No products in the cart.
Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Daisy Jones is a major Los Angeles star playing in small clubs in Daisy Jones & The Six: A Novel’s early 1970s setting. She dreams of living life to the fullest and creating the music she loves, but she and her record label have conflicting definitions of success. When Daisy and Bill first meet, they immediately clash, but when they work together, they become incredible. A rock and roll autobiography set in the era of sex, drugs, and rock and roll is Daisy Jones & The Six: A Novel.
I chose to pick up this book because it has been praised by the literary community I frequent for a few weeks. I ended up reading the 336-mock-rock history in one sitting. Daisy Jones & The Six: A Novel is a visual read. Beginning with Daisy, the poor little affluent girl, the story is set up as an oral history.
She is a talented free-range child who is broken in a way that causes her to engage in the kind of self-destruction that will make readers feel as though they have already read the story—because they have. Since I was only allowed to listen to evangelical music growing up, my only experience with rock music is from the 1990s and Queen, I have read that this book is a fictitious version of Fleetwood Mac. As a result, I failed to notice any similarities between the two bands.
Daisy Jones & The Six, in its entirety, is a clichéd tale of extravagance set in the time of bell bottoms, alcohol, and blow. It is heavily assumed that readers are familiar with the excesses of the 1970s music culture. Reid captures the mood of the time with great emotional accuracy. The references to music and fashion are accurate. Reid never takes unnecessary risks.
She makes a hint at the unpleasant while avoiding it. There is something to be said for avoiding unnecessary self-immolation, but this is the 1970s; you either do it or you don’t, and there are acceptable methods to avoid celebrating the unlawful. The novel is reportedly being made into a movie, and since the screenwriters will likely sensationalise the translation, prudence is ultimately not valorous.
Daisy’s own personality might use some improvement. She is a synthesis of problematic female singers. I have observed the anxious trigger warnings and hand-wringing. A lot of the information on the page is quite general, to be transparent. There are groupies and no ID verifications. Some things are truly dubious, but they are glossed over. The tragic Janis Joplin spin detracts from the main plot and adds a saint vs. whore subtext for Daisy and another female character that is perplexingly overdone in literature and discredits everyone.
It’s difficult to connect with the cliff notes of a 1970s singer, so this really distracts from the main plot. This is not a spoiler in any way because I don’t know if readers will care whether Daisy triumphs or fails in the end. And in this instance, winning may not have the conventional meaning. Daisy is said to be captivating, so even though we can’t see it, we know it happens.
About The Book
Daisy is a girl coming of age in L.A. in the late sixties, sneaking into clubs on the Sunset Strip, sleeping with rock stars, and dreaming of singing at the Whisky a Go Go. The sex and drugs are thrilling, but it’s the rock ’n’ roll she loves most. By the time she’s twenty, her voice is getting noticed, and she has the kind of heedless beauty that makes people do crazy things.
Also getting noticed is The Six, a band led by the brooding Billy Dunne. On the eve of their first tour, his girlfriend Camila finds out she’s pregnant, and with the pressure of impending fatherhood and fame, Billy goes a little wild on the road.
Daisy and Billy cross paths when a producer realizes that the key to supercharged success is to put the two together. What happens next will become the stuff of legend.
The making of that legend is chronicled in this riveting and unforgettable novel, written as an oral history of one of the biggest bands of the seventies. Taylor Jenkins Reid is a talented writer who takes her work to a new level with Daisy Jones & The Six, brilliantly capturing a place and time in an utterly distinctive voice.
The Review
Daisy Jones & The Six
9.3 Score
There is so much to love about this novel! I don't think I've ever read a book written in the form of an oral history. The narrative is the account of events around the rise of an iconic 70s rock band, The Six, and their legendary female lead singer and songwriter, Daisy Jones. The characters in this book exchange their memories of those glorious days. If you have a chance to experience this read as an audio book, you will be in for a treat! The cast narration is fantastic, each character given a voice. It truly sounds like you have a TV documentary playing in the background. I am glad I doubled up on the audio book.
PROS
- Interesting Work.
- Phenomenal Writing.
- Amazing Characters.
- Absolutely Screaming.
CONS
- Slow Crawl.
- Very Disappointing.
- Bland and Boring.
- Overhyped.
Related Posts
Queen of the Blood Throne by Rhiannon Hargadon
The captivating debut book "Queen of the Blood Throne" by Rhiannon Hargadon transports readers to a realm of magic, mystery,...
Stuck in Her Head by Kylie Wang
Kylie Wang's engrossing young adult book "Stuck in Her Head" explores the intricacies of adolescence, relationships, and mental health. Wang...
House of Bastiion by K.L. Kolarich
When I read a book and find myself thinking about the characters and the plot long after the final word,...
Starseer by Katya Hernández
Hernandez's "Starseer" takes readers to a meticulously constructed universe where time and space are put to the test. The narrative...
Trenzle
Where Trends are made and discovered
Trenzle is your official source of discovering the latest people, work, and ideas that deserve to trend. Discover Authors and their books, Creators and their work, People and their opinions, and Stories from around the globe.
Learn more