DAISY JONES & THE SIX by Taylor Jenkins Reid ⭐⭐⭐⭐

(Original review written August 30, 2019)

*Spoilers Ahead*

Sooo close to five stars. A must read for any fans of:

- Fleetwood Mac

- music documentaries

- the movie Almost Famous

- 70’s Southern California

- rock and roll shenanigans

It all feels so real and the story of these musicians is completely believable! I seriously googled the band when I started because I wanted to see what they looked like now 🤦🏻‍♂️. I think that’s a testament to how well the interview-style writing works for this story.

I know the band is alluding to Fleetwood Mac’s dynamic, but just the way the songs are described I could almost hear Fleetwood Mac songs playing in my head as I was reading, to the point I actively tried to listen to “You Make Loving Fun” to fix my craving for it. I don’t know how exact the similarities get between the two bands, but they were in the back of my mind most of the time.

As often as the characters talk about how mesmerizing Daisy Jones was, she seemed like kind of a terrible person to me? Obviously she had some issues as she grew up, especially in a crazy environment, but she never grew out of her childish phase. Maybe that’s how she’s supposed to come off? There’s other little questionable nuggets, like predictable rock band fights and phrases that someone in their sixties probably wouldn’t actually say. At least I was happy to see Billy not get trapped into an inevitable downfall after staying clean so long. He was a good constant to the craziness around him, and his inner struggle to stay the course was palpable.

I felt more separation sadness after finishing this one than the last couple I’ve had, I think more because it was a fun mental getaway rather than closeness to the characters. Though I wish old videos of Daisy Jones and The Six really did exist, because I’d be down the YouTube rabbit hole on those right now. I’ll settle for some Fleetwood jams instead, and keep looking forward to when the tv show of the book makes the written music come to life.