A Brief Note on Sensible Girls & Dandy Lads

Just by way of introduction, this batch of doodles came about collaboratively at work, as these things sometimes do, all because of some silliness involving the work-wife, T., the work-husband, J., and naturally enough, our immediate supervisor, beloved bookseller and dear chum, P., who this time flatly said, when the phrase occurred, "you have to draw that." The original phrase, arising from a picture in some rather silly fishing book that was set aside for Ms. T., who fishes, don't you know, was "just a sensible Colonial girl," and from that little bud, this nonsense grew. Doesn't much matter if none of this so far makes anything any clearer now, truly.

The point just here is that what I saw straight away was something on the order of an extention of the terrifyingly ernest, and ruthlessly commercial series of books and merch, rather cleverly called, simply, American Girl. The heart swells with civic pride, no? If you don't know it, the enterprise is a whole raft of fictional histories for small females, featuring plucky heroines, each representing her time: ringlets and bonnets for the prairie years, saddle shoes and glasses for the Second World War, etc., and corresponding games, dolls, activity books and all-else for each.

I'm picturing a new series, on the same premise aimed at a slightly older, gayer audience. And so, The Sensible Girls. And so as to not let the fellas feel they haven't something of their own - and - no - girls - allowed, as the boys will still sadly insist it seems, some correspondingly Dandy Lads.

Dear J. suggested at least two of these adventures, thus adding yet another Queen to the mix, as it were.

If this all seems less then empowering, oh do let yourself giggle, darling, or what's the fun of history?