Book and Show Review: Daisy Jones and the Six 

*This article contains spoilers for the book and the TV show*

Summary 

Daisy Jones and the Six is the story of a fictional 70s rock band, how they came to be what they were, what went on behind the scenes, and the untold stories behind living through one of the biggest bands in history. The book is told in an interview form; as the members of the band are being interviewed they tell the events in detail which is how we learn about the story of Daisy Jones and the Six. The book starts with learning about Daisy Jones and the Dunne Brothers. Daisy Jones is a wild, free-spirited young girl living in Los Angeles with her parents, both rich and glamorous celebrities themselves. 

After Daisy meets her friend Simone, Simone encourages Daisy to pursue music and Daisy signs with Runner Records. Back in Pittsburgh, Billy Dunne and his brother Graham start a band known as “The Six” as it is composed of Billy, Graham, Warren, Pete, Eddie, and Karen. They find their music manager Teddy Price and also sign with Runner Records. Simultaneously, Billy is meeting his girlfriend Camilla who he proposes to. Camilla gets pregnant after the band moves out to Los Angeles, but as soon as The Six leaves to go on their first small tour, Billy cheats on Camilla and gets heavily addicted to drugs and alcohol. However, after his daughter Julia is born, Billy goes to rehab and gets clean. 

Teddy, the manager of both independent artist Daisy Jones and band The Six  plays one of The Six’s songs to Daisy to ask what she would do with it. She takes the song and transforms it into a hit. Daisy and Billy are then forced to record the song as a duet. From their very first meeting, Daisy and Billy have intense emotions towards each other whether they are anger, admiration, love, or hatred. However, Billy just became faithful to his wife and mother of his child, Camilla, so Billy turns any feelings of love for Daisy into hatred. 

Together the band becomes Daisy Jones and The Six, write and record their hit album Aurora and go on a world tour becoming incredibly famous. 

Overall Review 

This book succeeds (as many Taylor Jenkins Reid books do) in transcending you into the world she creates. As you read this book, you are brought into the 70s world of bell bottoms, drugs, rock and roll, long hair, and cool toned colors. The book also stands out in the way it is written- no other book (that I know of) is told in an interview format. The characters are insanely well developed and the story is so complicated and has many ups and downs; it truly seems like it actually happened. The romance stories within the band, the drama, the hatred, all come together to form an engaging read. 

Show Adaptation 

This New York Times bestseller hit the television screen after Reese Witherspoon pushed for one of her most popular book club books to become a live action. The show brought the book into the media and public's attention, as the show succeeds in grasping the magic the book creates. The chemistry between Daisy Jones (Riley Keough) and Billy Dunne (Sam Claflin) captures everything and more that the book paints. The aesthetics are addicting, the producers using film camera footage and edgy cinematography that adds to the 70s look of the story. All plot lines that the book looks into are gone over in the show and all the characters match exactly how I, and readers around the world, envisioned them. The show also makes headlines safer, making the fictional bands' music real, all actors recording the music as their characters. Based on how much I've heard of people's love for the music, the album might win some (real life) awards this year. 

Whether it's the book, the TV show, or the music, the story of Daisy Jones and the Six captures your heart and keeps you humming their tunes all week.