Marisol Luna

Marisol Luna was the third Girl of the Year doll released by the American Girl Doll company. She was released in 2005.

Character
Marisol Luna is a Latina girl who, at the start of the book, lives in Pilsen which is near Chicago, Illinois. She lives with her father and mother in a very Latino-influenced neighborhood. She is bitterly disappointed when they choose to move away from her neighborhood to Des Plaines, a suburb. Not only will she be leaving her home, but her new neighborhood does not have a dance studio for her to practice at.

Marisol is an aspiring dancer. She primarily dances in a traditional Mexican style known as ballet folklorico. She has recently started ballet and has only had a little jazz and tap training. (Despite this, American Girl marketed her more as a modern dancer and nothing in her collection addressed her heritage.)

Books

 * Marisol by Gary Soto

Doll

 * See: Marisol Luna (doll)


 * Face Mold: Josefina Mold
 * Skin: Medium
 * Hair: Brown, long, wavy
 * Eyes: Light brown

Meet outfit

 * Pink tank top
 * Purple wrap top
 * Gold satin cargo pants
 * Gold Mary-Jane shoes
 * Underwear

Collection

 * See: Marisol's Collection

Trivia

 * Marisol was the first Girl of the Year to have a Starter Collection and a Whole World Collection.
 * As of 2008, Marisol and Jess Akiko McConnell have been the only Girls of the Year that were not white.
 * Marisol's release was somewhat controversial. In the book, Marisol's parents explain that they are moving from Pilsen to Des Plaines because they feel the neighborhood is dangerous and that there is no place to play. Residents of the area and the Latino community protested the doll and book, citing that the story gives a negative protrayal of their neighborhood.

Stephanie Spanos, senior public relations associate for 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.'"