msgabbythelibrarian's review
3.0
It's too long and wordy BUT the linguistics of it TRULY capture Dolly's heritage and legacy. And that I love.
alohabooksandbujos's review
5.0
What a fun and quick read! Dazzlin’ Dolly follows the story of Dolly Parton and her early childhood. It was interesting to read about her childhood and finding her passion in music, so much of it I didn’t know!
missprint_'s review
4.0
Comprehensive bio. The tone of the writing was meant to capture how Dolly sounds but it rubbed me the wrong way. Not sure how I feel about the artwork. It's just ... odd. Also a page spread shows her as a crying baby but the text ages her up to singing in church which seems sloppy.
Backmatter: more about Dolly, timeline, selected bibliography, acknowledgements and picture credit.
Backmatter: more about Dolly, timeline, selected bibliography, acknowledgements and picture credit.
readingthroughtheages's review
5.0
I feel like this one really captured who Dolly is. She really is an amazing woman.
lelliereads's review
4.0
As a Tennessee native, I especially love Dolly. I think she's one of the most influential American icons of the 20th century. This is a children's picture book that highlights her young life and rise to fame and uses Southern phrasing. Super cute for fans of Dolly or to inspire children to follow their dreams.
Thank you to netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!
Thank you to netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review!
syntaxx's review
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
4.5
Miigweetch NetGalley and Calkins Creek for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
This is an illustrated biography, told in poem format, written and illustrated for children. The only reason I did not give this five stars was due to style inconsistencies with the narration, wherein the g was dropped from some -ing words but not others. I also would have liked to see the story extended just a bit further. While the biography at the end does a marvelous job of summing up Dolly Parton’s many notable accomplishments, the story in the book itself focuses mostly on her modest beginnings.
The illustrations complement and match the text. I like how Dolly and her surroundings are portrayed on the page, however, I wasn’t crazy about the font and text layout. The text was easy to read, yes, but it was…basic. A little elevation in this area would go a long way to making the overall artistic impact of the book stronger. The poetry format subverts the stereotype that biographies are boring and makes this biography accessible to readers who might otherwise be hesitant to choose this genre to read.
I recommend this for Dolly Parton fans of all ages, as well as elementary classrooms, particularly those doing biography or “wax museum” projects. This book makes a good introduction to Dolly Parton and could provide a stepping stone for further research into her life, country music, or the region where she grew up.
librarianryan's review
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
4.0
This is one of the better picture book biographies of Dolly Parton. I would expect nothing else from Susan Slade who has a long history of putting out excellent children’s books. This book mainly focuses on Dolly’s young life. None of the information is new but it is put in such a way that children will find the story enjoyable. The illustrations perfectly match the tone in the text of the story while bringing the appeal of the age for which it is written.
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