Books I've Written

Dolly Parton Announces New Book “Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones”

Published March 22, 2023 / Last Updated March 23, 2023
Team Dolly is a collaboration of writers, editors, and publishers assembled by Dolly Parton Productions. Each member is dedicated to accurately publishing the latest news and historical archives of the living legend that is Dolly Rebecca Parton.

Managing Editor - Jacob Timmons
Creative Director - Sarah Chapman
Team Dolly

Dolly Parton announces her new book Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones, an inside look at her iconic fashion and distinctive style, releasing October 17, 2023.

In Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones, global superstar Dolly Parton shares, for the first time, the full story behind her lifelong passion for fashion, including how she developed her own distinctly Dolly style, which has defied convention and endeared her to fans around the world.

“I am happy, proud, and excited to present my book Behind the Seams to the public,” Dolly shared. “It is my hope that you will enjoy a look at my life in costume and hair and get to know some of the great people who have helped shape my life and my look. Enjoy!”

Dolly Parton Behind the Seams: My Life in RhinestonesPre-order Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones

Featuring behind-the-scenes stories from Dolly’s life and career, and the largest reveal of her private costume archive, this gorgeously photographed book spotlights her most iconic looks from the 1960s to now. The sky-high heels, famous wigs, bold makeup, eye catching stage clothes—she shares them all. Along the way, Dolly discusses memorable outfits from her past, from the clothes her mother would sew out of feed sacks (including her “Coat of Many Colors”) and the bold dresses and hairdos that shook up Nashville, to the bunny suit on the cover of Playboy, evening wear at Studio 54, costumes from her most famous film and TV roles, and the daring styles that continue to entertain and inspire today.

Filled with candor, humor, and lots and lots of rhinestones, Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones—the second book in a trilogy that began with 2020’s bestselling Songteller: My Life in Lyrics—is a shining tribute to one of the most beloved musicians in history, a treasured keepsake for anyone who loves Dolly, and an indispensable guide to forging your own path to beauty and confidence.

Now Available for Pre-Order

Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones will be released October 17, 2023, and is now available for pre-order. An audiobook will also be available from Penguin Random House Audio, read by Dolly and including archival audio and music.

Team DollyDolly Parton Announces New Book “Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones”

Dolly Parton Announces New Book “Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics”

Published June 16, 2020 / Last Updated June 16, 2020

Global Superstar Dolly Parton announces deal with Chronicle Books and the upcoming release of Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics, a celebration in her own words of her life in music.

Revealing the book’s cover, Dolly Parton today announced the forthcoming publication of Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics, a landmark celebration of the American icon to be published by Chronicle Books this November. The $50.00 deluxe volume will explore her remarkable life and career through 175 of her best-loved songs.

Preorder Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics

For over six decades, fans around the world have looked to Dolly’s songs for entertainment, inspiration, and comfort. Now, in Dolly Parton, Songteller, they can discover the personal stories behind the lyrics—in her own words—along with never-before-seen photographs and memorabilia, bringing Dolly’s fans closer to her work than ever before.

“I’m so thrilled to be collaborating with Chronicle Books on Songteller,” said the pop culture legend and songwriting icon. “A songteller is what I am, and this is my first-ever book of lyrics. So, I’ve revisited my memories and opened up my archives to share the stories and treasures behind them in a way I never have before. It’s going to be a beautiful book!”

Both a visual memoir and annotated songbook, Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics is a candid, intimate look at Dolly’s enduring career as a songwriter, musician, and country legend—a career further contextualized by the “unofficial historian of Nashville’s musical heritage,” Robert K. Oermann.

“Nobody can write a song or tell a story like Dolly Parton,” said Christine Carswell, Publisher of Chronicle Books. “And few can bring joy and speak to so many the way she can. How proud and delighted we are to celebrate the wonderful gifts she has given us with the publication of Dolly Parton, Songteller.”

Universally beloved, the recipient of numerous awards, accolades, and honors, and a book-loving philanthropist, Dolly Parton has captivated a whole new generation with a resurgence in mainstream media, from WNYC’s nine-part podcast series Dolly Parton’s America to the Netflix anthology Heartstrings to the “viral Dolly Parton Challenge,” which swept social media earlier this year, and has amassed over 17 million online followers.

Preorder Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics

Michael MartinDolly Parton Announces New Book “Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics”

‘Dolly’s Dixie Fixin’s: Love, Laughter, and Lots of Good Food’

Published January 1, 2006 / Last Updated December 8, 2020
Team Dolly is a collaboration of writers, editors, and publishers assembled by Dolly Parton Productions. Each member is dedicated to accurately publishing the latest news and historical archives of the living legend that is Dolly Rebecca Parton.

Managing Editor - Jacob Timmons
Creative Director - Sarah Chapman
Team Dolly

Dolly’s first cookbook, ‘Dixie Fixin’s,’ features over 100 recipes collected from her childhood, family members, Dollywood, Dixie Stampede and her own travels

In 2006, Dolly published her first cookbook, “Dolly’s Dixie Fixin’s: Love, Laughter, and Lots of Good Food” on the Viking Studio (Penguin Group) imprint. The cookbook includes 125 recipes from her mother Avie Lee Parton, her mother-in-law ‘Mama’ Ginnie Dean, Dollywood restaurants, Dixie Stampede kitchens, and her own travels and meals on the road. The recipes are paired with pictures of Dolly’s family, friends and her performances. The book also includes discussions of her childhood and musical career.

Dolly explained the concept for the cookbook,

“I still like to try new foods as often as I can. But when it comes to cooking for myself and my husband Carl and my great big extended family, which numbers into the multiple hundreds these days, what we really want to eat is what comforts us most: good, hearty food rooted in Mama’s cooking and those country gatherings of my childhood. It’s the food from those Mom and Pop joints that welcome you in as if you’re family. We really just want food that is lovingly made and joyfully served up. Around here, that’s what we call Dixie Fixin’s.”

Most important, all the proceeds from the book go to support her Imagination Library (which provides monthly books to children through the mail) through The Dollywood Foundation.

Team Dolly‘Dolly’s Dixie Fixin’s: Love, Laughter, and Lots of Good Food’

“Coat of Many Colors” children’s book

Published January 18, 1996 / Last Updated November 17, 2015
Team Dolly is a collaboration of writers, editors, and publishers assembled by Dolly Parton Productions. Each member is dedicated to accurately publishing the latest news and historical archives of the living legend that is Dolly Rebecca Parton.

Managing Editor - Jacob Timmons
Creative Director - Sarah Chapman
Team Dolly

Dolly’s “Coat of Many Colors” children’s book brings one of her best-loved songs to life, based on one of her most vivid childhood memories

Winter is coming to Tennessee and there’s no money to buy a new coat, so a little girl’s mama sews one for her out of rags. The little girl wears it to school proudly, and when the other children laugh, she gives them a quick lesson about what it means to be rich.

Like the song, the book tells a powerful story of kindness, understanding and appreciation of what you have in life. Publishers Weekly said,

“The heartfelt verses are imbued with the same genuine, infectiously likeable spirit Parton herself projects.”

The story concludes with the simple but powerful words from the song, “One is only poor, only if they choose to be. Now I know we had no money, but I was rich as I could be, In my coat of many colors my momma made for me.”

The book, published by HarperCollins in 1996, features paintings from illustrator Judith Sutton.

To date, the book has sold over 150,000 copies.

Team Dolly“Coat of Many Colors” children’s book