Free (ADE-DRM ePub) Pilgrimage to Dollywood [Country Music Culture & Travelogue]

[ATDrake]

Pilgrimage to Dollywood: A Country Music Road Trip through Tennessee by Helen Morales, who holds the interesting-sounding title of Argyropoulos Professor of Hellenic Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara (apparently named for a scholar who died from eating too much watermelon), is her accessibly-written for a general audience travelogue cum current and historical cultural backgrounder on Exactly What It Says In The Title, as she goes (and takes you along with her) on a tour throughout Tennessee and its rich musical contributions throughout the decades, illustrated with black & white photos, free courtesy of the University of Chicago Press.

This is really very nifty, going through to all sorts of local shrines and special events and such dedicated to a lot of popular artists, as well the big themepark-style places (including the aforementioned Dollywood, and apparently Loretta Lynn, whom I only know from the Oscar-winning film Coal Miner's Daughter, has one of those as well). But she doesn't just visit the obvious big sites, but actually goes on a pilgrimage to Dolly Parton's childhood home and the like.

Currently free throughout April as the UCP's selected Free eBook of the Month @ the university's dedicated promo page (ADE-DRM ePub available worldwide in exchange for your valid email address).

And this has been the (late!) selected 3rd (non-repeat) free ebook thread of the day.

Because I travelogues, and especially historical and socio-cultural travelogues at that. And this one looks to be an awesomely edutaining one focusing on an interesting-looking subject I know very little about, but I've always kind of liked Dolly Parton on reputation even though I've only ever heard maybe one or two of her actual songs and some sort of campaign she did to promote literacy, because she seemed to be a very kind-hearted and charitable person with a good sense of humour about herself, so doubleplus good.

Enjoy!

Description
A star par excellence, Dolly Parton is one of country music’s most likable personalities. Even a hard-rocking punk or orchestral aesthete can’t help cracking a smile or singing along with songs like “Jolene” and “9 to 5.” More than a mere singer or actress, Parton is a true cultural phenomenon, immediately recognizable and beloved for her talent, tinkling laugh, and steel magnolia spirit. She is also the only female star to have her own themed amusement park: Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Every year thousands of fans flock to Dollywood to celebrate the icon, and Helen Morales is one of those fans.

In Pilgrimage to Dollywood, Morales sets out to discover Parton’s Tennessee. Her travels begin at the top celebrity pilgrimage site of Elvis Presley’s Graceland, then take her to Loretta Lynn’s ranch in Hurricane Mills; the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville; to Sevierville, Gatlinburg, and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park; and finally to Pigeon Forge, home of the “Dolly Homecoming Parade,” featuring the star herself as grand marshall. Morales’s adventure allows her to compare the imaginary Tennessee of Parton’s lyrics with the real Tennessee where the singer grew up, looking at essential connections between country music, the land, and a way of life. It’s also a personal pilgrimage for Morales. Accompanied by her partner, Tony, and their nine-year-old daughter, Athena (who respectively prefer Mozart and Miley Cyrus), Morales, a recent transplant from England, seeks to understand America and American values through the celebrity sites and attractions of Tennessee.

This celebration of Dolly and Americana is for anyone with an old country soul who relies on music to help understand the world, and it is guaranteed to make a Dolly Parton fan of anyone who has not yet fallen for her music or charisma.

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by ATDrake

Pilgrimage to Dollywood: A Country Music Road Trip through Tennessee by Helen Morales
<Etc.>

Thanks for posting this.

The Dollywood music/amusement park is in Sevierville, in Sevier County where Dolly Parton was born and raised. They are on the extreme eastern end of Tennessee. From the subtitle of the book it sounds like it is about someone's trip from west to east through Tennessee visiting sites associated with country music. Of course the biggie in the trip would be Nashville, which is located near the center of the state.

Although I have very deep Tennessee roots and connections, I struggle to think of other sites that the book might feature. There is Memphis, on the western border, but it is mostly known for blues and some rock-and-roll (Elvis' first recording, and many of his thereafter, were in Memphis. His long-time home as an adult was in Memphis, at Graceland). I wouldn't be surprised if Memphis is associated also with country music in some way.

I am looking forward to reading this book. It should be very interesting.

[silverraven]

I'll have to read it and see if they swing up through Bristol, Tn, the birthplace of country music.
http://www.birthplaceofcountrymusic.org/
S

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by silverraven

I'll have to read it and see if they swing up through Bristol, Tn, the birthplace of country music.
http://www.birthplaceofcountrymusic.org/
S

The birthplace of country music?

I never had heard that before, but AmericasLibrary.gov, a Library of Congress website, confirms it.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by ATDrake

Pilgrimage to Dollywood: A Country Music Road Trip through Tennessee by Helen Morales, who holds the interesting-sounding title of Argyropoulos Professor of Hellenic Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara (apparently named for a scholar who died from eating too much watermelon), is her accessibly-written for a general audience travelogue cum current and historical cultural backgrounder on Exactly What It Says In The Title, as she goes (and takes you along with her) on a tour throughout Tennessee and its rich musical contributions throughout the decades, illustrated with black & white photos, free courtesy of the University of Chicago Press.

This is really very nifty, going through to all sorts of local shrines and special events and such dedicated to a lot of popular artists, as well the big themepark-style places (including the aforementioned Dollywood, and apparently Loretta Lynn, whom I only know from the Oscar-winning film Coal Miner's Daughter, has one of those as well). But she doesn't just visit the obvious big sites, but actually goes on a pilgrimage to Dolly Parton's childhood home and the like.

Currently free throughout April as the UCP's selected Free eBook of the Month @ the university's dedicated promo page (ADE-DRM ePub available worldwide in exchange for your valid email address).

And this has been the (late!) selected 3rd (non-repeat) free ebook thread of the day.

Because I travelogues, and especially historical and socio-cultural travelogues at that. And this one looks to be an awesomely edutaining one focusing on an interesting-looking subject I know very little about, but I've always kind of liked Dolly Parton on reputation even though I've only ever heard maybe one or two of her actual songs and some sort of campaign she did to promote literacy, because she seemed to be a very kind-hearted and charitable person with a good sense of humour about herself, so doubleplus good.

Enjoy!

Description
A star par excellence, Dolly Parton is one of country music’s most likable personalities. Even a hard-rocking punk or orchestral aesthete can’t help cracking a smile or singing along with songs like “Jolene” and “9 to 5.” More than a mere singer or actress, Parton is a true cultural phenomenon, immediately recognizable and beloved for her talent, tinkling laugh, and steel magnolia spirit. She is also the only female star to have her own themed amusement park: Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Every year thousands of fans flock to Dollywood to celebrate the icon, and Helen Morales is one of those fans.

In Pilgrimage to Dollywood, Morales sets out to discover Parton’s Tennessee. Her travels begin at the top celebrity pilgrimage site of Elvis Presley’s Graceland, then take her to Loretta Lynn’s ranch in Hurricane Mills; the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville; to Sevierville, Gatlinburg, and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park; and finally to Pigeon Forge, home of the “Dolly Homecoming Parade,” featuring the star herself as grand marshall. Morales’s adventure allows her to compare the imaginary Tennessee of Parton’s lyrics with the real Tennessee where the singer grew up, looking at essential connections between country music, the land, and a way of life. It’s also a personal pilgrimage for Morales. Accompanied by her partner, Tony, and their nine-year-old daughter, Athena (who respectively prefer Mozart and Miley Cyrus), Morales, a recent transplant from England, seeks to understand America and American values through the celebrity sites and attractions of Tennessee.

This celebration of Dolly and Americana is for anyone with an old country soul who relies on music to help understand the world, and it is guaranteed to make a Dolly Parton fan of anyone who has not yet fallen for her music or charisma.

I know Loretta Lynn has a restaurant.

[GtrsRGr8]

I keep thinking about Bristol . . . . it's way up in the extreme northeast corner of Tennessee (right up against the Virginia border, in fact). But to get there you would basically drive for 150 miles or so past Sevierville (where Dollywood's at). So, it would be a pilgrimage to Bristol instead of Dollywood. That is, unless you turned around after visiting Bristol and drove 150 miles back to Sevierville, to finish the pilgrimage.

Of course, publishers, even the staid University of Chicago, knows that a book title mentioning Dollywood would be much more likely to get someone's attention than one mentioning Bristol. Let accuracy be disdained.

[Manabi]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

I keep thinking about Bristol . . . . it's way up in the extreme northeast corner of Tennessee (right up against the Virginia border, in fact). But to get there you would basically drive for 150 miles or so past Sevierville (where Dollywood's at). So, it would be a pilgrimage to Bristol instead of Dollywood. That is, unless you turned around after visiting Bristol and drove 150 miles back to Sevierville, to finish the pilgrimage.

Of course, publishers, even the staid University of Chicago, knows that a book title mentioning Dollywood would be much more likely to get someone's attention than one mentioning Bristol. Let accuracy be disdained.

Dollywood would kind of be a good place to end your pilgrimage, even if you had to go past it and come back. What better way to end your pilgrimage than to have fun at an amusement park and get to spend time in the Dolly Parton museum there? Time your trip right and you could even see Dolly perform.

[koland]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

I keep thinking about Bristol . . . . it's way up in the extreme northeast corner of Tennessee (right up against the Virginia border, in fact). But to get there you would basically drive for 150 miles or so past Sevierville (where Dollywood's at). So, it would be a pilgrimage to Bristol instead of Dollywood. That is, unless you turned around after visiting Bristol and drove 150 miles back to Sevierville, to finish the pilgrimage.

Of course, publishers, even the staid University of Chicago, knows that a book title mentioning Dollywood would be much more likely to get someone's attention than one mentioning Bristol. Let accuracy be disdained.

Well, unless it was about race cars, of course.

[silverraven]

Originally Posted by koland

Well, unless it was about race cars, of course.

Yup, racing is very important up there! Never saw the appeal myself, but a lot of people love it.
S

[ATDrake]

Just a reminder that this will probably be the last day to pick the freebie up if you want it.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by ATDrake

Just a reminder that this will probably be the last day to pick the freebie up if you want it.

I kept putting this off, so I'm glad you reminded us all that this may be the last day.

I just now downloaded it.

Thank you !