IJustWantToBeLoved: Isabelle's bully, Renata, is secretly jealous of her for having a close family, while Renata's parents neglect her.
* InfantSiblingJealousy: In the movie, Isabelle learns that Jade can sometimes be jealous, because everyone pays so much attention to Isabelle's problems that nobody pays attention to Jade's.
* InspirationallyDisadvantaged: In the third book, when Isabelle's troupe performs for a children's hospital. Isabelle finds inspiration to dance better in the little girl in the wheelchair who is about to get surgery so she can "dance like you."
--> ''"The expression on the girl’s face was enough to make me leap even higher the next time—higher than the tallest ocean wave, so high that I could wrap my arms around the moon and bring it back for her."''
* KindheartedCatLover: Isabelle.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Isabelle Dances into the Spotlight.''
* LonelyRichKid: Renata.
* MonochromeCasting: In the books, the only mentioned black character in the Washington DC setting is Gabriel. In the film, it's only Renata.
* OvershadowedByAwesome: Isabelle is constantly in her big sister's shadow.
* PetsAsAPresent: Her kitten is stated to be a gift for her mother.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Possibly the most obvious example of the American Girl dolls. Isabelle is a kind, sweet girl who is interested in ballet, fashion design and creation, and kittens, and thus is dressed in pink. Her promotional material is always pink as well, and her removable hair extentions are a hot pink.
* RoseHairedSweetie: Bright and cheerful Isabelle is the first American Girl doll to have unnatural hair colors, with pink removable highlights.
* SuccessfulSiblingSyndrome: Isabelle has this BIG TIME with her prodige older sister, especially after [[spoiler:Jade is cast as Clara in their school's ''Nutcracker'' production]].
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: For Marisol (2005).
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: Isabelle finds that she has a talent for sewing and fashion design.
* TroubledProduction: Isabelle receieved some backlash upon release due to the fact she lived in Washington DC, a place with an incredibly diverse population, and yet was a white blonde doll, in a long line of white blonde dolls. She also apparently didn't sell well, as her doll was available at overstock benefit sales for ''years'' following her release.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Grace (2015)]]
!!Grace Thomas
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gracelogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Grace on her first book cover.]]
* AloofBigBrother: Grace's brother, Josh.
* BrainyBrunette: Grace aspires to be a business owner, even at her young age.
* CanineCompanion: Grace's french bulldog, Bonbon.
* ClashingCousins: Technically step-cousins, but Sylvie is at first incredibly standoffish towards Grace.
* GayParee: Grace has a great time in the beautiful Paris... focusing mainly on the bistros, cafés, and Eiffel Tower imagery.
* InfantSiblingJealousy: Sylvie, towards her new half-sister.
* ItRunsInTheFamily: Grace is a chef, just like her grandparents.
* LanguageFluencyDenial: Sylvie pretends to not speak English to avoid having to talk to Grace. This rouse falls apart the second Grace mentions it to Sylvie's parents.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Grace Stirs Up Success.''
* PetsAsAPresent: In the film, she is delivered her dog as a birthday surprise.
* RaceLift: Grace doesn't have a stated ethnicity in the book, but is illustrated as white, and appears to be white in her doll form. In the film, she was played by Creator/OliviaRodrigo, making her filipino.
* RetroactiveRecognition: Grace was played by then newcomer Creator/OliviaRodrigo in her film adaptation. Rodrigo would later become a famous singer/songwriter, with her own page of awards and nominations listed on Wikipedia. As of 2022, she still has her Grace doll (as well as a Maritza Ochoa), which she posted pictures of when she visited the American Girl store in New York.
* SavingTheOrphanage: Grace has to help her grandparents earn money for a new oven, or else they will lose their bakery.
* SupremeChef: While Grace has her occasional accidents in the kitchen, she is immensely talented for her age and manages to win over major critics, ranging from her older brother to ''{{Series/MasterChef}} Junior.''
* TomboyishPonytail: Grace is girly, but she only has a high ponytail when she's baking.
* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Macarons.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Lea (2016)]]
!!Lea Clark
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lealogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Lea on her first book cover.]]
* ActionGirl: Lea's best friend Camila, who is constantly running around, swimming, and practicing capoeira.
* AdaptedOut: Camila, despite featuring heavily in Lea's books, is mysteriously absent in the film, when Lea is in her area and could use some serious help.
* AdaptationalBadass: Lea does some pretty badass things in her book, but none of it compares to the film, with her determined trek through the jungle to rescue her brother including her own makeshift raft, trapping and threatening a poacher, and action-movie attempts to take down a smuggling ring.
* AnimalLover: Lea's collection featured multiple animal plushies, representing the animals she came across in Brazil. In the movie, she also works to stop an animal-smuggling ring and has a sweet moment with an injured sloth.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: When Zac has an obvious crush, Lea decides to use this to get him to take her to the beach.
* TheBabyOfTheBunch: Lea struggles to be seen as more grown-up, despite her whole family seeing her as the baby.
* BraidsBeadsAndBuckskins: Aki's tribe in the movie.
* CameraFiend: Lea's main interest is in photography.
* CoolOldLady: Lea's late grandmother, Ama, who traveled the world.
* EarthyBarefootCharacter: In the movie, Lea removes her shoes while rowing the boat.
* EmbarrassingNickname: "Cricket."
* GibberishOfLove: Zac, when he sees Paloma.
* MightyWhitey: In the movie, [[spoiler:We find out that Ama visited an uncontacted native tribe and gave them important medical care that they wouldn't have had otherwise.]]
* NativeGuide: Aki in the film.
* ParentChildTeam: In the film, when Lea and her mother go to Brazil together.
* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: Zac is in his twenties and already living and working abroad, while Lea is ten years old.
* PrettyButterflies: Lea's Rainforest Hike outfit, the one featured most prominently in the movie.
* RedOniBlueOni: In the books, with cautious and careful Lea and her enthusiastic and energetic best friend Camila. In the film, with determined and daring Lea and skittish Paula.
* SequelEscalation: Lea's books are quite adventurous, but rather lighthearted, with Lea learning how to swim, navigate the jungle, raise animals, and communicate with her friends. The ''movie'' features her having to rescue her kidnapped brother from an animal-smuggling ring.
* ShipperOnDeck: When Camila sees Zac embarrass himself in front of Paloma, she slyly informs him that her cousin is single.
* ShownTheirWork: Author Lisa Yee took the effort of doing research at the Amazon Rainforest for her Lea Clark books, taking part in river raft rides while mingling with wildlife and the locals for her and the readers to better immerse with the setting and to add authenticity to the story.
* SpidersAreScary: There's a moment in the movie where Lea and Paula both scream and run away from a spider they see on a branch.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Lea herself for starters; she is very similar to Jess [=McConnell=] (2006), with her travel to a South American country starting with "B", finding a sporty best friend who lives there, struggling to prove that they're grown-up despite being the baby of the family, raising and releasing a baby animal native to the region, being inspired by traveler family members, etc.
** Additionally, there's Paloma. Zac has a huge crush on Camila's cousin, Paloma the scuba instructor, in the books. In the film, he has a girlfriend named Paula.
* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: Lea is absolutely terrified of the ocean, and of swimming in general. Unfortunately, they are practically ''living'' on the beach during their trip to Brazil, with Lea's new best friend being a passionate swimmer with a scuba-diving instructor for a cousin.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Gabriela (2017)]]
!!Gabriela [=McBride=]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gabrielalogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Gabriela on her first book cover.]]
* AbsurdlyPowerfulStudentCouncil: It's implied that as a Student Council member, Gabriela would ''actually'' be able to implement widespread change in the school.
* AffectionateNickname: "Enchilada Princess" for Aaliyah.
* BigBrotherMentor: Red, to his cousin Gabriela in their poetry slams.
* BullyTurnedBuddy: Aaliyah Read-Johnson.
* ChoreographyPorn: Especially in the Flash Mob scene.
* ClashingCousins: In the second book, Gabriela feels betrayed by her cousin Red taking part in the freshman initiation.
* CoolTeacher: Amelia Sanchez.
* CommonalityConnection: Gabriela and Red are both really into poetry. She also befriends Isaac, who is really into Shakespeare poems. She also connects with Amelia Sanchez, her ballet instructor, over their respective disabilities (Gabriela's stutter and Amelia's dyslexia).
* DancingWithMyself: When Gabriela is practicing for the flash mob.
* DefrostingIceQueen: When Gabriela writes Aaliyah a poem.
* EmbarrassingNickname: Starts with Gabriela being called "Repeat," but soon every new student in the middle school gets one.
* ICantDance: Gabriela is a good dancer, but falls behind in her practice after taking on the Student Council. [[spoiler:She ends up giving up ballet in order to make time for her schoolwork and poetry.]]
* IJustWantToBeLoved: Aaliyah turns out to be this. Teagan also gets this trope, because Gabriela soon learns that she has trouble making friends when she is trying to figure out why Teagan is jealous of Gabby's friendship with Aaliyah.
* InitiationCeremony: There turns out to be a freshman initiation to Gabriela's middle school, where cruel pranks are pulled on all of the students.
* IntercontinuityCrossover: With the Contemporary Characters. In Z Yang's stopmotion promo series, Gabriela had a phone interview with her, and later they [=FaceTimed=] so she could meet Tenney Grant.
* KidsAreCruel: Aaliyah used to bully Gabriela for her chronic stutter by calling her "Repeat."
* KindheartedCatLover: Gabriela has a soft fluffy cat named Maya.
* LovingBully: A rare platonic example, where Aaliyah bullied Gabriela because she thought that Gabi didn't want to be friends with her, while she desperately wanted to be friends with her and Teagan.
* NewFriendEnvy: Teagan towards Aaliyah.
* ReformedBully: Aaliyah stops making fun of Gabriela after they find common ground.
* SavingTheOrphanage: The first book focuses on Gabriela and her friends trying to raise funds to save Liberty Arts.
* ShoutOut: In the first book, Gabriela's dance studio holds a flash mob to save their arts center. They dance to "You Can't Stop the Beat," itself a shout-out to ''{{Theatre/Hairspray}},'' but they then proceed to describe the exact remix they're using, and the descriptions perfectly match the ''{{Series/Glee}}'' version of the song.
* SingleMindedTwins: Kayla and Layla in ''Gabriela Speaks Out.''
* TheSmartGuy: Teagan, who goes to a school specifically for coding.
* SpeechImpediment: Gabriela has a chronic stutter and has to go to speech therapy.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: For Isabelle (2014) and Marisol (2005).
* ToylineExclusiveCharacter: Not exactly a character, but Gabriela was promoted with exclusively tap dance outfits and props. The books barely mention tap dancing, with most of her focus being on ballet.
* TwoTimerDate: The third book deals with Gabriela having a ton of responsibilites that clash with each other, culminating in her Halloween failure.
* WritersBlock: Gabriela has this often when she needs to write a poem for something.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Luciana (2018)]]
!!Luciana Vega
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lucianalogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Luciana on the American Girl site.]]
* AffectionateNickname: "Lulu" by Isadora, "Astro-Luci" by her cousins.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Meg to Ella Emerick.
* BigBrotherInstinct: Luciana is thrilled that her family will be adopting a new baby, and is over the moon that she'll get to be a sister.
* BullyTurnedBuddy: Claire Jacobs to Luci.
* ClashingCousins: Luciana finds it hard to relate to her Chilean cousins, only to realize it's because she only talks about her own adventures.
* CosmicMotifs: Luci has a star necklace she always wears, and a matching moon one she gets for her sister. Most of her outfits and promotional photos are decorated with stars as well.
* DiagnosedByTheAudience: Luciana constantly has panic attacks in the latter two books, to the point of being unable to move; she calls this "[her] heart going into panic mode." She is never given a diagnosis in-book as to what kind of anxiety disorder she may have.
* EverybodyHatesMathematics: Despite being incredibly smart and skilled in everything else needed to go to space camp, Luci mentions disliking math and not being very good at it.
* FatalFlaw: Her impulsiveness.
* GirlsVsBoysPlot: In the first book, with the girls' team and boys' team pitted against each other in competition.
* HappilyAdopted: Baby Isadora.
* LonelyRichKid: Claire Jacobs in the later books.
* NewFriendEnvy: Ella thinks that this is the reason Luci keeps blaming Claire for things. Turns out she was right and Claire was trying to manipulate everyone.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Luci and her team take it upon themselves to investigate to see if their lost part was stolen... only to break the other team's robot and earn themselves a disqualification.
* NonconformistDyedHair: Luciana's purple streak, which is meant to symbolize her impulsiveness, as she and her friend applied it to themselves on a whim.
* ReformedBully: Claire Jacobs.
* RobotDog: At the first book's space camp, and also sold in Luci's collection.
* ATragedyOfImpulsiveness: In the first book, when Luci leads her team to accidentally break another team's robot.
* TroublingUnchildlikeBehavior: Claire abandons Luciana in the pool's storage room in hopes of getting her in trouble and thus getting more attention; this leaves Luci underwater for an extended period of time, during which she could have drowned, and she has panic attacks following while remembering the incident. Lampshaded by the fact Claire always thought that Luciana would be rescued and didn't think it would have any lasting effects.
* WhenYouComingHomeDad: Luciana mentions that she's incredibily lonely at home with both her parents working. Also Claire Jacobs to her father; he's unable to pick her up at any time, until the end of the third book when he realizes he's been working too much.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Blaire (2019)]]
!!Blaire Wilson
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/blairelogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Blaire on her first book cover.]]
* AnimalLover: Blaire lives on a farm and constantly hangs out with her animals, especially the goats and silkie chickens.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Her brother, Beckett.
--> ''"Did you see this?" I asked, waving my tablet at him.''
-->''"What did Beckett do to your tablet now?" Dad said, sighing.''
* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: With Eli.
* BoysLikeCreepyCritters: Beckett is a fan of bugs and frogs.
* CoolBigSis: Cat, the farm manager, serves as this for Blaire.
* DisappearedDad: Blaire's friend Eli's dad.
* FeudEpisode: In Blaire's first book, she and Thea argue about Blaire paying too much attention to her wedding plans instead of her performance, but they immediately make up, and they tell each other that they missed each other, even during all the times when Blaire was planning a wedding and Thea was hanging out with Madison. In the second book, Blaire snaps at Eli and blames him for the fact that she bumped into her mother and caused the sauce to spill, but then apologizes to him during recess the next day that she got so mad at him and admitted that she was right about her causing her mom to spill the sauce, and Eli apologizes that his videoing got in the way, and Blaire learns that he enjoys making videos on his tablet because his late father got him into video making.
* IronicAllergy: Blaire's lactose intolerance clashes hard with the food she enjoys baking.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Blaire can be very rude and get angry and lash out at times whenever she feels annoyed or stressed out, but then she immediately apologizes to whoever she hurts.
* MissedTheRecital: Thea is angry that Blaire was on her iPad instead of paying attention to her performance. (Despite the fact Blaire was dealing with wedding planning, and got off her phone right after.)
* MultigenerationalHousehold: Blaire's whole family lives at the inn, including her maternal grandfather.
* OverallsAndGingham: Wears overalls for farm work.
* PhoneaholicTeenager: Blaire has trouble getting off her tablet and living in the moment.
* PovertyFood: Implied in the second book as Blaire's family hosts a party to make sauce for the homeless shelter.
* ShoutOut: Blaire's family inn is called Pleasant View Farms, as a reference to the company's creator, Pleasant T. Rowland.
** There's also a mention that both Blaire and Eli's favorite book is ''Literature/TheLionTheWitchAndTheWardrobe.''
* SignificantGreenEyedRedhead: Blaire herself.
* TechnologicallyBlindElders: Blaire has to explain to Ms. Vandegriff how to use emojis.
* WeddingFinale: In the first book.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Joss (2020)]]
!!Joss Kendrick
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/100_in.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Joss on her first book cover.]]
* AlphaBitch: Mila, who asks Joss rude questions about her hearing loss and tries to outdo her during cheerleading.
* TheBabyOfTheBunch: Joss is the youngest in her family and the only girl, and heavily dislikes being treated as such.
* BigBrotherBully: Dylan, to an extent.
* BigBrotherMentor: The oldest Kendrick child, Liam.
* CanineCompanion: Joss's friendly skateboarding bulldog, Murph.
* {{Catchphrase}}: "Be all in, 100%."
* CoolBoard: Joss is both a skateboarder and surfer.
* CruelCheerleader: Deliberately subverted, as Joss finds friends and community within her cheer group. Even the girl who was being mean to her turns out to just be defensive of her craft, and warms up to her.
* FemaleMisogynist: Implied with Joss at the beginning of her character arc, as she finds the cheer squad to be too girly for her. She (and her best friend, fellow tomboy Sofia) later learn to respect and love the cheer squad.
* ForgotTheDisability: Unfortunately happens to Joss often, as Sofia often forgets she's deaf and needs to lip-read on the beach.
* HandicappedBadass: Joss is an incredibly athletic surfer, cheerleader and skateboarder, who just so happens to be deaf.
* IHaveBrothers: Joss is interested in a lot of masculine things after seeing her brothers take them on. However, she despises the implication that she's worse at these things because of her gender.
* NearDeathExperience: In the second book, when Joss almost drowns in the dangerous tide. She's eventually able to make it out with her brothers' help.
* NewFriendEnvy: Joss's best friend, Sofia Goto, gets angry at her spending so much time with her cheer squad. She eventually becomes friends with fellow cheerleader Brooklyn.
* NotLikeOtherGirls: Joss and Sofia are a bit on this high-horse before Joss joins the cheer squad and learns that femininity isn't bad.
* PassionateSportsGirl: For surfing, and later cheerleading.
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: Sofia becomes incredibly insecure after Joss joins the cheerleader squad and spends time with other people.
* RealWomenDontWearDresses: Joss at first finds the cheerleaders to be boring and "too girly." After joining the squad she realizes how hard they work, how nice the team is, and how much she enjoys the sport.
* ResentfulOutnumberedSibling: Joss doesn't like being the only girl in the family.
* SecondPlaceIsForWinners: [[spoiler: The cheer squad in the second book.]]
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Joss is usually very sporty and loves to surfboard, and enjoys getting dolled up in sparkles and pink for cheerleading.
* TropeyComeHome: Murph runs away during a thunderstorm, only for Joss to find her at the beach.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Kira (2021)]]
!!Kira Bailey
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/kiralogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Kira on her first book cover.]]
* AffectionateNickname: Kira's deceased father used to call her "Bean." She later names the new infant koala that as a tribute.
* AnimalLover: Kira loves animals so much that she's constantly begging her mom to let her move to Australia to live on the family sanctuary.
* {{UsefulNotes/AustralianSlang}}: Alexis uses it most.
* AwesomeAussie: Lowkey Alexis, who is far more experienced with the sanctuary's biome than Kira.
* BirthdayBuddies: Corinne and Kira were given the same birthday, September 21.
* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:Kira not only has to return to the United States, but the Wildlife Sanctuary burns before she can leave.]]
* ButNotTooGay: Subverted, as Kira's aunts actually show more affection than many straight couples in American Girl books.
* CatsAreMean: Debatable, as the stray cat in the first book is simply acting on predator instinct. However, he does turn out to be the major predator bothering the sanctuary.
* DeceasedParentsAreTheBest: Kira's dad.
* DisappearedDad: Kira's dad died a few years previous to the story. This affects her greatly– while not directly mentioned as the cause, it's implied that her anxiety and over-preparedness are a result of his death, and it is directly stated that she's afraid of hospitals due to her experience waiting for her dad in one.
* DissensionRemorse: Kira and Alexis following their fights always get back together and apologize.
* TheGreatFire: After fearing it may happen for the last several books, [[spoiler:a fire finally wrecks the Wildlife Sanctuary]].
* GreenAesop: Very unsubtley, due to the Sanctuary being in danger of the recent Australian forest fires.
* HighKoalatyCuteness: Definitely Bean.
* HomeschooledKids: Alexis states she does online school while she lives at the reserve. Kira begs her mom to let her do this, too, and live permanently in Australia. Her mom refuses, as she herself is a teacher and thinks Kira should be in public school.
* HonestyAesop: [[spoiler:In the second book, as Kira finds out that Evie isn't being honest about the rare bird on site.]]
* HopeSproutsEternal: [[spoiler:At the end of the second book, where Kira and Alexis find hope within the ruins of the Sanctuary.]]
* {{Infodump}}: Kira drops a lot of information to the boy next to her on the plane until she sees her mom signal her to shut up.
* IntercontinuityCrossover: She was, for some reason, included in a lot of ''World By Us'' promos and stopmotions, despite never appearing in their books and being on another ''continent'' during their stories' timeline. Even if she was in America, she lives in Michigan while they live in Washington DC.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Kira and Alexis had a lot of disagreements in her first story, and appear to be jealous of each other when Alexis insult Kira for not being able to go with the flow, which causes Kira to insult Alexis for not being family. However, the two girls apologize to each other at the end. Alexis tells Kira that she regrets what she said, and Kira apologizes to Alexis for what she said too. They both move on and continue to be best mates.
* KangaroosRepresentAustralia: While Kira's merchandise mainly focuses on her koala, the kangaroo is also sold, and featured prominently in the second book.
* KindheartedCatLover: Kira and her mom foster kittens at home in Michigan. This makes Kira more inclined to like cats than her Australian friends.
* LandDownUnder: Most of the story takes place at the Bailey Wildlife Sanctuary in Australia.
* LateComingOut: It's mentioned that Kira's great-aunts have only recently gotten married, due to Australia's homosexuality laws.
* NervousWreck: Kira.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Kira, who doesn't know that domestic cats are considered natural predators in Australia, feeds a cat she sees on the sanctuary, accidentally encouraging it to stay and getting her in a fight with Alexis when she finds out what happened. Kira later uses her connection with the cat to trap it and get it to a good shelter.
* PetBabyWildAnimal: All of the animals in Kira's sanctuary are sold in her collection as pet plushies. In the stories, her aunts make sure that she knows that no matter how cute and nice they are, they are still wild animals.
* RaisedInCaptivity: Kira's koala, Bean, who she eventually has to send to another sanctuary to find a mother.
* RedOniBlueOni: Overenthusiastic and daring Alexis to cautious and anxious Kira.
* TroubledProduction: Kira receieved a bit of controversy due to being one in ''many'' blonde-haired white girls. In fact, the custom doll used for Alexis in the promotional photos got a lot more attention and praise from long-time collectors.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Corinne and Gwynn (2022)]]
!!Corinne Tan (with her sister, Gwynn Tan)
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/corrinegwynnlogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Gwynn, Corinne and their dog, Flurry, on Corinne's book cover.]]
* AdorablyPrecociousChild: Gwynn.
* AgeLift: In the books, Corinne is ten while Gwynn is seven. In the film adaptation, their actors were thirteen and ten and their ages are adjusted accordingly.
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: While Gwynn and Corinne mostly get alone perfectly well, Gwynn's childishness begins to grate on Corinne in the second book.
* AsiansEatPets: Deliberately subverted. When they overhear white men joking about their Chinese-Restaurant-owning mother cooking their dog, Gwynn is distraught, and their mother angrily races out to confront the racists.
* TheBabyOfTheBunch: Gwynn, [[spoiler:until her mother has a new baby.]]
* BlendedFamilyDrama: Corinne has a lot of trouble adjusting to her parents' divorce and mother's remarriage.
* BlueIsHeroic: Corinne is put in a mainly blue color scheme, along with blue-tinted hair.
* BigSisterInstinct: Corinne is extremely loving towards and protective of Gwynn.
* BirthdayBuddies: Corinne and Kira were given the same birthday, September 21.
* CanineCompanion: Corinne's dog Flurry, who she is training to be a rescue dog, becomes quite close with both girls.
* CoolBigSis: Towards Gwynn.
* CopeByPretending: Corinne puts on an act of being happy but still poor to avoid arguing with Cassidy.
* [[Analysis/PeopleOfHairColor The East Asian Hair Streak]]: A Chinese girl with bright blue highlights.
* GenderBlenderName: Gwynn Guang Tan. "Gwynn" is a masculine Welsh name, meaning "white/fair/blessed" and referring to Gwyn, the king of the Otherworld and leader of the wild hunt. "Guang" is a masculine name in both Chinese and Taiwanese that means "light, glory."
* GettingMyOwnRoomPlot: Subverted. Corinne wants her own room, but is unable to get one after [[spoiler:her mom becomes pregnant again]].
* GirlishPigtails: Gwynn's hair is always in two braids.
* HeroesLoveDogs: Even before adopting and training Flurry, Corinne was extremely interested in the Search-and-Rescue dogs.
* InfantSiblingJealousy: In the second book, [[spoiler:Corinne becomes nervous that her mother and stepfather will love the new baby more than her and Gwynn, due to them being Arne's biological child. This fear is amplified when her grandparents seem happier to hear they're having a boy child than another girl.]]
* KidHero: Corinne and Cassidy have to travel across the forest by themselves to get help for the rest of Corinne's family.
* LiveActionAdaptation: ''Corinne,'' set to be released in 2023, with sisters Miya and Kai Cech as Corinne and Gwynn.
* MistakenForRacist: When Arne tells Corinne that she must have heard wrong when she overheard a racist remark, Corinne assumes that he's belittling what she faced. He later reveals to her that he had said as much because he hoped that denying the racism would make her feel safer, but realizes that was wrong of him.
* NamedByTheAdaptation: Corinne's mother is given the name ''Judy'' in the film adaptation, while she's completely unnamed in the books.
* NonconformistDyedHair: Corinne has bright blue streaks in her hair.
* PassionateSportsGirl: Corinne is really into skiing, while Gwynn prefers skating.
* PetsAsAPresent: Corinne leverages her stepfather's promise of a big gift by begging him for a dog to train.
* PinkMeansFeminine: Gwynn is often clothed in pink or purple.
* PracticallyDifferentGenerations: Corinne is ten when [[spoiler:her half-brother is born.]]
* PreciousPuppy: Flurry.
* PsychicChildren: [[spoiler:Gwynn claims that she and Corinne have a connected "sister-brain"; while Corinne doesn't take this seriously, the narrative seemingly does. Gwynn is able to hear Corinne shout during her skating routine despite Corinne being in a loud crowd, and reacts accordingly. Gwynn is also the one who thinks of sending out Flurry to search for her lost sister, and says that she sent Corinne a message to not give up, which Corinne wonders about. This is amplified in the second book, where Gwynn is able to predict that Corinne and Cassidy encountered a mountain lion, despite neither of them telling anyone about that, and says she sent them a message to not give up when she felt that Corinne must be "really, really sad." Very soon after, she says that she and her mother played a game by listing purple things– the thing that gave Corinne hope during her journey was a purple columbine, which Corinne had introduced Gwynn to earlier in the book. All this together implies that Gwynn's "sister-brain" may indeed be a Thing. The first chapter's ShoutOut to ''{{Literature/Matilda}}'' may also be implying this.]]
* PsychicLink: In a rare non-twin version of TwinTelepathy, Gwynn claims that she and Corinne have a "sister-brain" that links their thoughts and feelings. Everyone finds this to be quite amusing. However, it may not all be a joke.
-->''“Did you get my sister messages?” asked Gwynn. “I kept telling you not to give up.”''
-->''Gwynn’s question made me wonder. Had I gotten a sister brain message? That moment when I thought I might give up, but then I realized I needed to hang on– maybe that was Gwynn. Or maybe sister brain was just another way of saying I love you.''
* PurpleIsPowerful: Corinne finds inspiration in the purple columbine she sees growing in the woods. [[spoiler:With Gwynn's implied psychicness, her purple color scheme also adds to this.]]
* ShoutOut: Several references to real-world media are made in Corinne's stories:
** Gwynn mentions watching ''{{Film/Matilda}}'' in Arne's house.
** Both girls idolize Chinese-American skiier Eileen Gu, and hang a signed poster of her in their room.
** Gwynn's ice skating routine is set to "Happy" by Music/PharrellWilliams.
** Corinne and Gwynn reference the dementors from ''{{Literature/HarryPotter}}.''
** Corinne, Gwynn and Cassidy sing "Where the Columbines Grow," the official state song of {{UsefulNotes/Colorado}}.
* NearDeathExperience: Corinne runs out into the wintery mountains to find Gwynn's necklace, losing her way and nearly freezing to death. She also mistakes a rescue dog (Flurry) for a bear for a moment.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Corinne is the second Girl of the Year to be an eldest sister skiier from Colorado dealing with the training of a bouncy puppy and birth of a new sibling with some anxiety issues. Unlike Nicki, Corinne is from the rich class of Colorado, has her book more focused on her sisterhood with Gwynn, and focuses more on skiing than Nicki's horse-riding.
* OutdoorsyGal: Both Corinne and Cassidy prefer to spend their time outside.
* TrainingThePet: Corinne's main goal is to train her puppy, Flurry, to be a search-and-rescue dog.
* TrueBlueFemininity: Corinne has a majorly blue color scheme, to contrast Gwynn's pink/purple.
* WealthyPhilanthropist: Corinne's stepfather Arne is implied to be a millionaire, but he's also incredibly kind and loving.
* YoungestChildWins: Gwynn is always bright and happy to contrast Corinne's anxiety, and is easy to make friends, as well as apparently a prodigy at ice skating. [[spoiler:This is somewhat subverted when Gwynn becomes the middle child in the second book.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Kavi (2023)]]
!!Kavika "Kavi" Sharma
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Her brother Rishi.
* CanineCompanion: Her Maxi Cockapoo, Scamper.
* DancingWithMyself: Kavi does this often.
* DiagnosisOfGod: In Kavi's journal, she does not explicitly refer to herself as someone with ADHD, though she describes the symptoms perfectly. However, the amount of specifically ADHD specialists on her advisory board show this to have been intentional, meaning she has ADHD in all but text. Her book is set to release in March, where she could possibly get a DelayedDiagnosis.
* HappyBirthdayToYou: Kavi is sung both the English and Hindi traditional birthday song in her first chapter.
* TheHerosBirthday: Following this trope to a T, Kavi's first book opens on her twelfth birthday.
* ShoutOut: Kavi is inspired to sign up for her school's revue after seeing a performance of ''{{Theatre/Wicked}}.'' On the AG site, her desk has a poster for this show as well as ''Theatre/ThePhantomOfTheOpera, {{Theatre/Hamilton}}'' and ''Theatre/MammaMia.''
[[/folder]]


!Contemporary Characters (2017)
[[folder: Tenney]]
!!Tenney Grant
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tenneylogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Tenney on her first book cover.]]
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Her little sister Audrey has her moments.
* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: To Logan.
* CanineCompanion: Her golden retriever, Waylon.
* ChristmasEpisode: Tenney is the only contemporary character to recieve a Christmas-exclusive book.
* CoolOldLady: Portia Burns, Tenney's new songwriting mentor.
* CynicIdealistDuo: The idealist to Logan's cynic. This can also apply to her and Portia.
* EverybodyLovesBlondes: Lampshaded by Tenney's mother, who says that her record company wanted her to dye her hair blonde.
* FeudEpisode: In her second book, she has feuds with both Logan and Jaya, but she eventually makes up with both of them.
* FromZeroToHero: Once Tenney's song is uploaded to the internet, everyone loves her.
* HairContrastDuo: Her bright blonde hair contrasting to Logan's dark brunette.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Tenney is a sweet, caring blonde.
* IAmBecomingSong: "Reach the Sky."
* IntercontinuityCrossover: In one of the Z.Crew videos, Tenney meets Z Yang and they facetime with Gabriela [=McBride=].
* LikeFatherLikeSon: Tenney is a talented singer/songwriter like her mother, which worries her mom quite a bit.
* LovedByAll: Everyone talks about how great Tenney is at singing and songwriting. The only people who don't eventually admit that she is good at it and they're just jealous.
* MeaningfulName: Tenney's full first name is Tennyson, after Alfred Lord Tennyson.
* MyNaymeIs: Tenney's classmate Holliday.
* NewFriendEnvy: In the second book, when Jaya becomes closer to Holliday.
* PerformanceAnxiety: Tenney struggles with this in the first book, which almost costs her a record deal.
* PinkGirlBlueBoy: Both her and Logan's meet outfits and performance outfits fit this trope.
* ReformedBully: Holliday.
* SavingTheOrphanage: In ''Tenney: In the Key of Friendship,'' when Tenney and Jaya work to save Jaya's cousin's school.
* TeethClenchedTeamwork: With Logan at first.
* TroubledProduction: It's basically an open secret at this point that Tenney was supposed to be the 2017 Girl of the Year, but following complaints about the lack of diversity in the line, she was swiftly relegated to a new Contemporary line and one of the Truly Me dolls was turned into Gabriela. There are photos that surfaced online for a Tenney movie that was cancelled, likely to keep people from asking why the new white character got one while the black Girl of the Year didn't. There were also rumors of a Jaya doll that was supposed to be produced.
* WhiteMansBurden: Tenney becomes invested in Jaya's attempts to fundraise for her cousin's disaster-stricken school in Bangladesh. The fundraiser attempts don't make money without the intervention of Tenney or Holliday, and at the end of the second book Tenney gets a personal "Thank You" message from the entire Bengali school.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Logan]]
!!Logan Everett
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/loganandtenneylogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Logan and Tenney in ''Tenney's Journal.'']]
* BigBrotherInstinct: Logan will do anything to protect his little brother.
* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: To Tenney.
* ByronicHero: The perfect snarky, pessimistic teenage boy archetype.
* CynicIdealistDuo: The cynic to Tenney's idealist.
* DeadpanSnarker: Against Tenney.
* DelicateAndSickly: His brother Jude is often very cheerful and happy, but his asthma means he needs constant attention.
* DisappearedDad: Logan's father is traveling worldwide with a band, leaving his wife and sons alone.
* EmoTeen: Logan is actually the oldest of the American Girl dolls at fourteen.
* FriendToAllChildren: Tenney realizes Logan isn't so bad after she realizes how much he visits the children's hospital.
* HairContrastDuo: His dark, straight brunette hair with Tenney's curly blonde.
* HiddenDepths: The stereotypical bad boy with a heart of gold.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's rude to Tenney and they have trouble getting along, until she finds out that he's a caring older brother and son who volunteers at the children's hospital.
* TheLancer: To Tenney.
* PinkGirlBlueBoy: Both his and Tenney's meet outfits and performance outfits fit this trope.
* TroubledTeen: Due to his father rarely being around.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Z]]
!!Suzanne "Z" Yang
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/suzieyang.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Z on her first book cover.]]
* AdaptationNameChange: In the Z.Crew videos, Mariela goes by "M." Mariela could ''technically'' be her full name, however in the books she never once goes by ''M.''
* AgeLift: Mariela is a year older than Z in the Z.Crew videos. She is the same age as her in the books.
* AsianAndNerdy: Korean Z is extremely skilled with tech and filmography.
* CanineCompanion: Her dalmatian, Popcorn.
* CanonImmigrant: Z was created specifically for promotional stopmotion videos. When the Contemporary line was launched, Z was released as a doll with a small collection and her own book series.
* DissensionRemorse: Z and her best friend Lauren have a friendship breakup over Z's focus on her documentary; this later causes rifts between her and Mariela as well.
* GirlishPigtails: In most of her promotional photos she has her hair in two low pigtails; this carries over to the movie.
* InNameOnly: ''Summer Camp: Friends for Life,'' Z's movie, has nothing to do with her books or the Z.Crew videos. She has new friends and doesn't mention her book crew, with only her interest in filmmaking and marketable fashion style carrying over.
* InspirationallyDisadvantaged: When Z is interviewing people on her road trip with her mother, one is an inventor who cites her autistic cousin as their main inspiration.
* IntercontinuityCrossover: Hoo boy, there's a lot of this. In the Z.Crew videos, Z constantly uses American Girl dolls in order to make her stopmotions, using the mini-dolls for shots with her own doll in them. In the books, while the American Girl books aren't named, she is stated to have a Kit Kittredge doll. Then, there is a Z.Crew episode where she meets Gabriela, then another where she meets Tenney and facetimes Gabi. In a later episode, to promote Nanea Mitchell's release, Z makes a Nanea stopmotion, and says, "It’s too bad I can’t have the real Nanea on my show, the Real Me with Z, but hopefully I’ll still do her story justice." This implies that Nanea was also a real person in this universe... does this mean the in-universe AG makes dolls about actual historical people? Where does the modern line tie into this?
* InternetSafetyAesop: Z says in the first book that her parents look over everything she posts before she posts it, because "nothing ever goes away online." In the second book, she accidentally releases confidential images. Oops.
* LikeFatherLikeSon: Z learns a lot from her mother, a film professor.
* TheMovieBuff: Both Z and her mom.
* NerdGlasses: The Z doll was sold with glasses, though she's never illustrated with them nor are they mentioned in-text.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: In the second book, when Z accidentally posts NDA-protected photos online, potentially getting her mother in legal trouble.
* PutOnABus: Z's stopmotions stopped being made after her doll was retired. However, the videos are still up, in case corporate ever decides to bring her back.
* SecondPlaceIsForWinners: Z's documentary places third in the contest, to her delight.
* ShoutOut: Film/SinginInTheRain. Z has Mariela's band perform a cover of the title song for her documentary.
* SpoofingInTheRain: As mentioned above, it's deliberate.
* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Z is usually tomboyish, due to her love of sporty and cool attitude and not wearing anything that's pink, but she wears her hair in cute pigtails, and she often enjoys making stop motion videos with her American Girl dolls.
[[/folder]]


!World By Us (2021)

[[folder: General]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/worldbyusgirls.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The three ''World By Us'' girls.]]
* IntercontinuityCrossover: The stopmotion videos, as well as several promotional materials, include Kira for... some reason.
* SimultaneousArcs: Makena and Evette's books take place at the same time.
* TomboyandGirlyGirl: Makena is the fashionable girly girl to Maritza's sporty tomboy. Evette isn't as girly as Makena, but she's definitely not a tomboy like Maritza. She just has a very feminine Meet Outfit.
* TownGirls: Makena is very feminine while Maritza is very masculine; Evette leans more towards feminine than neutral.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Makena]]
!!Makena Williams
[[quoteright:329:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/makenalogo.png]]
[[caption-width-right:329:Makena Williams.]]
* BigLittleSister: Amari is illustrated as being taller than Makena.
* BigSisterInstinct: Makena is very protective of Amari and becomes terrified when they are confronted by police officers and Amari is too scared to move.
* ButterflyOfTransformation: Makena says directly, "I like wearing butterflies because they remind me that though change can be difficult, it can lead to something beautiful."
* CoolUncle: her uncle Alex, who runs a food truck, and her Auntie Bling, who shares Makena's passion for fashion.
* CostumeEvolution: She wears her meet outfit early in the book, though without words decorating the shirt. She later paints on the words "See Me, Hear Me, Know Me" herself. She then wears the shirt with a Kenyan kente skirt to represent her pride in her heritage.
* ElementalMotifs: Both her and Evette compare themselves and their heritage to the river.
* FashionDesigner: Her main interest.
* TheFashionista: Became famous online through her beautiful outfits.
* GracefulLadiesLikePurple: In many of her outfits. Her promotional images also feature purple backdrops.
* HeartfeltApology: From the neighbor who profiled Makena and Amari.
* InstantWebHit: Makena becomes popular online after posting her quarantine outfits. She later makes a video about experiencing racial profiling, which goes incredibly viral and inspires many in her community to speak out as well.
* MeaningfulName: Makena Lilias Cook-Williams.
--> ''"I have four names: Makena means “happy one” in Swahili; Lilias was my dad’s mom, who died when he was a boy; Cook, for Mom’s family, and Williams. They all matter, and they make me who I am."''
* NiceGirl: Always kind, helpful and optimistic.
* RacialFaceBlindness: One of Makena's substitute teachers cannot tell her and the other black girl in the class apart.
* PinkIsFeminine: One of her signature colors, along with purple and black.
* PurpleIsPowerful: Her signature colors are black, purple and pink.
* PrettyButterflies: Used in a lot of Makena's outfits and merchandise.
* {{Profiling}}: The Williams's new neighbor sees Makena and Amari trying to get into their house after locking themselves out and assumes they must be robbers and calls the police. While one of the officers realizes they're just children, the other continues pointing a gun at them and threatening them.
--> ''"I rolled over and pressed the pillow around my ears, but Mom’s question was like a song I couldn’t get out of my head. Couldn’t he see that they’re children? Couldn’t he see?"''
--> ''"No, Mom! I wanted to scream. That’s the problem. He couldn’t see that we’re real people, with real names and lives and feelings. All he could see was that we’re Black. I cried sad and mad tears, because none of it made any sense."''
* ShoutOut: Makena references the "screaming white lady" meme while talking about a white lady who profiled her and her friends at the park.
* TextileWorkIsFeminine: Makena is a little fashion designer and influencer.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Makena is the fashionable girly girl to Maritza's sporty tomboy. Evette is more feminine than Maritza but not extremely so in comparison to Makena.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Evette]]
!!Evette Peeters
[[quoteright:348:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/evettelogo.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:348:Evette Peeters.]]
* AnnoyingYoungerSibling: Evette says that her little brother Bud can sometimes be a pest.
* AscendedFanboy: Evette was a huge fan of Makena before meeting her. She sent her a picture of her upcycled shoes and became ecstatic when she liked them; when they meet in person, Evette is very shy and excited.
* BoysLikeCreepyCritters: Bud likes the bugs in the garden, while Evette finds them creepy.
* ButNotTooBlack: Early concept art of Evette shows her having darker skin, brown eyes and brown hair; she was later changed to a medium skin-tone, gray eyes and blonde hair.
* ChildOfTwoWorlds: Evette's paternal grandmother and maternal grandmother hate each other, and haven't interacted since her parents' wedding. She goes out of her way to fix this.
* DotingGrandparent: Both Evette's grandmother and Gran-E love her dearly and take care of her while her parents work.
* ElementalMotifs: Both her and Makena compare themselves and their heritage to the river.
* ElementalPersonalities: In comparing herself and her family to the river, Evette herself is cool, usually calm, very close to her loved ones, and always gunning for change.
* GreenAesop: Evette's main interest lies in conservation and recycling, and she organizes a river cleanup for everyone.
* GreenThumb: Evette loves to spend time in her Gran-E's garden.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Evette herself.
* MakeupIsEvil: Evette is scared away from Ashlyn's new friend Gia after seeing her with "too much eyeliner." This is later subverted as Evette realizes Gia is actually fun to be around.
* MistakenForRacist: Ziggy asks rather bluntly in his first meeting with Evette if she is black or white, which upsets her. She later bonds with him and Gia.
* NonconformistDyedHair: Evette's best friend Ashlyn surprises her with cut and dyed hair, which shocks her and weirds her out.
* NewFriendEnvy: Evette with Ashlyn's new friends, Gia and Ziggy.
* OutdoorsyGal: She loves to garden and work for environmental change.
* RacistGrandma: Evette's paternal grandmother didn't want her son's wedding to be held in his wife's neighborhood, because she saw it as dangerous. This caused a rift between her and her daughter-in-law's family. Evette later confronts her about it and explains that she had made a racist assumption, and they work to mend the rift.
* SunnySunflowerDisposition: Evette's favorite flowers are sunflowers, and she herself is very cheerful and bright. Slightly subverted with Gran-E's sunflower swimsuit representing her childhood trauma.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: While Makena is girly and fashionable and Maritza is tomboyish and sporty, Evette is in-between. She's definitely not a tomboy like Maritza is, but she's not exactly as girly as Makena either. She just has a feminine Meet Outfit and that's it.
* WiseBeyondHerYears: Is able to heal the familial rift that has lasted in her family for fifteen years.
* YellowEarthGreenEarth: Evette's color pallette is mainly green, though her interest in sunflowers brings a bit of yellow to attention.
[[/folder]]

[[folder: Maritza]]

* TomboyandGirlyGirl: Makena is the fashionable girly girl to Maritza's sporty tomboy. Evette isn't as girly as Makena, but she's definitely not a tomboy like Maritza.

* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Julie is ususally considered tomboyish in comparison to Ivy due to her love of basketball and hanging out with boys. However, she also enjoys baking with Ivy, making bracelets, and dressing up with Ivy for Chinese New Year.

* GirlyGirlWithATomboyStreak: Ivy is definitely the more girly girl in comparison to her sporty and tomboyish best friend Julie,due to her love of baking and making bracelets. However, she has a sporty side for gymnastics.

* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Molly is the energetic tomboy to Emily sweet and gentle girly girl.

* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Molly is usually very energetic and tomboyish. However, she doesn't mind getting dressed up for special occassions, such as dressing up in special costumes with Linda and Susan, and also as a princess during her birthday that she shares with Emily, and as Miss Victory for a school performance on stage.

* EveryoneHatesMathematics: Math is definitely not Molly's best subject.

* IJustWantToBeLoved: Aaliyah turns out to be this.

* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Kanani has such pretty hair and is a very sweet, kind, and passionate Hawaiian girl.

* HairofGoldHeartofGold: Kanani has such pretty hair and is a very sweet, kind, and passionate Hawaiian girl.

* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: Molly is usually very energetic and tomboyish. However, she doesn't mind getting dressed up for special occassions, such as a princess during her birthday that she shares with Emily, and as Miss Victory for a school performance on stage.

* AlphaBitch: Blair Kolinsky.

* TomboyWithAGirlyStreak: She's usually outspoken, tomboyish, and adventurous, but also loves embroidery and sewing.