Read Jenna Bush Hager’s Touching Tribute to Dolly Parton, Her Friend and Fellow Book Lover
The ‘Today’ show co-host reveals how Dolly helped her cope with her grandmother's death
Key Takeaways
- Jenna Bush Hager says Dolly Parton comforted her after her grandmother's death.
- Parton told Hager she reads at least 50 books a year, many on her tour bus.
- Parton said she'd bring the Bible if stranded on a desert island.
Today show co-host Jenna Bush Hager is paying tribute to the late Dolly Parton. In a new social media post, the former first daughter revealed how important the country music singer was to her and even opened up about how the “Jolene” singer helped her cope with her grandmother’s passing. To read what Hager wrote about Parton, keep scrolling!
Jenna Bush Hager pays tribute to Dolly Parton
Hager first joined the Today show family in 2009 as a correspondent, and she’s been a co-host of the show’s fourth hour since April 2019. In that time, Dolly Parton appeared on the morning show multiple times. Perhaps the most meaningful appearance was in 2019, when Parton was interviewed by Hager at Dollywood. The two talked about books and life and according to Hager, Parton helped her work through the loss of her maternal grandmother, Jenna Hawkins Welch, which Hager talked about in her tribute to the late country music singer.
“As I write this, Dolly’s music is being played in the restaurant where I am eating. She was a legend. Her voice was unparalleled, but it was her utter originality and purity of spirit that will be sorely missed. We needed all that glitter and goodness. She gave with all that she was,” Hager wrote in her tribute post, which featured a picture of her and Parton during that 2019 interview. “In this picture of us, I had just received the news my grandmother, Jenna, had passed away. I was already with her in Knoxville so she held me and gave me such grace. I’ll never forget that kindness. May we take just a little of her beauty and pass it on.”
Jenna Bush Hager and Dolly Parton bond over their love of books
Along with being a country music singer, Parton was an avid reader. She even told Hager on an episode of Open Book With Jenna that she “must read at least 50 books a year.”
“I wake up in the middle of the night and I’ll read myself to sleep. I don’t watch TV that much. I prefer to read,” Parton continued. “I read everything. I love historical fiction. I read everything in Reese Witherspoon’s book club.”
As for her favorite place to read, Parton said that her bed is the best, but her tour bus is a close runner up.
“I travel a lot on my tour bus and I just love it when I’ve got a long trip from Nashville to LA…I just love to bring the food, cook, put it on the bus, take some good books and just read all the way from LA and back,” Parton said.
Dolly Parton tells Jenna Bush Hager her ‘desert island’ book is
In that same interview, Hager just had to ask Parton what book she would bring with her if she was stranded on a desert island—and the singer’s answer might surprise you.
“I better take the Bible because if I’m stranded on an island I fear may not get out of there and I might want to do some cramming,” Parton said, before sharing that there are a few other genres that she likes. “I have to love all kinds of books, it just depends….I love romances. I love those drugstore books – I love romance, but I like mysteries too.”
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