Good Lookin’ Cookin’: A Year of Meals, a Lifetime of Family, Friends, and Food

Legendary singer-songwriter Parton (Behind the Seams) teams up with her sister, debut author George, for this cheery guide to entertaining. The sisters provide 12 themed menus, each devoted to one month of the year, with recipes for drinks, appetizers, mains, sides, and desserts. July’s menu, inspired by Fourth of July cookouts, starts with sweet tea and hot wing dip with celery sticks, features barbecue spare ribs as the main, includes grilled corn with spicy mayo and layered salad as the sides, and ends with apple pie with crumb topping. Throughout, the authors share endearing anecdotes (“This is one of Dolly’s favorite dishes, so I usually make it for her birthday,” George writes of the rustic chicken and dumplings) and family recipes, including their mother’s banana pudding and their sister Willadeene’s witches’ brew cider. Instructions are uncomplicated, with prep times and cook times listed to help readers plan ahead and sidebars with handy tips: for the watermelon fruit salad, they suggest adding the dressing (made of citrus, herbs, and champagne) to individual servings instead of the entire bowl to help leftovers last longer. This tasty and heartfelt outing is a gift for Parton’s fans. Agent: Jeff Kleinman, Folio Literary. (Sept.)