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A review by kierscrivener
Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
5.0
I thought this book was phenomenal. Which is high praise as it is not the book I would gravitate toward but I loved it all (well, most of it). First all, I love the style I have discovered in the last year how much I adore interview from this to Sylvain Neuvel's Themis Files and Illuminae is similar in style. This book felt REAL. It felt like these were real people, as if it was palpable and that only somehow the world had forgotten. I loved the care Jenkins Reid put into details (especially of their music) that made it feel like the story did not exist in a vacuum. I also found that the style often added a lot of humour as we would cut between different people that would have totally different views on what was happening.
I think it has been said again and again in reference to this book but the female characters are done remarkably well. They were nuanced and so different from each other and yet all had weaknesses and all had strengths. I think Camila Dunne is one of my favourite characters ever. She is the backbone of this novel and is so extraordinary. I also loved Karen and Daisy even though I didn't always agree with their decisions and I appreciated the ending of their stories. It was hopeful with all the realism.
On that note, the book balanced hope and tragedy so dexterously. I live on what makes hope and tragedy and this book did that like a star crossed fairy tale.
"The truth is somewhere in between."
Some Quotes I loved:
"Men always thought they deserved a sticker for treating women like a person."
"I've been infatuated before and called it love."
"How much you love them you can't love them back to health."
"No matter who you choose to go down the road with you're going to get hurt."
|There are spoilers below|
"I was born broken and she was born whole."
Billy and Camila's relationship is one of my favourite not because it was perfect but because it isreal in a potent and tragic way. That it is about commitment and love. Camila is the strongest
woman and she is stubborn and committed, but also full of grace. "She was stubborn about me and I am the way I am because of her." Billy is not a great guy but he was the guy that she choose and she was the woman he did not want to fail.
"You have until November 30th."
Billy and his daughter is potent. From when he hears the news that Camila is pregnant he begins to panic as he has no example of a father and believes himself to fail. So he sabotages himself for eight months. He does not meet Julia until she is 63 days old. But they are also his grounding to be a better and stay sober and that is a strong connection. To Julia and twins it seems that when he was home, he was a pretty good dad even if not the best husband.
"There is a peace about knowing a person would do anything for you and you would do anything for them."
I adored Daisy and Simone's friendship, even though Simone was a minor character her grounding and devotion to Daisy is powerful. I loved this representation of positive female friendship. Something that is echoed in all the f/f dynamic even Daisy and Camila with "I'm rooting for you."
Characters:
"I had absolutely no interest in being somebody else's muse. I am not the muse. I am the somebody."
Daisy Jones is iconic. She is also deeply flawed and beyond scarred. We know that her parents don't care even the illustration of them not knowing she moved out with the coffee machine to allowing their young daughter be left alone, isolated and neglected. We learn that she was taken advantage of because she expected that and her relations with men are consistently toxic from her managerto her husband they have the worst or just most selfish intentions toward her. She has so much love and can't trust anyone. But she loves reading and history and before drugs dulled her senses she managed with books drowning the insomnia. I also loved that she had a million ideas but couldn't focus. I can relate so much to that. Her addiction is nuanced and heartbreaking.
"Confidence is being okay at failing" is something that Billy says to her and you can tell that this is something that she struggles with because she is good at most things and yet is afraid of failing.
"You don't tell someone they'd be a good aunt if they'd be a good mom."
The discussion of motherhood is something that was discussed by all the major characters. Parenthood itself was a main theme but motherhood was intimate for all the characters. Camila who had an identity in this but also struggled and found joy in it. Karen who did not desire it and yet had it flung upon her and made a decision that caused a crater. And Daisy who wanted to be a mother but didn't believe she would ever be good enough to be.
"I had all the things you can see and none of things you cannot."
This was a heartbreaking quote summing up all of Daisy's early life and music career.
"I hurt so I wrote about it."
I loved this so intimately. It touched my soul.
"Acceptance is a powerful drug. I should know I've done them all."
This also broken my heart but spoke to the soul. Daisy did what she did for love and acceptance which is horrifying that she was destroying herself but for many rings intimately true.
"History is what you did and not what you thought."
Daisy and Billy's relationship is precarious. They hate each other, they love (infatuated) with each other. They are opposite and they are on the same journey. One thing is for sure they make darn good music. I liked how this was explored and spurred on character journeys, but I am so glad that they never actually acted on the sexual tension. Because that would have transformed this story from a tragic story of toxicity and commitment to a problematic love story. I never wanted Billy and Daisy to be together and I think that was how it should be but I think exploring commitment through the lens of feelings outside of marriage is important. Because despite any flicker of attraction that Billy had, he always loved Camila more not because it was easy or what he wanted but because it was Camila. And Camila always stood by him because she lend him trust and made him want to be worthy of that trust.
"I regret that marriage but not that dress."
Daisy and Nickie's relationship is a shipwreck but it explored a lot about selfishness and addiction. Acceptance and craving to be wanted. Peace and pain in love. Because it juxtapositioned Billy and Camila committed to the wellbeing who also also had issues and yet were committed to the well being of the other (at least Billy most of the time).
The Music:
"We look like new scars because you can't see the old scars."
"This could get ugly."
I loved how music was incorporated. It was so potent. I am excited and afraid for the adaptation to actually hear these songs.
"I felt alone. I felt like I was the only one who lost something."
The abortion was hard but I liked how it was discussed how it talked about gender norms but that it also allowed for Graham to be broken hearted.
"I did it, I put down the glass" (as he looks at a picture of his daughters).
I love the juxtaposition of Camila talking to Daisy as Billy is tempted and finally gives into drinking for the first time in five years. This was the only part I cried in. It was the culmination of Daisy/Billy/Camila as well as Billy/fatherhood&husbandry/addiction.
Daisy becomes an author and adopted children and I love that ending. I also love that she was sober and that she found that in herself and that she did it seemingly without any man to stamp approval.
I loved that Julia was the author.
"They owe me a song."
I think it has been said again and again in reference to this book but the female characters are done remarkably well. They were nuanced and so different from each other and yet all had weaknesses and all had strengths. I think Camila Dunne is one of my favourite characters ever. She is the backbone of this novel and is so extraordinary. I also loved Karen and Daisy even though I didn't always agree with their decisions and I appreciated the ending of their stories. It was hopeful with all the realism.
On that note, the book balanced hope and tragedy so dexterously. I live on what makes hope and tragedy and this book did that like a star crossed fairy tale.
"The truth is somewhere in between."
Some Quotes I loved:
"Men always thought they deserved a sticker for treating women like a person."
"I've been infatuated before and called it love."
"How much you love them you can't love them back to health."
"No matter who you choose to go down the road with you're going to get hurt."
|There are spoilers below|
"I was born broken and she was born whole."
Billy and Camila's relationship is one of my favourite not because it was perfect but because it isreal in a potent and tragic way. That it is about commitment and love. Camila is the strongest
woman and she is stubborn and committed, but also full of grace. "She was stubborn about me and I am the way I am because of her." Billy is not a great guy but he was the guy that she choose and she was the woman he did not want to fail.
"You have until November 30th."
Billy and his daughter is potent. From when he hears the news that Camila is pregnant he begins to panic as he has no example of a father and believes himself to fail. So he sabotages himself for eight months. He does not meet Julia until she is 63 days old. But they are also his grounding to be a better and stay sober and that is a strong connection. To Julia and twins it seems that when he was home, he was a pretty good dad even if not the best husband.
"There is a peace about knowing a person would do anything for you and you would do anything for them."
I adored Daisy and Simone's friendship, even though Simone was a minor character her grounding and devotion to Daisy is powerful. I loved this representation of positive female friendship. Something that is echoed in all the f/f dynamic even Daisy and Camila with "I'm rooting for you."
Characters:
"I had absolutely no interest in being somebody else's muse. I am not the muse. I am the somebody."
Daisy Jones is iconic. She is also deeply flawed and beyond scarred. We know that her parents don't care even the illustration of them not knowing she moved out with the coffee machine to allowing their young daughter be left alone, isolated and neglected. We learn that she was taken advantage of because she expected that and her relations with men are consistently toxic from her managerto her husband they have the worst or just most selfish intentions toward her. She has so much love and can't trust anyone. But she loves reading and history and before drugs dulled her senses she managed with books drowning the insomnia. I also loved that she had a million ideas but couldn't focus. I can relate so much to that. Her addiction is nuanced and heartbreaking.
"Confidence is being okay at failing" is something that Billy says to her and you can tell that this is something that she struggles with because she is good at most things and yet is afraid of failing.
"You don't tell someone they'd be a good aunt if they'd be a good mom."
The discussion of motherhood is something that was discussed by all the major characters. Parenthood itself was a main theme but motherhood was intimate for all the characters. Camila who had an identity in this but also struggled and found joy in it. Karen who did not desire it and yet had it flung upon her and made a decision that caused a crater. And Daisy who wanted to be a mother but didn't believe she would ever be good enough to be.
"I had all the things you can see and none of things you cannot."
This was a heartbreaking quote summing up all of Daisy's early life and music career.
"I hurt so I wrote about it."
I loved this so intimately. It touched my soul.
"Acceptance is a powerful drug. I should know I've done them all."
This also broken my heart but spoke to the soul. Daisy did what she did for love and acceptance which is horrifying that she was destroying herself but for many rings intimately true.
"History is what you did and not what you thought."
Daisy and Billy's relationship is precarious. They hate each other, they love (infatuated) with each other. They are opposite and they are on the same journey. One thing is for sure they make darn good music. I liked how this was explored and spurred on character journeys, but I am so glad that they never actually acted on the sexual tension. Because that would have transformed this story from a tragic story of toxicity and commitment to a problematic love story. I never wanted Billy and Daisy to be together and I think that was how it should be but I think exploring commitment through the lens of feelings outside of marriage is important. Because despite any flicker of attraction that Billy had, he always loved Camila more not because it was easy or what he wanted but because it was Camila. And Camila always stood by him because she lend him trust and made him want to be worthy of that trust.
"I regret that marriage but not that dress."
Daisy and Nickie's relationship is a shipwreck but it explored a lot about selfishness and addiction. Acceptance and craving to be wanted. Peace and pain in love. Because it juxtapositioned Billy and Camila committed to the wellbeing who also also had issues and yet were committed to the well being of the other (at least Billy most of the time).
The Music:
"We look like new scars because you can't see the old scars."
"This could get ugly."
I loved how music was incorporated. It was so potent. I am excited and afraid for the adaptation to actually hear these songs.
"I felt alone. I felt like I was the only one who lost something."
The abortion was hard but I liked how it was discussed how it talked about gender norms but that it also allowed for Graham to be broken hearted.
"I did it, I put down the glass" (as he looks at a picture of his daughters).
I love the juxtaposition of Camila talking to Daisy as Billy is tempted and finally gives into drinking for the first time in five years. This was the only part I cried in. It was the culmination of Daisy/Billy/Camila as well as Billy/fatherhood&husbandry/addiction.
Daisy becomes an author and adopted children and I love that ending. I also love that she was sober and that she found that in herself and that she did it seemingly without any man to stamp approval.
I loved that Julia was the author.
"They owe me a song."