“Nothing that grieves us can be called little: by the eternal laws of proportion a child’s loss of a doll and a king’s loss of a crown are events of the same size.”  ─ Mark Twain

Francesca’s Foundlings, the second book in the Lynton Series, is named for a doll shop bearing the same name. There is both a long and a short answer to the question why I chose this for the background of the story. The long answer is hidden in the character of Franny MacCullough. You will have to read MacCullough’s Women to discover what it is.

The short answer is that the writer (me) has always loved dolls. I had numerous dolls, each with his or her unique name and personality, when I was a little girl. As an adult, I, like Franny, collected dolls and have had the pleasure of visiting several wonderful doll shops like the one that Franny owns in Francesca’s Foundlings.

Here are some of the dolls that you will find in the window of the Franny’s shop in Lynton.

Two from Madame Alexander and one from Suzanne Gibson

  The baby doll in this picture is wearing a christening dress and hat featuring lace that was made by hand by grandmother almost hundred years ago. My mother made this outfit for the doll and gave it to me one Christmas.

This doll is an antique shop find.

Madame Alexander's baby doll "Kathy"

This picture is of   “Kathy” a baby doll made by the Alexander Doll Company in the 1950s.  I had a larger version of this doll dressed in pink given to me by Santa for Christmas when I was a little girl.  Unfortunately I no longer have my own doll, but I found this smaller one in a doll shop in Maine. “Kathy” will make a cameo appearance in Francesca’s Foundlings.

Do you have a cherished toy that you have kept from your own childhood?