December 30, 2025
NetGalley
St Martin’s Press
304 pages
Nonfiction, ebook, arc, biography
5/5
12/17/25-12/28/25
In Ain’t Nobody’s Fool: The Life and Times of Dolly Parton, Martha Ackmann recounts the life story of a true legend and humanitarian. I had a general picture of life as a poor girl from Tennessee and her rise to fame and her humanitarian efforts. I knew she had many siblings but, wow, I think it stopped at 11 siblings. She always maintained close connections with her family even including them in her music career. Sometimes that was positive and sometimes not so positive. I also knew that she was married to her first love, Carl until he recently passed in March 2025.
What I wasn’t prepared to read was how extraordinarily difficult her life has been and how she manages to overcome each hurdle with unending optimism and self-deprecating humor. It was also surprising to learn about her connections and collaborations with other artists outside the world of Country Music where she began her career. Clearly, she has appeared in a few top chart movies like, “9 to 5” and “Steel Magnolias”.
I won’t ruin the uplifting story by expressing the many other celebrities with whom I had no idea she held associations. She is a truly remarkable woman with not only extraordinary music talent but also a eye for business. Early on she did what many new performers lacked the foresight to do and that is to protect their written music.
It is uplifting and encouraging to read how determined and strong fast she held to her beliefs even though she endured endless ridicule and humiliation. I’m sure there are many people regretting their abhorrent behavior for someone who was different and marched to beat of her own guitar!
Thank you to St Martin’s Press and NetGalley for access to this arc. My unbiased review is voluntary and all opinions are expressly my own.
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