With only a week to go until the film’s release, cue “Barbie” obsession here at The Novel Neighbor bookstore in St. Louis, where we started off our workday by checking to see if there’s a bookseller Barbie. (There’s not, but we’re holding out hope.)
Instead, we’ll be your bookseller Barbies. With Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” releasing July 21, we put together a list of all kinds of books –– many of them campy, some slightly surreal, others wild rides –– to read while we wait for what’s sure to be a silver-screen masterpiece. These books are feminist gems that take us to new worlds, just like the “Barbie” movie will.
Buckle up, Kens, we’re going for a ride in the dream car.
Why we love The Novel Neighbor:A look inside the St. Louis independent bookstore
‘A Touch of Jen,’ by Beth Morgan
This dark satire that escalates into full-blown horror. The vibes are deliciously weird!
Check out: USA TODAY’s weekly Best-selling Booklist
The story follows Remy and Alicia, an unsatisfied couple who becomes wildly obsessed with Remy’s former coworker Jen, a seemingly perfect, globe-trotting jewelry designer.
Come to this book for the commentary on parasocial relationships and stay for the wildness that ensues when Jen invites Remy and Alicia on a Hamptons getaway with her wealthy boyfriend. Yes, you’re going to take a tumble to a psychedelic alternate reality, and yes… you’re gonna like it.
‘Horse Barbie,’ by Geena Rocero
How could we not recommend a memoir that literally has Barbie in the title?
“Horse Barbie” recounts Rocero’s life as a trans pageant queen in the Philippines who went back in the closet as a model in New York City. Rocero realizes that to come into her power, she has to live her truth –– this memoir is such a beautiful testimony of her journey and the history she’s made.
The memoir gets its title from a taunt that Rocero’s fellow pageant queen competitors would throw at her. She then turned around and named her book after it. Such a Barbie move!
‘Set on You,’ by Amy Lea
The movie is not even out yet and we’re already obsessed with Margot Robbie in her ’80s Barbie workout gear. So naturally, we had to include a gym romance.
“Set on You” follows a plus-size social media fitness influencer who tears down gym stereotypes and finds power in staying positive… except when it comes to the new guy at her gym, a ripped firefighter who keeps stealing the equipment she wants.
The tension between these two is so good, and Barbie is all about breaking down barriers. Plus, we love plus-size representation in romance.
‘One’s Company,’ by Ashley Hutson
From every trailer, we can assume the Barbie movie is going to be more than a little absurd –– and this book pairs with that perfectly.
In “One’s Company,” a woman grappling with some devastating losses wants nothing more than to completely escape into the reality of her favorite TV show, “Three’s Company.” When she wins the lottery, she sees it as an opportunity to do just that. She shucks her identity, moves to a mountain town and recreates the apartment from her favorite comfort watch so she can slip inside the lives of its main characters.
Yes, it’s weird. But this book digs into our desires to hide our pain and live “perfect lives,” and we think it totally hits the “Barbie” spot.
‘Bliss Montage,’ by Ling Ma
“Bliss Montage” is made up of eight short stories that divulge what happens when fantasy tears through our carefully crafted mirages of reality and finds a way to wake us up.
It seems like Barbie is in for some rude awakenings in Gerwig’s upcoming screen adaptation, and we love the surreality of “Bliss Montage” as a pair for that.
Basically, we’re all deluding ourselves, and “Bliss Montage” is not gonna let us get away with it anymore.
There you have it, enough books to tide you over until Barbie comes to life on the big screen.
Kassie King writes about books through our content partnership with The Novel Neighbor, an independently owned and operated bookstore in St. Louis.
