How Dolly Parton's literacy work affected Indigenous communities in Australia

+ Education How Dolly Parton's literacy work affected Indigenous communities in Australia September 1, 20266:13 PM ET Heard on All Things Considered By Kristina Kukolja Dolly Parton in Australia Listen &middot; 3:33 3:33 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5950407/nx-s1-9909726" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript In Australia, the queen of country music, Dolly Parton, is being remembered for her work in advancing children's literacy, particularly in Indigenous communities. Sponsor Message Transcript AILSA CHANG, HOST: Tributes continue to pour in one week since Dolly Parton's death. In Australia, the queen of country music is being remembered for her work in advancing children's literacy, especially in Indigenous communities. Kristina Kukolja reports from Melbourne.

+ KRISTINA KUKOLJA, BYLINE: Dolly Parton's 1987 tour was one of her most memorable in Australia, when thousands turned out around the country to hear her sing. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) DOLLY PARTON: (Singing) Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene... KUKOLJA: Every one of Parton's visits to Australia between 1979 and 2014 left a lasting impression. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PARTON: Anthony Albanese, is it how you say his name? KUKOLJA: Like in 2011, when on stage, she thanked the then-transport minister, now prime minister, for allowing her oversized tour buses to travel on local roads. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PARTON: I don't know if he's here today. If he is, if he'll come up here, I'll smear lip gloss all over him. KUKOLJA: Beyond her talent and humor, Parton's legacy lives on through the organization she created to provide free books to children. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) PARTON: I am so happy to announce that Tamworth is bringing the Imagination Library to all of its children. (Yodeling). (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) KUKOLJA: The regional city is Australia's country music capital and has a unique success story, with almost every child enrolled in the program at birth. Alexandra Irving, from the Australian distributor United Way, says it's reaching children in cities and even the most remote areas. ALEXANDRA IRVING: In Katherine, in the Northern Territory, they were affected by really terrible flooding. Those children continued to receive their books by chopper. So the helicopter brought their books in. KUKOLJA: The effect has been profound, says Irving - more than 2 million books distributed since 2013, with many Indigenous children among the recipients. She recalls one mother's story about the program's impact. UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: One of the books had a beautiful illustration of someone flying a plane. It was a book all about travel. And that child brought the book to their mum and said, Mum, this person, this character has my skin color. I didn't know that someone with our skin color can fly a plane. KUKOLJA: Parton's literacy program also promotes Indigenous books and authors like Gregg Dreise. GREGG DREISE: Access to books is a huge thing. I feel a lot of people take it for granted. But being somebody from the bush, I understand how hard it is to get a book into your hands. KUKOLJA: Dreise feels a personal connection to Parton too, through his mother's favorite song, "Coat Of Many Colors." DREISE: And especially that last bit - now, I know we had no money, but I was rich as I could be in my coat of many colors that my mama made for me. And for me, growing up with Mum saying things like that, it's hugely important to enjoy every moment in life, regardless of what's around you. KUKOLJA: Aboriginal artist Kaylene Whiskey immortalized Parton's influence as the Number 1 kungka kunpu, or strong woman, in paintings and this video titled "Dolly's Song." (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) KAYLENE WHISKEY: (Impersonating Dolly Parton) I'm Dolly Parton. I'm singing a good song with my guitar. PARTON: (Laughter) Oh, so here we go with the beautiful story... KUKOLJA: Whiskey loved to paint Parton visiting her remote desert community, interacting with local people and the landscape, something that will now forever remain a dream. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) WHISKEY: Hey, Dolly. (Singing) Jolene, Jolene, Jolene. KUKOLJA: For NPR News, I'm Kristina Kukolja in Melbourne. (SOUNDBITE OF DOLLY PARTON SONG, "JOLENE") Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information. Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

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