Book Review: Daisy Jones & The Six

Commercialism killed the rock star!

When I picked up a couple book from the library, it was rather daunting to hold this one. I checked it out fully prepared to either fall deep into the plot and absorb every page obsessively or to put it down at some point without finishing. Neither of those things happened, I ended up finishing the book but not entirely loving it. There were times when I couldn't pull my eyes away however there were also times when I was wondering when all this reading was gonna pay off. I'm glad I read it, it was an excellent story after all; the dramas of a rock band set in a trendy 70s ’verse intertwined with themes of addiction, betrayal, and romance. It's a glitzy and glamorous telling of an overall lengthy and flat book that I ultimately still can’t say I loved like everyone else did. I guess it's fair to say that not every book lives up to the hype, despite my overall optimism when reading something that derives from passionate intentions. Let's just say, I may not be a Taylor Jenkins Reid fan, but I am a fan of classic rock.

**spoilers ahead**

Daisy Jones & The Six- if you didn't already know- is entirely structured like a documentary transcript with testimonials from multiple characters within the story. (I did not know this going in) Each character gives insight into a time when a brothers’ budding rock band turns into a music phenomenon after the addition of Daisy Jones, a wild child raised on the LA strip. Billy is the leader of The Six, struggling with the power dynamic Daisy brings to the band, however, he's blissfully unaware that the rest of the band members also harbor resentment towards his hunger for control. The rest of the band includes Graham, Billy's brother. Warren, the comedic drummer. Karen, the observant keyboardist. Eddie & Pete, also brothers, struggling with their belonging in the band. Rod and Teddy, the producer and manager of the band and- without forgetting- Camila, Billy's wife and muse. Each character reoccurs in each chapter to tell the story of the rise and fall of an unstable rock band, lost in time. 

It's safe to say that my overall rating of this book will be below the third star. I was slightly disappointed. Daisy Jones & The Six offered little to no authenticity for me, as a fan of many classic rock band stories and fiction in general. The truth of the matter is I don’t think Reid captured the appeal of the time period very well. This is why, as I was reading I kept thinking of media like Almost Famous, Rocketman and The Beatles: Get Back, these are captivating depictions of this era to me. Daisy Jones & The Six was like reading someone's overly-calculated fanfic of whatever was going on in Fleetwood Mac's performance at Silver Springs (so I’ve heard). With all this said, I wouldn't say I hated the book. There were plenty of elements that I adored. For example; Daisy Jones herself, was excellent to read about. She truly fascinated me at every turn, knowing her back story and hearing her remorse in the recounting of her story aided to her depth. Billy was also a very raw character, oftentimes pissing me off with his obliviousness, but in time was written sensibly. All the other supporting characters were entirely lovable and “hateable” in their own respects which was pleasant to follow. 

Now, the one character that I think I didn’t get the appeal of was Camila. Don't get me wrong, I feel for Camila, Billy did her so dirty and never made it up to her, not even once. But I have to say, I don’t find the “wife who stuck around” trope to be very empowering or uplifting. All of this feels sad and emotional, however, I had a hard time getting past simply pitying Camila. I dislike characters used as punching bags and angelic saviors. Why she's hardly given a personality or purpose besides “bettering” Billy and The Six is beyond me, and what's even more confusing is why a lot of readers seem to like her so much solely because of this. Is it because she's a woman scorned? Is it because she always seemed to give everyone the benefit of the doubt despite their faults? I'm not too sure, but she didn't feel like a person to me, more like a convenient tool for easing conflict. That will probably be my most controversial takeaway from this book, I did not care for Camila.

“You know how every once in a while you’ll meet somebody who seems to be floating through life? Daisy sort of floated through the world, oblivious to the way it really worked. I suppose I probably should have hated her for it, but I didn’t. I loved her for it. Because it meant she was less inclined to take the shit I’d been taking for years now.” - Karen

My favorite characters were Karen, Daisy, and sometimes Warren when he wasn’t being a douche. Karen- often utilized like Camila as an observer of drama- was the most relatable character. She was the most down-to-earth while having a habitual personality, I just adored Karen. There were a few moments where I feel she was neglected in her story arc however that changed towards the end when she had an abortion and dealt with Graham’s insanely upsetting reaction. I found him to be incredibly frustrating during this conflict, Karen’s actions in denying his affection felt all the more validated by him pressuring her to keep the baby. I felt this area of friction was dealt with most realistically, even if it did feel partly cliché. Karen had some of the greatest lines within the entire book, she is incredibly quotable. I also felt Daisy held the most substance to the plot, she was a lot of things at once which I felt was incredibly unique to her characterization. She felt a little “manic pixie” at times however her infantilization didn’t strike me as out of place, granted that she might’ve been emotionally stunted by her upbringing. There are a lot of elements to her that I find make her a perfect protagonist, even if she bothers you. I love to see more representation of complicated, problematic women who stir the pot.

Beyond my complicated feelings for the characterization and structure of this book, I enjoyed a lot of the conflict. I appreciated there being more than one romantic relationship at a time, otherwise, things would’ve gotten dull. I like the depiction of addiction and the difficulty with relapsing after rehabilitation, Billy’s struggles with drugs were some of the most raw moments. I do think there was too much to tackle even though this book felt pretty heavy to me, much of the interpersonal tension between characters felt out of place- Eddie and Pete had some pretty petty problems. However, I enjoyed following the politics of the band, band members taking issue with Billy’s control was easily entertaining tension. Other than that, the main aspects of rock n’ roll were present and accounted for and I was eating it all up. Reid did a magnificent job capturing a setting, I can’t deny that the world she built was believable and beautiful at the same time. I could just imagine the lights on the stage and the glamor of Daisy’s outfits. The least interesting scenes were during album creation. How many times do we need to hear about the process of songwriting? I mean, it’s not something I’m unfamiliar with but it was not the most captivating lines to read about.

And to finalize my review, here is my reaction to the ending. There wasn’t any point where I had pictured who might be interviewing the band until the twist near the ending. Julia? Really? Okay, I guess. This didn’t feel like an A-ha moment to me, it made it feel as though the book might’ve sensationalized the band’s popularity a little too much. I did see some folks mention how this raises the question of story reliability however I figured the nature of interviewing the characters was going to leave some holes in the narrative, regardless. It was like a How I Met Your Mother moment all over again, a slight disappointment but at least I didn’t watch nine seasons of it to find out. 

---

All and all, I feel fulfilled in finally getting around to reading Daisy Jones. I like how this story amplified an exciting decade of music, I got the chance to watch a couple of episodes of the Prime Video series and I loved hearing all the Carole King! I’m sad I couldn’t get as emotionally invested into this book like everyone else did but I have seen a few readers share similar grievances to me, so I’m not too off base. I didn’t dislike this book, I kept reading even at moments when I was tired of the interview structure. The sheer magnitude of concepts in this book offers a lot to discuss and so I still have much to unpack which I plan to keep thinking about while watching the show. I hope this review doesn’t deter anyone from giving Daisy Jones & The Six a chance because I do believe it deserves it. This book is so impressive, you wouldn’t believe that a book could capture music, drugs, sex, and alcohol so well, but this did. It may be missing a few details however I think it’s a delightful read if you’re searching for a heavy drama.