MR. EDMUND GOSSE, commenting on the lack of literary curiosity in the early years of the seventeenth century, ascribes it to a growing desire for real knowledge, to an increasing seriousness of mind.

At this point in her career, Dolly Parton has written several books — two of them autobiographies. But in 1981, the “Down From Dover” singer was nervous about putting out a book about her life. She ...