Grace: Based on the Jeff Buckley Story by Tiffanie DeBartolo is a 2019 First Second publication.

I have never read a standard biography about Jeff Buckley, and I can’t claim to be a rabid fan. But, of course, I am very familiar of his haunting version of Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah”, and I knew he was the son of folk singer, Tim Buckley, and that Jeff died young in a freak accident. Beyond that, I couldn’t have told you much else.

I do read my fair share of music memoirs and biographies, but this is the first one I have read in a Graphic Novel format. The story pretty much sticks to the basics, so for diehard fans the book may not cover much new territory. However, even if the story is familiar to you, the outstanding illustrations truly bring out an amazing amount of depth and emotion you most likely would not experience in a standard text only biography.

The writing is a bit simplistic, but I’m thinking this book might be a learning tool as well, perhaps to entice YA readers as well as older fans.

Jeff’s life was cut short, and he was always a bit of an enigma, so this book certainly will give readers a little more insight into his life and the artist behind the music. I enjoyed the experience of reading this book, and learning more about Jeff, and of course it has inspired me to revisit Jeff’s music, hearing it from a new perspective now.

I recommend this one for anyone who loves music, biographies or Graphic Novels. ( )