Remembering Dolly Parton: The Stories, Songs, and Spirit That Inspired Generations
We honor her life, legacy, and monumental achievements in literacy.
Dolly Parton, the beloved singer-songwriter, performer, philanthropist, and bestselling author whose unmistakable voice and contagious generosity touched generations around the world, has passed away at 80 years old.
Born and raised in the Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee, Dolly transformed the stories of her childhood and her dreams into songs that made a lasting impact on American culture. One of the most honored singer-songwriters of all time, Dolly earned an impressive eleven Grammy Awards and fifty-five nominations, including the Lifetime Achievement Award. She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999 and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022. Across her remarkable career, she wrote with humor, candor, and a confidence in embracing who you are.
PRH is proud to be the exclusive publisher for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
Dolly was a singular force whose impact reached far into our cultural landscape. But from our vantage point as the exclusive publishing partner for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library (DPIL), we believe her most enduring legacy is this extraordinary literacy program she built for children. DPIL is a literacy book gifting program that mails free, high-quality, age-appropriate books each month to registered children, from birth to age five. In 2000, her team approached Penguin Young Readers about helping to expand the program from four regional counties to communities across the country—and later, around the world. Now, Penguin Young Readers, Random House Children’s Books, and DK are proud to provide books to children through the program. Since its launch in 1995, DPIL has distributed 336 million books to nearly 3.6 million registered families around the world.
Several PRH imprints publish Dolly’s books.
Dolly’s belief in the power of books extended to her own storytelling as the author of multiple bestselling titles. Her first adult book with Penguin Random House was DREAM MORE, structured after the four tenets of The Dollywood Foundation—Dream More, Learn More, Care More, Be More—and published by Riverhead Books. Most recently, Dolly released STAR OF THE SHOW, a celebration of her iconic career as a performer filled with personal stories and photographs, published by Ten Speed Press. She also authored BEHIND THE SEAMS and GOOD LOOKIN’ COOKIN’, written with her sister Rachel Parton George. Penguin Random House Audio brought several of Dolly’s books to listeners as well, including an immersive audiobook production of BEHIND THE SEAMS featuring Dolly’s own narration, music, and archival audio that earned a 2025 Grammy Award nomination for Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording.
Dolly’s first children’s book with our company was I AM A RAINBOW, published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers. The classic song about her childhood, “Coat of Many Colors,” also became a beloved picture book with a special tenth-anniversary edition recently published by Penguin Workshop. And she brought her signature humor and encouragement to the bestselling Billy the Kid picture books, inspired by her god-dog.
Across songs and stages, cookbooks and picture books, Dolly spent a lifetime telling stories about where she came from while encouraging others to imagine where they might go. Through her extraordinary philanthropy, she also helped make those possibilities real for millions of people. Penguin Random House is forever grateful to have played a part in bringing her stories and impact to readers of all ages. We join her family, friends, and fans around the world in remembering the unstoppable force for good she was.
Words From the PRH Community
“We are proud to support Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, the program centered on Dolly’s belief in the opportunities that reading opened for children. While her star power was undeniable, it quickly became clear that the true magic was Dolly herself—her warmth, her sincerity, her joyful spirit, and her unwavering belief in giving back so that others would have a better path. For more than 26 years, it has been one of the great privileges of our professional lives to be part of this remarkable effort. We are heartbroken by this loss, and deeply grateful to have played a role in one of her most cherished and lasting gifts to the world. We will continue that work with the utmost pride and care, just as we know she would have wanted. “
-PRH Premium Literacy Sales Team
“Dolly had a deep understanding of the power of books – their ability to preserve our stories, shape lives, and open our imaginations. She approached every project with purpose and clarity of vision, and always with her trademark warmth and good humor. For all of us who had the chance to work with Dolly and to experience the generosity and joy she brought into the world, we are grateful to have been even a small part of her remarkable story.”
-David Drake, President, Crown
“It’s hard to think of anyone who has done more for access to books and the celebration of stories than Dolly Parton. Through the incredible work of Lisa Vitelli and her team along with collaboration and true dedication from so many here at PYR, we have proudly partnered with Dolly and with the Imagination Library team for decades to bring books to millions of children. I think it is safe to say that each and every one of us worked with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library in some way. We were very lucky to have Dolly in this world for 80 years, I only wish we could have her for 80 more.”
-Jennifer Loja, President, Penguin Young Readers
“Getting to work with Dolly on her picture books has been a true honor. Her warmth, her curiosity, and her wonderful sense of humor were in everything she did. Her love of reading, books, and the children who discover themselves in them was unparalleled. I feel incredibly lucky to have known a little of her magic, and heartbroken that she’s gone.”
-Francesco Sedita, President and Publisher, Penguin Workshop
“Dolly brought extraordinary joy to each of the books we had the privilege of publishing together, approaching every project with the creativity, generosity and collaborative spirit that defined her remarkable life. Few partnerships have meant more to our team over the past decade than the one we shared with Dolly and we are enormously proud and grateful to have played a part in bringing her stories to readers.”
-Aaron Wehner, EVP/Publisher, Ten Speed Press and Clarkson Potter
“I had the extraordinary good fortune to spend time with Dolly while producing three of her audiobooks. The journey we took together was ostensibly about exploring her life—cooking with her and her family, revisiting the clothes and performances, and hearing the stories behind an extraordinary career. But along the way, something deeper revealed itself to me: beneath all that remarkable talent, ambition, and drive, at the heart of Dolly’s success was her extraordinary ability to connect with people. Whether through a song, a story, a shared meal, or simply the way she listened to the person sitting across from her, Dolly made people feel seen and valued. I will always be grateful for the time I spent with her and her family, and for what she taught me about the power of genuine kindness and empathy.”
-Dan Zitt, SVP, Deputy Publisher, PRH Audio
If you’d like, you can read Dolly’s New York Times obituary here.