Dollywood and Abramorama in association with The Dollywood Foundation announced that beginning on Thursday, April 2nd, at 7:00 PM EST/4:00 PM PST, Dolly Parton will be reading a children’s book for bedtime in a series entitled “Goodnight With Dolly.” Additionally, the documentary about her Imagination Library, The Library That Dolly Built, will open nationally the week of September 21, to commemorate the Library’s 25th anniversary. Since inception in 1995, the Imagination Library has gifted more than 135 million books to children and is currently gifting books to 1.5 million children around the world each month.
“Goodnight With Dolly” will feature Dolly Parton reading a series of Imagination Library books all carefully chosen for their appropriate content at this moment in time. Dolly welcomes the viewers and introduces the title, author and illustrator. Snuggled in bed with her Imagination Library book, Dolly shares stories that are just right for this moment in time. The readings will be a mixture of Dolly and the interior pages of the books. The books will include “There’s a Hole in the Log on the Bottom of the Lake” by Loren Long, “Llama Llama Red Pajama” by Anna Dewdney, “I Am a Rainbow” by Dolly Parton, “Pass It On” by Sophy Henn, “Stand Tall Molly Lou Mellon” by Patty Lovell, “Violet the Pilot” by Steve Breen, “Max & The Tag-Along Moon” by Floyd Cooper , “Last Stop on Market Street” by Matt de la Peña, “Coat of Many Colors” by Dolly Parton, and of course, “The Little Engine That Could” by Watty Piper.
Once a week for 10 weeks at 7:00 PM EST, The Book Lady will deliver her story with the program available across the Imagination Library, Dolly Parton, World Choice Investments, and Dollywood channels. The read alongs will be a personal gift from Dolly to all families. Free of charge but not free from obligation as the message will be to pass on the love and keep hope alive because we are all Together, You and I.
Dolly Parton said, “This is something I have been wanting to do for quite a while, but the timing never felt quite right. I think it is pretty clear that now is the time to share a story and to share some love. It is an honor for me to share the incredible talent of these authors and illustrators. They make us smile, they make us laugh and they make us think.”
Regarding the film’s release, she adds, “Although it was the right thing to do, postponing the screening of our documentary was a disappointment. So many of our Imagination Library affiliates had organized events around the nationwide screenings, however things do have a way of working out so the documentary will still have its day.”
THE LIBRARY THAT DOLLY BUILT, directed and produced by journalism professor and director of Land Grant Films Nick Geidner, and narrated by Danica McKellar, goes behind the scenes of Dolly Parton’s literacy-focused non-profit, Imagination Library, to show how one of the most famous and beloved performers in the world has developed an efficient and effective program for spreading the love of reading. Imagination Library started as a gift for the children in Dolly’s hometown, Sevierville, Tennessee, and is now active in all 50 states, and 5 countries, gifting 1.5 million free, age-appropriate books to children every month. The film also provides a glimpse of the profound impact the Imagination Library has on the people through original interviews with authors, policymakers, Imagination Library staff, recipients, and the legend herself, Dolly Parton. Woven throughout the film is a biographical sketch of Dolly Parton, featuring rare photos and films from her childhood. Unlike most biographies of Dolly, it doesn’t focus on her music. Instead, it demonstrates that at every point in her career, any time she has had success, Dolly Parton has come back to Sevierville to give back to her people.
Abramorama commented, “We are thrilled to collaborate with Dolly Parton and the Imagination Library on the nationwide release this coming Fall, and to launch “Goodnight with Dolly” on the eve of the original theatrical event scheduled for New York City. True to the Library’s mission Dolly and The Imagination Library are making books for children broadly available when they are most needed.”
About The Imagination Library
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting program that mails free, high-quality books to children from birth until they begin school, no matter their family’s income. After launching in 1995, the program grew quickly. First books were only distributed to children living in Sevier County, Tennessee where Dolly grew up. It became such a success that in 2000 a national replication effort was underway. By 2003, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library had mailed one million books. It would prove to be the first of many millions of over 135 million books gifted to children around the world. Dolly’s home state of Tennessee pledged to pursue statewide coverage in 2004 and global expansion was on the horizon. After the United States, the program launched in Canada in 2006 followed by the United Kingdom in 2007, Australia in 2013 and the Republic of Ireland in 2019. For more information visit imaginationlibrary.com.
About The Dollywood Foundation
The Dollywood Foundation was created in 1988 by Dolly Parton to inspire the children in her home county to achieve educational success. Initial efforts focused on decreasing the dropout rate in the county’s high school. In the early 90’s Dolly promised every 7th-grade and 8th-grade student she would personally give them $500 if they graduated from high school. This effort, called the Buddy Program, reduced the dropout rate for these two classes from 35% to 6%. More importantly, the program catalyzed the community to provide additional resources to sustain this improvement in the dropout rate. In 2016, The Dollywood Foundation led Dolly’s efforts to assist families who lost their homes during the devastating wildfires which swept through her home county. The Foundation’s My People Fund distributed over $12,000,000 in direct assistance to over 900 families in Sevier County. For more information visit dollywoodfoundation.org.
