The original version of this newsletter was sent out on Tuesday, September 23.
Sign up for All Booked, our bi-monthly newsletter exclusively for book lovers.
Hello, fellow bookworms!
Today, one of our talented reporters, Ella Heydenfeldt, takes a break from the hard-hitting facts of news writing to bring us a roundup of titles by the talented Taylor Jenkins Reid. Her books may be popular on BookTok, but I can assure you, they’re not overhyped. Reid has an incredible knack for making her characters feel so real, you’re tempted to Google whether or not they actually did exist. And no matter what time and place she’s writing about — the glamorous, star-studded world of Old Hollywood; the sex, drugs, and rock ’n’ roll whirlwind of the ‘70s; or the sun-soaked shores of Malibu in the ’80s — she brings it to life so beautifully you find yourself nostalgic for a life you never lived.
Happy reading!
—Tessa, allbooked@independent.com
This is Ella Heydenfeldt here from the newsroom. I think it’s time for a break from writing about the chaos of our actual world to focus instead on the lovely, messy, cinematic worlds found in books.
You gotta love an author who draws from history in order to set up a fictitious series with incredible
layered characters, and a nostalgia that is both real and fake simultaneously.
This is my favorite type of book. Maybe that comes from my original love of authors drawing from Greek history and myth in order to write something fantastic.
But now, I am loving this Old Hollywood, ’50s through ’90s set of books written by a Ms. Taylor Jenkins Reid. They are based on notorious actors, actresses, singers, and songwriters … all the greats. The characters have new names, however, and occasionally interweave throughout all her novels.
So, let’s dive in. I’ve read three of Reid’s major works: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Daisy Jones & The Six, and Malibu Rising.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
My gateway drug. And what a way to start.
Evelyn Hugo is a star so big she bends time around her. Aging and reclusive, she finally decides to tell the truth about her life and her seven infamous husbands. But instead of going to a big-name reporter, she chooses a relatively unknown journalist named Monique Grant. Cue the intrigue.
We hear Evelyn’s story through a series of interviews and tabloid articles — a structure that gives the book this eerie realism, like she actually existed. From her early days fighting to break into Hollywood in the ’50s, to the glittering highs and devastating lows of her career and relationships, Evelyn is complicated in all the best ways. Ruthless, charismatic, selfish, brilliant.
“I don’t feel regret for the things I’ve done — at least, not the things you might expect.”That line kind of sums her up.
This book absolutely tore me up. There’s a twist at the end that had my jaw on the floor. The whole thing left me feeling conflicted, like I’d been punched in the heart and then gently hugged. That’s how you know it’s good.
Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Coming in very strong (this one might be my absolute favorite, and do not even get me started on the TV show), is Daisy Jones & The Six. Before I go any further, you must know, for bias’s sake, that Fleetwood Mac is one of my favorite bands of all time, and Stevie Nicks is, in my head, the ultimate witchy woo-woo goddess divine. She is my religion of choice, and that woman can do no wrong. “Silver Springs”? My anthem. My sacred text. The anger, the rasp, the ethereal nature that balances everything out.
Okay, time to get off my soapbox and back to the book.
Set in the 1970s, this is the fictional oral history of a rock band — think Behind the Music meets Almost Famous. Told entirely through interview transcripts, it follows Daisy, an effortlessly magnetic singer-songwriter, and The Six, a band on the brink of fame. The magic really starts when their producer throws Daisy into the mix with the band’s leader, Billy Dunne. Tension. Ego. Chemistry. Addiction. Art.
It’s written so well that I had to keep reminding myself: This is fake. These people are not real. The lyrics? Not real. The band? Not real. And yet I felt the loss when they split up. Like I’d actually watched them fall apart.
Every character is beautifully messy. Billy is trying to be a good husband while being pulled into a life not conducive with reliable, sober, picket-fence husband material. He is, at the end of the day, a rock star. With an addiction problem. Then you have Daisy with her pain and brilliance and self-sabotage. Two sides of the same coin, Daisy and Billy. Then you have Camila, Billy’s wife, who is her own coin, whole and complete, and in no need of help. But she still selflessly loves those around her and wants to have a complete family. It doesn’t all wrap up cleanly, but that’s kind of the point. Like most legends, it ends in fragments.
It’s complex, and you do not exactly know who to root for, but that you are invested in each character and want the best for them. And maybe that is why it’s so easy to get invested. Because it may be fake … but Fleetwood Mac was not.
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
And, last but not least: my most recent read, Malibu Rising.
This one took me a little longer to fall into, but by the end, I was in it. I loved the West Coast nature to it, especially as someone who lives a mere hour and 20 from Malibu and loves to surf. That said, it was a bit harder to get through. Alcohol, drugs, men letting women down. Classic tropes that haunt both the written word as well as the world around us daily. That trifecta is embedded in most people’s family history and lives, and of course, the rich and famous seem to just intensify this to the max.
As it turns out fame and money do not soften the blow of alcoholism. It just means you can buy from the top shelf. And you can buy more of it.
Back to the book. Aside from the occasional lulls, I really did love it, especially the ending.
Malibu Rising bounces between the 1950s and 1983, tracing the rise and fallout of the Riva family — children of legendary singer Mick Riva (basically a mashup of Mick Jagger and Frank Sinatra). The Riva kids are all gorgeous and talented and deeply wounded. The story centers around their annual summer party, the kind that makes headlines and leaves ruins.
The book is full of sun-bleached glamour and broken glass. It tackles alcoholism, abandonment, and the kind of legacy that feels more like a curse. Nina, the oldest Riva, is a former surf model stuck being the responsible one. Her siblings are a mess in the exact ways you’d expect — but they feel real, which makes it hit harder.
It’s a slower burn than the other two books. The first half leans heavily into character study, and the second half descends into pure chaos once the party begins. Some side characters felt unnecessary, but by the end, it lands. It’s a story about choosing yourself over your past, about letting go of what raised you in order to raise yourself.
There’s fire, literally and metaphorically.
Three books. Three eras. All tangled in fame, family, and the consequences of reinvention.
Taylor Jenkins Reid builds fictional icons so well, it should probably be illegal. Or at least regulated. She makes you nostalgic for lives you never lived, songs you’ve never heard, and parties you were never invited to. And if you’re like me, you’ll devour them, then spend a few days wondering if maybe it was all real after all.
Because it could have been.
And that’s the magic.
—Ella Heydenfeldt
FROM OUR PAGES
We’ve had some great author visits and interviews recently, so don’t miss out. Here is some of our book-related coverage from the last two weeks! Read all this and more atIndependent.com.
“Dive Into a New Book Club”by Meaghan Clark Tiernan
“Paul Levine Brings New Historical Thriller to Santa Barbara’s Chaucer’s Books”by Alice Dehghanzadeh
UPCOMING BOOK EVENTS
Below, you will find a few bookish events coming up in Santa Barbara. If you are hosting a bookish event in Santa Barbara, be sure to submit the event to our online events calendar.
Solvang Library Magpie Book Club
Thursday, September 27, 3:30 p.m. | Solvang Library
The Drunken Library: A Book Swap & Brew Gathering
Saturday, September 27, 4 p.m. | Casa Agria Specialty Ales
In Conversation: Tess Sanchez & Max Greenfield: We’ve Decided to Go in a Different Direction
Saturday, September 27, 6 p.m. | Godmothers
Chaucer’s Book Talk & Signing: David Starkey: The Fairley Brothers in Japan
Sunday, September 28, 3 p.m. | Chaucer’s Books
Telling Our Stories: A Storytelling and Poetry Workshop
Sunday, September 28, 10 a.m. | Lompoc Theater
On the Stage: Sheetal Sheth: Anjali Can!
Monday, September 29, 6 p.m. | Godmothers
Online Seminar Series: Monday Night Poetry Group
Monday, September 29, 5 p.m. | Virtual
Fiction Book Club
Wednesday, October 1, 5:30 p.m. | S.B. Central Library
In Conversation: Sarah Allaback & Monique F. Parsons: Green Gold
Thursday, October 2, 5 p.m. | Godmothers
On the Stage: Kelly Sullivan Walden: Dreamifesting: Harnessing the Power of Your Dreams to Create the Life You Desire
Friday, October 3, 6 p.m. | Godmothers
Writers’ Workshop
Saturday, October 4, 12:30 p.m. | Goleta Community Center
S.B. High School 150th Anniversary Event: Children’s Poetry Reading with Lee Wardlaw
Sunday, October 5, 3 p.m. | Chaucer’s Books
Banned Books Week: Fahrenheit 451 Book Discussion
Sunday, October 5, 2 p.m. | S.B. Central Library
Book Reviews Courtesy of CALIFORNIA REVIEW OF BOOKS*
Thanks to the generous contributions of David Starkey, Brian Tanguay and their team of reviewers at California Review of Books, we are able to provide a steady stream of book reviews via our content partnership. Recent reviews at Independent.com include:
Gaza: The Story of a Genocide, edited by Fatima Bhutto and Sonia Faleiro; review by Brian Tanguay
*At the present time, all of the Independent’s book reviews are provided in collaboration with California Review of Books (calirb.com).
