Everybody knows Daisy Jones and the Six.
Their sound defined an era. Their albums were on every turntable. They sold out arenas from coast to coast.
Then, on 12 July 1979, Daisy Jones walked barefoot onto the stage at Chicago Stadium. And it all came crashing down.
Everyone was there.
Everyone remembers it differently.
Nobody knew why they split. Until now…
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Too long on my TBR
So far, I had only read one book by the author, although the hype around her intrigued me for year. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo convinced me that this hype is justified but didn’t immediately make me read more of her books. Instead, I enjoyed the series adaptation of Daisy Jones & The Six in 2023. I remembered the major twists and turns when starting this book but was excited to relive them now in form of the audio book.
One of the best audio books I’ve ever listened to
What makes this book interesting and unique is the interview style that constitutes it. Without much commentary in between, the characters tell of their own experiences of the events. In the audio book, we get to live through these interviews even more vividly as many different readers perform the voices of the participants. Some of them only show up once or twice, other carry the story with their detailed descriptions. Taylor Jenkins Reid as much as the readers allow us to see the characters with their ideolects and manners. What a pleasure!
Complex and multi-layered characters
Although one could argue that these characters live through a lot of events, a lot of fame and drama, the book is nonetheless driven by the characters, their interactions, and their internal and external conflicts. As we follow them from early on in their life, we see the challenges they face repeatedly throughout the years. We can almost anticipate the tensions that will arise between the strong-minded characters. I wouldn’t say I connect to all their problems and ways of coping with them, but the author nevertheless allows us to feel with them and see their motivations. That also makes me not condemn a single one of them. They live their very own truth while aiming for what they want and need. Their grey morality draws them as human beings more than book characters and I admire Taylor Jenkins Reid for that.
In conclusion
This audio book allows us to listen to many different speakers reading the interview answers of the band members as much as other people involved in the rise and fall of Daisy Jones & the Six. We live through the tensions, hopes, successes, and failures of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s complex characters that grow close to every readers heart despite the way they inevitably hurt each other.
The author:
Taylor Jenkins Reid is the author of the New York Times Bestselling novels Carrie Soto Is Back, Malibu Rising, Daisy Jones and The Six, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, as well as One True Loves, Maybe in Another Life, After I Do, and Forever, Interrupted. She lives in Los Angeles. Source