Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics

The information was really interesting, and Dolly is fascinating. The organization style didn’t really work for me, though. It was very much all over the place

Such a phenomenal book. The only drawback is that the audiobook is so spectacular and rich that the print book lacks a lot of personality by comparison.

Dolly Parton seems like the nicest, kindest person around. I just want to make sure that's known up front.

This book didn't especially impress me. It reads like a Wikipedia entry, a very nice Wiki entry. The stories and descriptions about her life - with one notable exception - are totally surface level. Her descriptions of people and her interactions with them - with one notable exception - are all compliments and platitudes. She hints at deeper levels, mentions health problems and psychological stress and general “tough times”, but never tells us about them. This feels like a missed opportunity because, as RuPaul always says, it is your willingness to be honest and vulnerable that makes people fall in love with you.

Actually, this lack of depth and vulnerability makes me wonder who she considers the target audience for this book. Her fans will already know these stories, and people who aren't fans won't want to read through the hundreds of pages of song lyrics (least fun way to enjoy a song) only to get a Wiki-level knowledge of her as a person.

I can't bear to give less than 3 stars because she's so kindhearted.