Daisies

by Joshua Senter

Love is a lesson learned over lifetimes.

Spanning three generations, Daisies is a stirring debut novel from a singular talent. In 1954, awkward Gwen Hisel falls in love with the affable Willie Bennett on the dusty Oklahoma prairie. What follows is a harsh life for the two youngsters as they struggle to make the best of their difficult circumstances.

Twenty years later, Sheila Hisel, daughter of Gwen and Willie, marries Darrel McAllister. But while her parents’ love for one another had seen them through tribulation and adversity, Sheila’s own marriage crumbles under the strain of hard times.

Now, if Sheila’s son, Lonnie, ever wants to succeed in love, he must unravel the mysteries of two very different relationships to discover the secret to true happiness.

129 pages, Paperback

First published July 20, 2014

About the author

Joshua Senter was raised in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri where he was homeschooled along with his four sisters on a five hundred acre cattle farm. Going against the grain of his conservative upbringing Josh moved to Los Angeles in 1997, and three years later he received a bachelor’s degree in filmmaking from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, along with Ninth Term Honors.

In 2002 he began writing for the hit Showtime series The L Word. A year after that, he joined the international phenomenon, Desperate Housewives, where he was nominated for a Writer’s Guild of America award for his episode, Don’t Look at Me. In 2013 Joshua began writing and co-producing a new show for ABC Family, Chasing Life. During that time his debut novel, Daisies, was published by Diversion Books. In 2014 Joshua moved over to MTV where he began working as a writer/producer for the hit series Finding Carter.

In 2015 Joshua was placed on the Tracking Board’s Young and Hungry List as one of the top 100 writer’s working in Hollywood. In 2016, 2017, and 2018 Josh wrote pilots for ABC, FOX, and NBC respectively. A Valentine’s Day movie he co-wrote for Freeform, called The Thing About Harry, aired in February of 2020 and was nominated for a 2021 GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding TV Movie. His critically-acclaimed sophomore novel, Still The Night Call, was published by Roubidoux Press and released January 14th, 2022.

Reviews

[Sanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

What originally drew me to this book were daisies - my favorite flowers. (and what a lovely book cover) When I was about to start reading and realized that the book is only 129 pages long, a part of me was skeptical, wondering how could a story of three generations of one family possibly be told in such a short book. Well, Joshua Senter manages to do just that by focusing the story on each generation's experience of love. There is a certain kind of beauty in its simple form.

The story starts with Willie and Gwen, in the 1950s, when times were simpler. I often wonder if this is the way it always seems to each generation, looking at the life of their parents or grandparents. The times we live in always seem more complicated and more complex than what preceded. For such a short book, Daises still manages to shed the light on this emerging complexity of choices. It also seem to question what it is that makes certain loves grow and flourish and yet turns others into something toxic or destructive.

This is light and quick read but one that will still manage to make you think about deeper connotations of choices each one of the characters gets to make.

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 1954 Gwen and Willie marry and soon a daughter is born. Their life is hard but they make it with hard work and determination. Their daughters name is Shelia and at age 20 she marries the love of her life but their love won't last through the hard times and their marriage ends. Her son, Lonnie, is now trying to understand exactly what love is so that his marriage doesn't fall apart like his parent's.

This is a great book, I enjoyed getting to know Gwen and Willie as well as Sheila and Darrel. Their marriages were very different. The characters are likeable and the story is written well. I appreciate how Lonnie is determined to find out what works and what doesn't. Interesting and real is how I would describe it.

I received a copy of this book free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks goodreads.com for another excellent book I received as a giveaway.

As I started this book I didn't think I was going to enjoy it but after 10 pages or so I was hooked!!! It's an engrossing book that spans 3 generations who experience the love and disappointments of life. The author has beautifully and simply written this book so that you care deeply about the characters. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to get lost in an excellent story about the lives and loves of 3 generations.

I am looking forward to reading the next book Joshua Senter writes.

[Amber Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read

It is well written and flows together. I would struggle to stay awake and read more. I didn't want to put it down.