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Coal Miner's Daughter
New York Times bestselling author and Nashville legend Loretta Lynn tells the story of her rise from deep poverty in Butcher Holler, Kentucky, to the top of the male-dominated country music industry.
Reissued for the 40th Anniversary of the Oscar-winning, Sissy Spacek-starring film of the same name, Coal Miner's Daughter recounts Loretta Lynn's astonishing journey to become one of the original queens of country music. Loretta grew up dirt poor in the mountains of Kentucky, she was married at thirteen years old, and became a mother soon after. At the age of twenty-four, her husband, Doo, gave her a guitar as an anniversary present.
Soon, she began penning songs and singing in front of honky-tonk audiences, and, through years of hard work, talent, and true grit, eventually made her way to Nashville, the Grand Ole Opry, eventually securing her place in country music history. Loretta's prolific and influential songwriting made her the first woman to receive a gold record in country music, and got her named the first female Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association. This riveting memoir introduces readers to all the highs and lows on her road to success and the tough, smart, funny, and fascinating woman behind the legend.
Reissued for the 40th Anniversary of the Oscar-winning, Sissy Spacek-starring film of the same name, Coal Miner's Daughter recounts Loretta Lynn's astonishing journey to become one of the original queens of country music. Loretta grew up dirt poor in the mountains of Kentucky, she was married at thirteen years old, and became a mother soon after. At the age of twenty-four, her husband, Doo, gave her a guitar as an anniversary present.
Soon, she began penning songs and singing in front of honky-tonk audiences, and, through years of hard work, talent, and true grit, eventually made her way to Nashville, the Grand Ole Opry, eventually securing her place in country music history. Loretta's prolific and influential songwriting made her the first woman to receive a gold record in country music, and got her named the first female Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association. This riveting memoir introduces readers to all the highs and lows on her road to success and the tough, smart, funny, and fascinating woman behind the legend.
346 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1976
About the author
Loretta Lynn
30 books123 followersLoretta Lynn was an American country music singer-songwriter whose work spanned almost 60 years. She was the only woman to be named "Artist of the Decade" for the 1970s by the Academy of Country Music. Lynn was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1988.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 443 reviews
March 25, 2021
When I was younger, I would often stay with my great aunt on a weekend and she would play the oldies on this crackly little radio in her kitchen. Jim Reeves, Eddy Arnold, Nat King Cole, Patsy Cline, and, of course, Loretta Lynn.
I was always fascinated with Lynn. The fact that she was married at 14 (!) and that she clawed herself up from rural poverty. She could not read or write very well, so she just picked up a guitar and started singing her songs, learned them by heart. When I first heard “The Pill” and pictured this 5’2 southern housewife singing about her sexual freedom, divorce, and faking orgasms to a very conservative 1970s bible belt, I thought she was a hero.
I learned a more nuanced picture over the years. Some of her beliefs are strongly feminist, while others are quite jarringly dated. More recently, to my dismay, she’s been an outspoken Trump supporter. I know I don't get to be surprised that a country singer from rural Kentucky supported Trump, but I can still be disappointed.
Still, her life is quite unbelievable. Because she couldn’t read or write well, she recorded this book on tapes, and George Vecsey transcribed it, leaving in a lot of her vernacular. It feels like Lynn is talking directly to you, which is probably why some others found it badly-written. I really enjoyed the style, though. It added a unique flair that was all Lynn.
This memoir was hard to put down, and it helps a lot that Lynn has just had a very eventful life. Married so young, having six kids, losing her best friend Patsy Cline in a plane crash, and being a seemingly down-to-earth person thrust into the chaos of fame.
She had a lot of radical views for the time and place she was performing in. Some of her views country singers would not dare voice even today. Take this:
She wrote a lot about women and what it's like to have to deal with shitty husbands who cheat and come home drunk. Still, though, she does defend her own husband, Doolittle, a lot in this book, and I'm not sure he deserves it. I know it was a whole different time, but I found it harder to forgive him.
Lynn also spoke out against women who would drag each other down to get to the top. She believed women should work together and make space for each other, instead of treating each other as enemies:
I've been meaning to read this book for years, and I'm glad I finally did it. A fascinating portrait of a very fascinating artist.
I was always fascinated with Lynn. The fact that she was married at 14 (!) and that she clawed herself up from rural poverty. She could not read or write very well, so she just picked up a guitar and started singing her songs, learned them by heart. When I first heard “The Pill” and pictured this 5’2 southern housewife singing about her sexual freedom, divorce, and faking orgasms to a very conservative 1970s bible belt, I thought she was a hero.
I learned a more nuanced picture over the years. Some of her beliefs are strongly feminist, while others are quite jarringly dated. More recently, to my dismay, she’s been an outspoken Trump supporter. I know I don't get to be surprised that a country singer from rural Kentucky supported Trump, but I can still be disappointed.
Still, her life is quite unbelievable. Because she couldn’t read or write well, she recorded this book on tapes, and George Vecsey transcribed it, leaving in a lot of her vernacular. It feels like Lynn is talking directly to you, which is probably why some others found it badly-written. I really enjoyed the style, though. It added a unique flair that was all Lynn.
This memoir was hard to put down, and it helps a lot that Lynn has just had a very eventful life. Married so young, having six kids, losing her best friend Patsy Cline in a plane crash, and being a seemingly down-to-earth person thrust into the chaos of fame.
She had a lot of radical views for the time and place she was performing in. Some of her views country singers would not dare voice even today. Take this:
I don’t think I could have an abortion. It would be wrong for me. But I’m thinking of all the poor girls who get pregnant when they don’t want to be, and how they should have a choice instead of leaving it up to some politician or doctor who don’t have to raise the baby. I believe they should be able to have an abortion.
She wrote a lot about women and what it's like to have to deal with shitty husbands who cheat and come home drunk. Still, though, she does defend her own husband, Doolittle, a lot in this book, and I'm not sure he deserves it. I know it was a whole different time, but I found it harder to forgive him.
Lynn also spoke out against women who would drag each other down to get to the top. She believed women should work together and make space for each other, instead of treating each other as enemies:
I can remember Patsy Cline and Kitty Wells standing up for me when I came along. So Olivia Newton-John, when you come to Nashville, you give me a call, and I’ll help you any way I can. There’s room for all of us, honey.
I've been meaning to read this book for years, and I'm glad I finally did it. A fascinating portrait of a very fascinating artist.
May 22, 2020
Reading Road Trip 2020
Current location: Kentucky
Yeah, I'm proud to be a'finished with this memoir
'cause, holy shit, it took so long to read.
Loretta Lynn is full a'contradictions
and there's plenty a'what I hate here: name dropping.
Yeah, I'm proud to be a'finished with this memoir
of this woman who was simultaneously
in love with her damned scoundrel of a husband
and overlooked his wicked tendencies.
Yeah, I'm proud to be a'finished with this memoir
of Butcher's Holler and lies about her age.
Just tell the truth, babe, you weren't a child bride
(But damn were you obsessed with fat and weight).
Yeah, I'm proud to be a'finished with this memoir
'cause I've hated country music all my life.
It's gross to overlook your cheating husband
and sell the world on high necked collars for wives.
Current location: Kentucky
Yeah, I'm proud to be a'finished with this memoir
'cause, holy shit, it took so long to read.
Loretta Lynn is full a'contradictions
and there's plenty a'what I hate here: name dropping.
Yeah, I'm proud to be a'finished with this memoir
of this woman who was simultaneously
in love with her damned scoundrel of a husband
and overlooked his wicked tendencies.
Yeah, I'm proud to be a'finished with this memoir
of Butcher's Holler and lies about her age.
Just tell the truth, babe, you weren't a child bride
(But damn were you obsessed with fat and weight).
Yeah, I'm proud to be a'finished with this memoir
'cause I've hated country music all my life.
It's gross to overlook your cheating husband
and sell the world on high necked collars for wives.
October 7, 2022
RIP, dear Loretta. We will miss you!
I remember reading this book back in the 70's after she first released it. Rereading it forty-five years later it was like sitting down with an old friend. She is a cultural icon -- a woman who made her way in the boys' world of country music and carved an indelible niche into the genre. The only person I can think of to compare her to is Dolly Parton. Both have found a way to keep on making music for decades -- outliving many of the good ole boys who tried to box them into a corner. In this edition are several additional chapters (including her collaboration with Jack White) and a Reading Group Guide. Loretta Lynn will turn 90 this year and she is an American treasure.
I remember reading this book back in the 70's after she first released it. Rereading it forty-five years later it was like sitting down with an old friend. She is a cultural icon -- a woman who made her way in the boys' world of country music and carved an indelible niche into the genre. The only person I can think of to compare her to is Dolly Parton. Both have found a way to keep on making music for decades -- outliving many of the good ole boys who tried to box them into a corner. In this edition are several additional chapters (including her collaboration with Jack White) and a Reading Group Guide. Loretta Lynn will turn 90 this year and she is an American treasure.
July 4, 2018
4.5 Stars
As a Kentuckian I may be biased but I think Kentucky born Stars are the best. I mean we got Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Irene Dunne, Johnny Depp and George Clooney. Of course my top 2 are Muhammad Ali and Loretta Lynn.
I know what you're thinking
Loretta Lynn?
Really?
Yes really!
Loretta Lynn is probably one of the most authentic people not just celebrity but actual people ever. Loretta Lynn is not afraid to tell All of her truth. Coal Miners Daughter isn't the kind of self aggrandizing, everything is perfect, I have not problems autobiographies that most famous people write. She tells you straight up that her husband Doolittle Lynn has cheated and hit her but she loves that man and he loves her and if you got a problem with her man...that's your problem. Loretta isn't the most educated but she is very smart and she's not ashamed to ask questions and learn new things.
Loretta Lynn has lived a whole lotta life. Married at 13, a mom at 14, 4 kids by 18, a grandmother at 29 and somehow in the midst of all that she managed to become a country music superstar and have twin daughters. Coal Miners Daughter isn't just the name of her hit song and bestselling autobiography but its who Loretta Lynn is at the core of her soul. Loretta Lynn is hilarious, strong willed, tough, hard working, extremely naive, and most importantly always completely herself.
Loretta Lynn is what my granddaddy would call a "Odd Duck" she's a weirdo! She's not politically correct but she's also not offensive. She thinks racism is dumb because there are way better reasons to dislike someone that have nothing to do with race. She's not into all that "Women's Lib" stuff but she's Pro-Choice, Pro Birth Control, she believes women should control their own destiny and believes women are better than men.
Coal Miners Daughter isn't for everyone the writing style is a little chaotic and if you're not into the Hill-Billy lifestyle it might not interest you, but I as a proud Kentuckian loved it.
Around The Year In 52 Books: 4 Elements(Fire)
A Book 4 All Seasons: Choose a book that has been on your TBR list for at least 24 months
2018 Popsugar Reading Challenge: a book by a local author
As a Kentuckian I may be biased but I think Kentucky born Stars are the best. I mean we got Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Irene Dunne, Johnny Depp and George Clooney. Of course my top 2 are Muhammad Ali and Loretta Lynn.
I know what you're thinking
Loretta Lynn?
Really?
Yes really!
Loretta Lynn is probably one of the most authentic people not just celebrity but actual people ever. Loretta Lynn is not afraid to tell All of her truth. Coal Miners Daughter isn't the kind of self aggrandizing, everything is perfect, I have not problems autobiographies that most famous people write. She tells you straight up that her husband Doolittle Lynn has cheated and hit her but she loves that man and he loves her and if you got a problem with her man...that's your problem. Loretta isn't the most educated but she is very smart and she's not ashamed to ask questions and learn new things.
Loretta Lynn has lived a whole lotta life. Married at 13, a mom at 14, 4 kids by 18, a grandmother at 29 and somehow in the midst of all that she managed to become a country music superstar and have twin daughters. Coal Miners Daughter isn't just the name of her hit song and bestselling autobiography but its who Loretta Lynn is at the core of her soul. Loretta Lynn is hilarious, strong willed, tough, hard working, extremely naive, and most importantly always completely herself.
Loretta Lynn is what my granddaddy would call a "Odd Duck" she's a weirdo! She's not politically correct but she's also not offensive. She thinks racism is dumb because there are way better reasons to dislike someone that have nothing to do with race. She's not into all that "Women's Lib" stuff but she's Pro-Choice, Pro Birth Control, she believes women should control their own destiny and believes women are better than men.
Coal Miners Daughter isn't for everyone the writing style is a little chaotic and if you're not into the Hill-Billy lifestyle it might not interest you, but I as a proud Kentuckian loved it.
Around The Year In 52 Books: 4 Elements(Fire)
A Book 4 All Seasons: Choose a book that has been on your TBR list for at least 24 months
2018 Popsugar Reading Challenge: a book by a local author
March 16, 2021
I hadn’t read this book before or watched the movie, but I had definitely heard of both. What an impressive life after a rough start.
Loretta Lynn was so strong and determined and born into extreme poverty. Some of her determination to find more in her life reminded me of my maternal grandmother.
She married at 13 and found her way to the top of the country music charts. This is a fun and inspiring book, and I was hooked!
Now I’d like to watch the movie and listen to the audiobook narrated by Sissy Spacek!
I received a gifted copy.
Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/tarheelreader
Loretta Lynn was so strong and determined and born into extreme poverty. Some of her determination to find more in her life reminded me of my maternal grandmother.
She married at 13 and found her way to the top of the country music charts. This is a fun and inspiring book, and I was hooked!
Now I’d like to watch the movie and listen to the audiobook narrated by Sissy Spacek!
I received a gifted copy.
Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/tarheelreader
September 4, 2008
read this book or i will take you to fist city.
June 18, 2016
This autobiography was a solid 4 star, (even with the chaotic writing). I always like it when autobiographies/memoirs/biographies feel open and honest, and this one did that. And Sissy Spacek did the narration which was a plus for me.
Loretta Lynn was a strong willed woman and had in her mind exactly how she wanted things. I think that is why this book felt a little chaotic. She wanted this written in a way that would mirror her from her roots to her stardom, including having this written in her Kentucky dialect. She is who she is and completely owns that. I know her dialect turned some people off, but it felt authentic to me so that didn't bug me.
I enjoyed this and it felt like a little piece of Americana.
Loretta Lynn was a strong willed woman and had in her mind exactly how she wanted things. I think that is why this book felt a little chaotic. She wanted this written in a way that would mirror her from her roots to her stardom, including having this written in her Kentucky dialect. She is who she is and completely owns that. I know her dialect turned some people off, but it felt authentic to me so that didn't bug me.
I enjoyed this and it felt like a little piece of Americana.
July 7, 2007
It's an easy read. If you're interested in the hill-billy lifestyle then this is a great book. Loretta Lynn was brought up very backwoods Kentucky and it talks about how she became a big country star. Also, she's hilarious.
August 20, 2009
Coal Miner's Daughter is one of those autobiographies that everyone should pick up and read. Not because you love Loretta and her music, but because her life story is inspiring. Married at 14, and dirt poor for a good part of her young life, Loretta is one of those people who was blessed with luck and talent and a lot of people who love her.
With the help of her husband Doolittle (Mooney) Lynn, she rose to be the First Lady Of Country Music. The story Loretta weaves with the help of George Vecsey is one of struggle, growth and success. What you won't find here are nasty tales. Loretta is too much of a lady for that. You get her story, the way she would tell it, if you were sitting at the kitchen table with her.
Loretta isn't the most educated woman in show business and the language her reflects that but it also makes her more endearing, even though you'll struggle to find the reasoning for her spending all those years with a husband that certainly didn't treat her right. But all that aside, Loretta paints a picture of her life that is accurate even if it leaves out the dirt. You’ll truly enjoy the tales of her younger years during the depression when times were rougher than anyone younger than 50 could imagine, but through it all you see that Loretta is a survivor, even in her 30’s when she deals with illnesses that almost cost her, her life, she is a pillar of strength.
If you are familiar with Loretta's music, the book reads much like her songs. The one thing you will take away from this book is that Loretta is a family lovin', spunky woman that's worked damn hard for all that she has, and for that she deserves respect. You also get a lot of insight on how some of her songs were written as well as some of the friendships she’s had over the year, particularly with Conway Twitty, Dolly Parton and, of course, Patsy Kline.
I picked this book up by chance, I found it when I was cleaning, not knowing a thing about Loretta Lynn, but after finishing the 244 pages I’ve come to love this hillbilly mountain girl from Butcher Holler Kentucky, and now when I sit down and listen to her greatest hits album the songs have new meaning to me. This book is a fast read and the easy storytelling Loretta gives us draws the reader in. This is probably one of the best musical autobiographies I’ve ever read and I look forward to reading her follow-up memoirs Still Woman Enough.
If you are a fan of musical biographies, this is definitely one to pick up, and even if you don’t usually read this genre, Loretta’s tale has something for everyone. This is definitely a musical must read.
With the help of her husband Doolittle (Mooney) Lynn, she rose to be the First Lady Of Country Music. The story Loretta weaves with the help of George Vecsey is one of struggle, growth and success. What you won't find here are nasty tales. Loretta is too much of a lady for that. You get her story, the way she would tell it, if you were sitting at the kitchen table with her.
Loretta isn't the most educated woman in show business and the language her reflects that but it also makes her more endearing, even though you'll struggle to find the reasoning for her spending all those years with a husband that certainly didn't treat her right. But all that aside, Loretta paints a picture of her life that is accurate even if it leaves out the dirt. You’ll truly enjoy the tales of her younger years during the depression when times were rougher than anyone younger than 50 could imagine, but through it all you see that Loretta is a survivor, even in her 30’s when she deals with illnesses that almost cost her, her life, she is a pillar of strength.
If you are familiar with Loretta's music, the book reads much like her songs. The one thing you will take away from this book is that Loretta is a family lovin', spunky woman that's worked damn hard for all that she has, and for that she deserves respect. You also get a lot of insight on how some of her songs were written as well as some of the friendships she’s had over the year, particularly with Conway Twitty, Dolly Parton and, of course, Patsy Kline.
I picked this book up by chance, I found it when I was cleaning, not knowing a thing about Loretta Lynn, but after finishing the 244 pages I’ve come to love this hillbilly mountain girl from Butcher Holler Kentucky, and now when I sit down and listen to her greatest hits album the songs have new meaning to me. This book is a fast read and the easy storytelling Loretta gives us draws the reader in. This is probably one of the best musical autobiographies I’ve ever read and I look forward to reading her follow-up memoirs Still Woman Enough.
If you are a fan of musical biographies, this is definitely one to pick up, and even if you don’t usually read this genre, Loretta’s tale has something for everyone. This is definitely a musical must read.
October 5, 2022
This book is a reprint of the 1976 original autobiography of Loretta Lynn. There is additional new information at the back of the book. It also shows that there were a lot of differences between the movie (at least what I can remember of it) and what indeed occurred.
I must admit that I didn't really know anything about this artist until I watched the movie back in the 1980's. I have always love "Coal Miner's Daughter" and the movie, so I took a chance with this book. I'm so glad I did because it shows a deeper side of Loretta, her music, and her relationship with Doolittle. I can't always s get behind Loretta's outlook on marriage, but then again, I'm not an 88-year-old woman who was born before the depression and married at 13!
I love looking at the lives of the people in the hollers, how they survived, and how they Loretta dealt with them as she rose in the record industry.
I recommend this book to anyone who loves that intense country music, who wants to learn more about the industry at that time, or wants to know more about some other artists that Loretta adored...or even liked the movie!
*ARC supplied by the publisher, author, and NetGalley. Thank you.
I must admit that I didn't really know anything about this artist until I watched the movie back in the 1980's. I have always love "Coal Miner's Daughter" and the movie, so I took a chance with this book. I'm so glad I did because it shows a deeper side of Loretta, her music, and her relationship with Doolittle. I can't always s get behind Loretta's outlook on marriage, but then again, I'm not an 88-year-old woman who was born before the depression and married at 13!
I love looking at the lives of the people in the hollers, how they survived, and how they Loretta dealt with them as she rose in the record industry.
I recommend this book to anyone who loves that intense country music, who wants to learn more about the industry at that time, or wants to know more about some other artists that Loretta adored...or even liked the movie!
*ARC supplied by the publisher, author, and NetGalley. Thank you.
June 18, 2018
Loretta Lynn was my Dad's favorite country music singer. Part of that was because he was also from Kentucky, in fact where he came from was just about 60 miles from Butcher Hollow. My Dad was also a son of a coal miner , one of the reasons he related so well to Loretta Lynn.
I felt like I was sitting down and visiting with Loretta while listening to the audiobook. She and my Dad were both from the Appalachian mountains with very similar beliefs and backgrounds, being superstitious was one of those particular beliefs. This audiobook was a joy to listen to is all I can say.
I felt like I was sitting down and visiting with Loretta while listening to the audiobook. She and my Dad were both from the Appalachian mountains with very similar beliefs and backgrounds, being superstitious was one of those particular beliefs. This audiobook was a joy to listen to is all I can say.
October 27, 2016
The most saccharine piece of self aggrandizement I haze ever read! It's amazing someone in the business is this truly naive.
December 6, 2017
Okay, first, a few things:
1) This book was fascinating and boring.
2) This book was a study in contradictory beliefs.
3) I learned a lot about Loretta Lynn and small country life.
Seriously, this book was odd. I was simultaneously fascinated and disgusted by the subject matter. Loretta Lynn was married at 15 (explicitly against her parents wishes/actions) to a 21 year old. In the book she says that she did not know how babies were made and what sex was and did not like it. She was, essentially, raped the first few years of her marriage. And moved across the country with her husband who regularly ran out on her and she also bore (such an antique word, I know) four children before she was 20.
Yet, she's still happily married according to the book that was published in 1976.
She's a self-professed feminist and a lot of her songs deal with women's rights stuff (like access to the pill and refusing to have sex with a drunk husband, etc etc ?). Also, she's also 1/4 Cherokee and champions the rights of Natives during her book and also, it seems, in real life. But the discussion of it seems insensitive but, granted, it was the 1970's. (cringing as I wrote that)
Anyway, this was....informative. As a recent Nashville transplant I see billboards for Loretta Lynn and now I know who she is and what she was/is about. I feel like I can appreciate her for the important character she was, especially in widening country music across the country.
So...read if you're interested. And know it's pretty fascinating , badass, and cringy all at the same time.
1) This book was fascinating and boring.
2) This book was a study in contradictory beliefs.
3) I learned a lot about Loretta Lynn and small country life.
Seriously, this book was odd. I was simultaneously fascinated and disgusted by the subject matter. Loretta Lynn was married at 15 (explicitly against her parents wishes/actions) to a 21 year old. In the book she says that she did not know how babies were made and what sex was and did not like it. She was, essentially, raped the first few years of her marriage. And moved across the country with her husband who regularly ran out on her and she also bore (such an antique word, I know) four children before she was 20.
Yet, she's still happily married according to the book that was published in 1976.
She's a self-professed feminist and a lot of her songs deal with women's rights stuff (like access to the pill and refusing to have sex with a drunk husband, etc etc ?). Also, she's also 1/4 Cherokee and champions the rights of Natives during her book and also, it seems, in real life. But the discussion of it seems insensitive but, granted, it was the 1970's. (cringing as I wrote that)
Anyway, this was....informative. As a recent Nashville transplant I see billboards for Loretta Lynn and now I know who she is and what she was/is about. I feel like I can appreciate her for the important character she was, especially in widening country music across the country.
So...read if you're interested. And know it's pretty fascinating , badass, and cringy all at the same time.
December 28, 2020
Lynn has a conversational style which feels very genuine and honest. I like that in a memoir. This was published back in 1976 near the height of her fame. She grew up in the Kentucky hills, married at age 13, had lots of babies, and with the urging of her sometimes wayward husband “Doolittle” Lynn, she ultimately succeeded in becoming one of the biggest stars in country music. Some of the language is dated, but it’s obvs she meant well.
November 14, 2021
There’s an old axiom about never buying something from a man who calls himself Honest John. That is, if someone has to tell you they’re honest, there just might be a problem.
Throughout this memoir by Loretta Lynn – and especially in the foreword to this anniversary edition – the singer assures us that everything she’s telling us is the truth. At one point in the middle of the book, she defends her work as a songwriter by insisting that words mean what they’re supposed to mean. As someone schooled in a deconstructionist context – even as someone who largely rejected deconstructionism in favor of a historicist/contextualist approach – that comes as red meat to a vegetarian.
Listen – literally, I do mean that you should listen to some of Lynn’s work – Loretta Lynn has a great story to tell. This is a woman who was married when she was just 14 years old. Her husband, Doolittle, seems (he was alive when she wrote the memoir, though he’s now dead) a controlling man, but he seems also to have believed in her talent and strength. That didn’t keep him from sleeping around while she was on the road bringing in the money that allowed him to afford the ranch of his dreams, but she doesn’t complain.
Honestly, she doesn’t complain.
As part of reading this, I went back to some of her music, and found it more old-timey than I remembered. Still, there’s no denying the beauty and power of her voice at its peak. And, though it’s subtler to pick up on today, there’s no denying that she was a rebel in her limited context.
The Nashville/Grand Ol Opry scene she broke into – as a 24-year-old mother of three or four children already – was male dominated. Dottie West and Patsy Cline had made places for themselves, but Loretta – to hear her tell it (and I think it’s accurate) – was the next woman up.
And Loretta didn’t just make a place for herself; she did so as a woman writing and singing from a woman’s perspective. I’m not sure she managed to knock out any single song that still resonates, nothing as memorable as her not-far-behind contemporary Tammy Wynette managed with “Stand By Your Man,” for instance. “Coal Miner’s Daughter” is a beautiful narrative, one that works because it’s unadorned and vulnerable even as it celebrates her story. But try to hum the tune, and I think you’ll find it isn’t quite as memorable as it feels like it should be.
At her best, though, Loretta is capable of some excellent country music poetry. I love the title line, “Don’t come home a’ drinkin’ with lovin’ on your mind.” It’s a semi-spurned woman, not angry enough to leave her man, but strong enough within her home to assert herself. You couldn’t call it feminism, but there’s something proud, unapologetic, and unironically honest about it.
And it’s interesting to hear Loretta talk about her early embrace of legalizing abortion and her support for women making decisions about birth control and other issues affecting their bodies. In some of the best ways, she’s her own woman, which is a remarkable thing to say about someone packed off as a child bride and a teen mother – one so naïve that she insists she had no idea how conception took place until she was a “married woman.”
At the same time, for all the power of the arc of her story, there are just too many “honest” elements here for me to embrace the memoir in full. Just when you think she might let Doolittle have it for his philandering and control, she reassures us that she’s living the life she always wanted. (Maybe she is, but it’s clear that the path to that life was a challenge – and recording that challenge is the purported reason for writing the memoir in the first place.) And, where I’d like to hear her – like any artist – discuss her creative process, all we get is the claim that she often stays up late writing lyrics in her notebook and then crafting a tune around them.
That sort of assertion about the way words work, that the ones we need are there if we just squint a little and have faith, undermines a testimony I want to hear. It shouldn’t be a surprise, even from a woman who professes throughout to be apolitical, that she voted for Donald Trump in 2020.
Given the cultural moment this had when I was still in high school, I expected a little more substance. There’s a lot to celebrate in Loretta’s life, and I am glad for the excuse to revisit some of her music that I hadn’t heard in a long time. But this is ultimately less honest than she promises, and I’m saddened to think that this often remarkable woman may not quite see through her own self-invention.
Throughout this memoir by Loretta Lynn – and especially in the foreword to this anniversary edition – the singer assures us that everything she’s telling us is the truth. At one point in the middle of the book, she defends her work as a songwriter by insisting that words mean what they’re supposed to mean. As someone schooled in a deconstructionist context – even as someone who largely rejected deconstructionism in favor of a historicist/contextualist approach – that comes as red meat to a vegetarian.
Listen – literally, I do mean that you should listen to some of Lynn’s work – Loretta Lynn has a great story to tell. This is a woman who was married when she was just 14 years old. Her husband, Doolittle, seems (he was alive when she wrote the memoir, though he’s now dead) a controlling man, but he seems also to have believed in her talent and strength. That didn’t keep him from sleeping around while she was on the road bringing in the money that allowed him to afford the ranch of his dreams, but she doesn’t complain.
Honestly, she doesn’t complain.
As part of reading this, I went back to some of her music, and found it more old-timey than I remembered. Still, there’s no denying the beauty and power of her voice at its peak. And, though it’s subtler to pick up on today, there’s no denying that she was a rebel in her limited context.
The Nashville/Grand Ol Opry scene she broke into – as a 24-year-old mother of three or four children already – was male dominated. Dottie West and Patsy Cline had made places for themselves, but Loretta – to hear her tell it (and I think it’s accurate) – was the next woman up.
And Loretta didn’t just make a place for herself; she did so as a woman writing and singing from a woman’s perspective. I’m not sure she managed to knock out any single song that still resonates, nothing as memorable as her not-far-behind contemporary Tammy Wynette managed with “Stand By Your Man,” for instance. “Coal Miner’s Daughter” is a beautiful narrative, one that works because it’s unadorned and vulnerable even as it celebrates her story. But try to hum the tune, and I think you’ll find it isn’t quite as memorable as it feels like it should be.
At her best, though, Loretta is capable of some excellent country music poetry. I love the title line, “Don’t come home a’ drinkin’ with lovin’ on your mind.” It’s a semi-spurned woman, not angry enough to leave her man, but strong enough within her home to assert herself. You couldn’t call it feminism, but there’s something proud, unapologetic, and unironically honest about it.
And it’s interesting to hear Loretta talk about her early embrace of legalizing abortion and her support for women making decisions about birth control and other issues affecting their bodies. In some of the best ways, she’s her own woman, which is a remarkable thing to say about someone packed off as a child bride and a teen mother – one so naïve that she insists she had no idea how conception took place until she was a “married woman.”
At the same time, for all the power of the arc of her story, there are just too many “honest” elements here for me to embrace the memoir in full. Just when you think she might let Doolittle have it for his philandering and control, she reassures us that she’s living the life she always wanted. (Maybe she is, but it’s clear that the path to that life was a challenge – and recording that challenge is the purported reason for writing the memoir in the first place.) And, where I’d like to hear her – like any artist – discuss her creative process, all we get is the claim that she often stays up late writing lyrics in her notebook and then crafting a tune around them.
That sort of assertion about the way words work, that the ones we need are there if we just squint a little and have faith, undermines a testimony I want to hear. It shouldn’t be a surprise, even from a woman who professes throughout to be apolitical, that she voted for Donald Trump in 2020.
Given the cultural moment this had when I was still in high school, I expected a little more substance. There’s a lot to celebrate in Loretta’s life, and I am glad for the excuse to revisit some of her music that I hadn’t heard in a long time. But this is ultimately less honest than she promises, and I’m saddened to think that this often remarkable woman may not quite see through her own self-invention.
March 23, 2019
borrowed from a friend at work
March 13, 2020
This is one where I liked the movie a great deal better than the book,although Sissy Spacek did just as great of a job narrating this as she did acting in the film. However, the book isn't brilliantly written and the film stuck to more of the things I was interested and left out some of the stuff I wasn't. Also, it came out later that Lynn lied about her age and she wasn't married at 13 going on 14, but at 15 going on 16 which makes her late husband less creepy and things more believable. Well, I do know that young teens got married at that age back then and there are still states where this isn't against the law, or wasn't last year or so, if the parents agree. That might sound okay if a 13 year old had the maturity to make such a drastic decision, but they don't and it's not that hard to coerce a 13 year old into something like this as compared with a 23 year old--NOT that that happened since she gives her late husband all the credit for getting her started and encouraging her with her career. It was all his idea.
What I liked is that, other than her age, she seems to have told the story fairly straight, as far as I can tell. I had no idea that some fans did things like rip false eyelashes etc off of singers--seriously, why on earth would anyone want a used fake eyelash as a souvenir? I ask as a former 12 year old who had Donny Osmond posters plastering her wall until, at 13, I tore them all down and broke all of his records because I did NOT take teasing well once I was past that fan crush, although I was never one to write fan letters, thankfully (who knows how stupid those would have been) even though I was a good correspondent with friends.
At any rate, if you are a country music fan, as in what country music originally was before it got mixed with pop, this is a book for you. If not, it's not that great.
What I liked is that, other than her age, she seems to have told the story fairly straight, as far as I can tell. I had no idea that some fans did things like rip false eyelashes etc off of singers--seriously, why on earth would anyone want a used fake eyelash as a souvenir? I ask as a former 12 year old who had Donny Osmond posters plastering her wall until, at 13, I tore them all down and broke all of his records because I did NOT take teasing well once I was past that fan crush, although I was never one to write fan letters, thankfully (who knows how stupid those would have been) even though I was a good correspondent with friends.
At any rate, if you are a country music fan, as in what country music originally was before it got mixed with pop, this is a book for you. If not, it's not that great.
July 26, 2020
Book on CD narrated by Sissy Spacek
3.5***
This autobiography takes the reader from Loretta’s birth (sometime when FDR was president – she refuses to reveal how old she really is) to stardom.
I found this very interesting. She tells her story in a forthright and honest manner, relating both the good and the bad. She doesn’t apologize for her life or her choices (she married at age thirteen and was a grandmother by the time she was 29), but allows that she may not have had the education or life experience to do things differently at the time.
There were times when I winced at her ignorance but there’s no denying her talent and hard work. This memoir was first published in 1976. I had to keep reminding myself how different life was then. The audiobook I listened to was for the 30-year anniversary edition and included a forward with some additional information.
Sissy Spacek does a marvelous job narrating the audio. She was Lynn’s hand-picked choice to portray her in the movie, and has Lynn’s voice down pat. Most of the time I completely forgot it was Spacek performing it. I have never seen the movie, but having listened to Spacek’s performance on the audio, I know want to. Brava!
3.5***
This autobiography takes the reader from Loretta’s birth (sometime when FDR was president – she refuses to reveal how old she really is) to stardom.
I found this very interesting. She tells her story in a forthright and honest manner, relating both the good and the bad. She doesn’t apologize for her life or her choices (she married at age thirteen and was a grandmother by the time she was 29), but allows that she may not have had the education or life experience to do things differently at the time.
There were times when I winced at her ignorance but there’s no denying her talent and hard work. This memoir was first published in 1976. I had to keep reminding myself how different life was then. The audiobook I listened to was for the 30-year anniversary edition and included a forward with some additional information.
Sissy Spacek does a marvelous job narrating the audio. She was Lynn’s hand-picked choice to portray her in the movie, and has Lynn’s voice down pat. Most of the time I completely forgot it was Spacek performing it. I have never seen the movie, but having listened to Spacek’s performance on the audio, I know want to. Brava!
March 17, 2016
I remember growing up hearing my father play Loretta Lynn records and recently watched the PBS American Masters on her, so I had to read this book.
I was sucked in from page one by her voice which wasn’t cleaned up or changed, especially in the time it was written, to please the masses. I felt like I was sitting in a country kitchen listening to someone tell their life story. I loved how she bared everything in her life from her roots, to her marriage to her thoughts about people, society and fame. Nothing was off limits or sanitized to make herself look other than what she is a talented woman with drive, strengths, faults—and an out spoken woman.
Loretta Lynn’s Coal Miner’s Daughter is one of the best autobiographies I’ve read. I'm now a big admirer of her and a fan. I whole heatedly recommend this book to any one who loves stories about over coming odds, being true to one’s self and the sacrifices made for success and family.
I was sucked in from page one by her voice which wasn’t cleaned up or changed, especially in the time it was written, to please the masses. I felt like I was sitting in a country kitchen listening to someone tell their life story. I loved how she bared everything in her life from her roots, to her marriage to her thoughts about people, society and fame. Nothing was off limits or sanitized to make herself look other than what she is a talented woman with drive, strengths, faults—and an out spoken woman.
Loretta Lynn’s Coal Miner’s Daughter is one of the best autobiographies I’ve read. I'm now a big admirer of her and a fan. I whole heatedly recommend this book to any one who loves stories about over coming odds, being true to one’s self and the sacrifices made for success and family.
August 10, 2011
It's a fascinating story, it really is, but the writing is pretty horrendous. Lynn penned it with George Vecsey, apparently by dictating it to him and then he transcribed and wrote it. But she also refers to "my writer George" throughout. She claims to have all kinds of special insights, ESP, and a kinship with all Native Americans because she is 1/16th Cherokee. She (and her writer George) also continually write in a "hillbilly dialect" that seems totally contrived, especially given that the writer George is probably capable of proper grammar and punctuation. It's kind of a miracle that a movie as good as Coal Miner's Daughter emerged from the bare bones of this account.
March 26, 2015
What an interesting life, married by age 14, babies immediately, and a grandmother at age 29. I was more interested in her life in Butcher's Holler than by her life since becoming famous, but the whole book was good. It's a short read and I would recommend even if you aren't a country music fan. Her life is inspiring-from coal miner's daughter to famous musician. Not many people can overcome those odds and make their dreams a reality. And she may claim to not be into women's lib- as anyone who has listened to her music knows, she has a feminist spirit ("The Pill" anyone??). I would have liked her to talk more about her relationship with her husband, Doo.
Read
November 3, 2023I can't anymore, I'm done, not quite to 50%. I know it was a different time, I knoooow, but apparently I have a limit to how many "that's just how women are" and "boys will be boys" inferences I can take, and it's well shy of 8 hours. movie > book
April 29, 2020
I've always loved Loretta Lynn and this autobiography of hers (thoughwritten with the help of a professional writer) is pure Loretta - funny, moving and honest like the woman herself.
February 1, 2023
Mixed feelings about this book but overall very glad i read it. It reads kind of like two books smashed together. The first half is the story of her life told chronologically from birth to when she started taking off as a musician, and it is full of interesting anecdotes about, like the title says, growing up a coal miners daughter. The second half is not told chronologically, but is rather a collection of chapters that range from like 3-20 pages full of her thoughts and stories relating to a particular topic. It is a lot of name dropping and parts of it really read like A Letter To My Haters. I feel like maybe the second half would have been more entertaining to read if I was a big country fan in 1975 when the book came out and knew about all the drama she was referencing, but instead it just got kind of boring to sift through.
The best parts were about her songwriting. I loved when she would walk us through how she got the idea for a song, the story behind it, and how she would write it out. I had a great time listening to only Loretta Lynn for like 2 weeks while reading this and being like DID YOU KNOW THIS SONG IS ACTUALLY BASED ON A CONVERSATION SHE HAD WITH A FAN IN COLORADO SPRINGS IN 1973 AND THEN SHE WROTE IT ALL IN ONE SITTING ???
At the beginning of the book I was very interested in her political opinions but by the end I was just tired of it. Frustrating to see all the cognitive dissonance - like she’s always kind of shitting on womens lib and joking about falling asleep while Betty Friedan was talking to her, but then also constantly talks about how women should be paid as much as men and what a big problem domestic violence is, and even wrote a song about how the pill is a godsend. Part of me was like okay I guess this shows the failings of womens lib in some ways, but then I was like okay she’s not really talking about how they’re not addressing a wide variety of womens experience or whatever she’s just like Betty Friedan is boring! and then turning around and advocating a lot of the same things the movement was pushing for, so it felt pretty hollow to me. Or on one page she’s talking about for FDR was the best president ever and she is for whatever political party takes care of poor people, and then 5 pages later she’s talking about how sad it is to go back to her hometown and see how people don’t have to be innovative about being poor anymore because they’re all on welfare. She even sings a song about how her dad never took handouts but writes in the book all about how her dad found work through new deal programs and how her family got clothes from the government and shit. By the end I was kinda like girl stick to the music
The best parts were about her songwriting. I loved when she would walk us through how she got the idea for a song, the story behind it, and how she would write it out. I had a great time listening to only Loretta Lynn for like 2 weeks while reading this and being like DID YOU KNOW THIS SONG IS ACTUALLY BASED ON A CONVERSATION SHE HAD WITH A FAN IN COLORADO SPRINGS IN 1973 AND THEN SHE WROTE IT ALL IN ONE SITTING ???
At the beginning of the book I was very interested in her political opinions but by the end I was just tired of it. Frustrating to see all the cognitive dissonance - like she’s always kind of shitting on womens lib and joking about falling asleep while Betty Friedan was talking to her, but then also constantly talks about how women should be paid as much as men and what a big problem domestic violence is, and even wrote a song about how the pill is a godsend. Part of me was like okay I guess this shows the failings of womens lib in some ways, but then I was like okay she’s not really talking about how they’re not addressing a wide variety of womens experience or whatever she’s just like Betty Friedan is boring! and then turning around and advocating a lot of the same things the movement was pushing for, so it felt pretty hollow to me. Or on one page she’s talking about for FDR was the best president ever and she is for whatever political party takes care of poor people, and then 5 pages later she’s talking about how sad it is to go back to her hometown and see how people don’t have to be innovative about being poor anymore because they’re all on welfare. She even sings a song about how her dad never took handouts but writes in the book all about how her dad found work through new deal programs and how her family got clothes from the government and shit. By the end I was kinda like girl stick to the music
August 4, 2020
3.75 stars
Originally published in 1976, this is country music star Loretta Lynn’s autobiography.
She’s pretty old-fashioned, but of course that could also just be that she’s a product of her time. I loved her “storytelling” style – it read like chatting with a friend as she tells stories of her life. I was not as interested in the other celebrity stories, and was more interested in her home life. Some interesting celebrity tidbits, though: I didn’t know Chrystal Gayle was her sister; she and Patsy Cline were friends; she felt badly for Olivia Newton John when people were “against” her winning country music awards because she wasn’t from Nashville.
I liked the first half of the book much better, as it focused more on her home life – growing up poor, her father working in a coal mine; marrying at 14-years old... Sissy Spacek was perfect to narrate the audio! So, overall, I’m rating it good (3.5 stars) with an extra quarter star for Sissy Spacek.
Originally published in 1976, this is country music star Loretta Lynn’s autobiography.
She’s pretty old-fashioned, but of course that could also just be that she’s a product of her time. I loved her “storytelling” style – it read like chatting with a friend as she tells stories of her life. I was not as interested in the other celebrity stories, and was more interested in her home life. Some interesting celebrity tidbits, though: I didn’t know Chrystal Gayle was her sister; she and Patsy Cline were friends; she felt badly for Olivia Newton John when people were “against” her winning country music awards because she wasn’t from Nashville.
I liked the first half of the book much better, as it focused more on her home life – growing up poor, her father working in a coal mine; marrying at 14-years old... Sissy Spacek was perfect to narrate the audio! So, overall, I’m rating it good (3.5 stars) with an extra quarter star for Sissy Spacek.
March 15, 2023
This book was as hard to read as it was to put down. Lynn firmly owns her story, which I admire given how frightening her husband is throughout her life.
The tone is worryingly juvenile, but that is not a surprise, considering she had 4 kids before she was 18 to said frightening husband.
And, while she credits her talents and success to him, I think she would have been a happier, healthier Loretta Lynn without him. Like they say, Mama always know best!
The tone is worryingly juvenile, but that is not a surprise, considering she had 4 kids before she was 18 to said frightening husband.
And, while she credits her talents and success to him, I think she would have been a happier, healthier Loretta Lynn without him. Like they say, Mama always know best!
February 14, 2021
Honest, fascinating, and inspiring!
Coal Miner’s Daughter is the candid, informative story of Loretta Lynn’s personal and professional successes, hardships, struggles, and accomplishments as a daughter, wife, mother, and famous country music star.
The writing is sincere and insightful. The characters are funny, focused, and humble. And the novel is an intriguing, introspective, entertaining tale of one woman’s life from her poverty-stricken Kentucky mountain roots to the lights, glamour, and fame of Nashville.
You know how sometimes people will ask what is one book that totally exceeded your expectations. Well in 2021, one of those books for me will be Coal Miner’s Daughter. Honestly, I’m not a huge country music fan, but this novel is such a forthright, absorbing, captivating tale about one woman’s ability to conquer a male-dominated industry through hard work, determination, integrity, loyalty, and grit that it’s hard to not love it.
Coal Miner’s Daughter is the candid, informative story of Loretta Lynn’s personal and professional successes, hardships, struggles, and accomplishments as a daughter, wife, mother, and famous country music star.
The writing is sincere and insightful. The characters are funny, focused, and humble. And the novel is an intriguing, introspective, entertaining tale of one woman’s life from her poverty-stricken Kentucky mountain roots to the lights, glamour, and fame of Nashville.
You know how sometimes people will ask what is one book that totally exceeded your expectations. Well in 2021, one of those books for me will be Coal Miner’s Daughter. Honestly, I’m not a huge country music fan, but this novel is such a forthright, absorbing, captivating tale about one woman’s ability to conquer a male-dominated industry through hard work, determination, integrity, loyalty, and grit that it’s hard to not love it.
June 3, 2021
Loretta Lynn was born in the hills of Eastern Kentucky and lived a very poverty-stricken life before coming into fame. Although the book was originally written in 1976 when Loretta was 41, you can still get a glimpse of that life of being a coal miners daughter through the way her story is told.
Now, I'm a Kentuckian myself and I do have a specific accent/dialect, but I do not speak the way Loretta speaks in her book. Don't get me wrong. I guess I can if I try hard enough, but for the most part I don't, or I think I don't. I feel she continued to speak like this way at 41 came from her being raised during that specific time period and being mildly educated as well, so I had to keep that in mind as I was reading. Then again Loretta is authentic and I appreciated her delivering this in her book.
In her memoir she talks about how she came into fame and it wasn't an overnight sensation. Loretta put in a lot of hard work, pounding the pavement from show after show, and her husband, Doo, put in a lot of hard work as well. She talks about the country singers that inspired her when country music was just getting started.
Thank you to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed and appreciated learning about a legend from my home state in addition to some Kentucky heritage as well.
Now, I'm a Kentuckian myself and I do have a specific accent/dialect, but I do not speak the way Loretta speaks in her book. Don't get me wrong. I guess I can if I try hard enough, but for the most part I don't, or I think I don't. I feel she continued to speak like this way at 41 came from her being raised during that specific time period and being mildly educated as well, so I had to keep that in mind as I was reading. Then again Loretta is authentic and I appreciated her delivering this in her book.
In her memoir she talks about how she came into fame and it wasn't an overnight sensation. Loretta put in a lot of hard work, pounding the pavement from show after show, and her husband, Doo, put in a lot of hard work as well. She talks about the country singers that inspired her when country music was just getting started.
Thank you to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed and appreciated learning about a legend from my home state in addition to some Kentucky heritage as well.
December 31, 2015
If you ever listened to a Loretta Lynn song, you know what to expect from this book. It's written the way she talks, and I swear I could hear her voice narrating it in my head - accent and all. What impressed me the most in the book was how ignorant and clueless one can be when raised up in a cabin in the mountains. Reading about her childhood and the early years of her marriage, it seems surprising that such a bashful little girl with no knowledge of the outside world whatsoever would grow up to become such a witty, talented, smart, hard working legend of music. The only downside is that is is too short, and Loretta went on to do much more with her life (but there are more recent books by her, though.)
June 9, 2008
I adore Loretta Lynn's music, and I saw this movie many, many times from childhood on up before I ever read the book. I am grouping this in the feminist category b/c in her own special way Loretta brought the revolution to (white working-class, rural) women who would never have accepted it from the likes of Gloria Steinem or Betty Friedan. "The Pill" is the fiery pro-choice anthem! :) Of course, she did stay with an abusive and manipulative man for all those years... And she hawked freaking Crisco as if staying home and cooking were the most wonderful thing in the world... OK, but "The Pill" is still a fiery pro-choice anthem! ;)
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