Multi-hyphenate show business icon Dolly Parton has a seemingly unending list of talents. In addition to being an award-winning singer, songwriter, musician, actress, producer, businesswoman, and theme park owner/operator, she is known to the bookish world for her tireless dedication to childhood literacy and as the author of over a dozen published books, including several picture books for children. Her latest is Dolly Parton’s Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas, a Christmas-themed tale of family, friends, music, and what it means to be home.
Dolly Parton’s Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas
The second book in a series based on Parton’s real-life “god-dog,” Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas follows the adorable French Bulldog Billy the Kid and his canine bandmates as they embark on a cross-country tour before the holiday season. Billy plans to make it home in time for Christmas — that is until he receives a coveted invitation to perform at Barkafeller Center on Christmas Day! Billy is torn between the promise he made to his folks and the opportunity for a once-in-a-lifetime gig. Will he choose the music business over family? Or will a helpful holiday stranger offer him a solution just in the nick of time?
In a recent interview with NPR, Parton discussed her inspirations for the book, which included both the real-life Billy the Kid and her song “Comin’ Home for Christmas,” as well as her own experiences of balancing her music career with her desire to be home with friends and family during the holidays:
“Many times through the years, that little hum always wants me to go home for the holidays. And to my knowledge, I’ve never missed a Christmas. I try to set it up beforehand, no matter what kind of offers we get, whether I’m working in Vegas or — back in the day when I did do that — or even on tour. I always say, I’m not going to be working for Christmas. I want to be home for Christmas.”
Dolly Parton, NPR
Billy the Kid: Dolly Parton’s God-Dog and Social Media Star
With over 58,000 followers on Instagram, the real-life French Bulldog named Billy the Kid is a minor celebrity in his own right, perhaps a natural consequence of being Dolly Parton’s god-dog. Billy belongs to Parton’s manager Danny Nozell, and Parton spoke fondly of how the two formed an instant bond from Billy’s puppyhood:
“[S]ince he was a tiny little baby, he just took to me, and I took to him. So I just claimed him. And I said, well, I’m just going to have to be his godmother. So that makes him my god-dog (laughter).”
Dolly Parton, NPR
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Hits 250 Million Books
Parton also spoke about her childhood literacy nonprofit, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. The program mails a book monthly to each child enrolled from birth to the age of five at no cost to the child’s family. Founded in 1995, the Imagination Library now operates in five countries and sends out over three million books every month. August 2024 saw the organization hit the milestone of 250 million books distributed to children, who are eligible for the program regardless of family income.
In the NPR interview, Parton spoke proudly of the organization, which was inspired in part by her father’s struggles with literacy and lack of access to education.
“[H]e couldn’t read and write, and he felt really embarrassed and bad about that, tried to kind of keep it a secret, so to speak. But Daddy was so smart, and I always wondered what all he might have been had he had an education.”
Dolly Parton, NPR
Parton enlisted her father, Robert Lee Parton, to advise on the program and was pleased that he lived to see it become such a successful and impactful force in early literacy before his passing in 2000. “[H]e felt real good about that, and that made me feel real good.”
For those interested in picking up their own copy of Dolly Parton’s Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas, it can be purchased online through retailers Amazon and Bookshop.
For more of our picks for Christmas-themed children’s books, check out our article here.
To see all of our holiday recommendations for mini bookworms, check out our Bookshop bookshelf.
