American Girl Winter Stories
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The Central Series
Each American Girl character’s story is presented in the form of books. Called the Central Series, they are the core main stories about each Historical Character, covering the full initial story of each character over a span of approximately two years.
Winter Stories
The six book in each Central Series for the Historical Characters is their winter story and wraps up the character’s story, and closes out the era in which they represent. Each winter book was titled “Changes for Historical Character: A Winter Story.” These books are set in the winter to early spring--roughly about one year after the events of the holiday book and about one and a half years since the events of the meet book.
Each Historical Character has a profound change happen to them, often initially of a negative or depressing tone. For example, Josefina's aunt states she may possibly leaving the ranch. Kirsten's family cabin burning down due to her bringing a wild raccoon inside. Felicity's conflict with Elizabeth due to the Patriots' overall distrust of and jailing of Loyalist men.
This event leads to further maturity and helps show the character's progress since their first book, often, their maturity or change in perspective is noted by parental figures. All of the winter stories have some sort of positive event for the characters involved, ranging from small in scale to major.
Examples of small, positive events include Kit's news story publication and the birth of Patriot for Felicity. Major, positive events include when Addy's immediate family is fully reunited in freedom, when Samantha's aunt and uncle adopt Nellie and her sisters as well as Samantha informally, and when Molly's father returning home.
By the end, the character’s theme that had been set up in the first book is addressed in some way. Examples include Kirsten feeling like a real American rather than an immigrant, Josefina's feelings of maternal loss and family struggles in the wake of Mama's death and Addy's family separation due to enslavement.
Variations from the Initial Central Series
Cécile and Marie-Grace: Cécile and Marie-Grace's series do not follow the Central Series whatsoever, with the exception of their dual Meet Books. The intertwining series make their books serve as a diptych and a parallel to one another. With two meet books, the same events were shown from each character's perspective. Instead of a winter story, Cécile and Marie-Grace attend a Mardi-Gras children’s balls and devise a plan to attend each other’s ball without getting caught.
Maryellen: Maryellen was the first character was never given a separate six-book format and was released with a two-book "classic" volumes. However, her books can be loosely sectioned off internally into the six-book "format" as was seen with earlier characters. Instead of a winter story, Maryellen gets to experience a true winter when she gets to visit her Grandpop and Grandmom in Georgia to sled and ice skate in the cold snow, but realizes that family is more important than gifts, even if it is snow!
Melody: Unlike Maryellen, Melody's classic-volume books are not as easily sectioned off internally or tied tightly to the original six-book format. While stories can be divided into vaguely defined sections, there is no tightly-knit six-book structure, unlike those connected to many prior characters. In this, her volumes read a lot more like a single book each rather than three books combined into one volume. Instead of a winter story, Melody takes a stand to discrimination happening in her neighborhood.
Nanea: Like Melody before her, Nanea's classic-volume books are not sectioned off internally into the six-book format and each volume is written as a fully flowing story with multiple chapters from start of volume to the end. Instead of a winter story, Nanea resumes school the following February due to the aftereffects of the attack and damage in her community due to the bombing of Pearl Harbor.
Courtney: Like Nanea, before her, Courtney’s classic-volume books are not sectioned off internally into the six-book format. In fact, Courtney was the first character released to have her first book covers a very short span of time of approximately a month, from early January to early February 1986, quite possibly one of the shortest times covered in a single volume. Like Melody and Nanea, her first volume is a complete story, not written in sections. Instead of a winter story, Courtney meets a boy names Issac at the arcade, who is fighting his own battle called HIV. Courtney supports him and wants to help, but doesn’t know how to.