What do you think?
Rate this book
Leonard Cohen. On a wire
Een graphic novel over een van de grootste stemmen van de 20e eeuw. De Canadees Leonard Cohen (1934-2016) markeerde de muziek van de 20e eeuw door de schoonheid van zijn composities. We herkennen Cohen aan zijn warme toon en de melancholische zoetheid van zijn liedjes, vaak geschreven als eerbetoon aan de vrouwen van wie hij hield: Suzanne, Marianne en anderen... In deze biografie wordt in flashbacks door het leven van deze opmerkelijke artiest gegaan, met zijn genialiteit (de covers van Hallelujah overschaduwden soms het origineel), de wendingen van het lot (het verlies van de rechten van Suzanne, de streken van oneerlijke agenten…) en zijn ontmoetingen met Janis Joplin, Lou Reed of Phil Spector.
120 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2021
8 people are currently reading
542 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 210 reviews
November 18, 2021
i cannot wait.
crossing my fingers this is better than that nick cave graphic novel, yeesh.
*******************************
it was better! but very...compressed.
3 1/2 rounded up/review TK
crossing my fingers this is better than that nick cave graphic novel, yeesh.
*******************************
it was better! but very...compressed.
3 1/2 rounded up/review TK
January 3, 2022
Philippe Girard has created a short biographical comic on the life of Leonard Cohen, the poet/musician/writer/actor most famous for his song “Hallelujah”, with Leonard Cohen On a Wire. Cohen seems like an interesting figure to me and I don’t know anything about him so I was looking forward to this book. Unfortunately, it’s not very good.
Mostly because it’s just not that compelling a life story. Cohen was a smart Jewish kid from Montreal who got into and became successful at making poetry and music, enjoyed booze, drugs and women, made art and travelled around. It’s not that amazing to read about. Nor does the comic really give you an idea of just how unique his voice sounded or what his music was like, though this is really more a flaw with the medium.
It does provide an ok overview of his life though so you do learn about some controversy he had around Israel in the ‘80s, how nutso the record producer Phil Spector was, and, amusingly, how much more famous covers of “Hallelujah” were than his original was, even in his own lifetime (it’s true - I first encountered the song through Jeff Buckley).
Girard’s art isn’t that special - it’s quite basic and unremarkable with lots of characters looking roughly the same. Nor do I get what the title means. Something about that penultimate page of a bird of a wire, meaning Cohen was also like that, trying to be free…? Eh, whatevs.
If Girard’s book is any measure then I don’t think there is a great book to be had about Leonard Cohen’s life, comic or otherwise. I’m sure the substance of Cohen’s art is vastly more engaging but, seeing broadly the things he did which this book focuses on, he’s presented as a generic, ‘60s-’70s rock star who had a handful of hits and that’s just not very entertaining to read. Leonard Cohen On a Wire is a shallow look at the man’s life that I wouldn’t recommend bothering with, Cohen fan or not.
Mostly because it’s just not that compelling a life story. Cohen was a smart Jewish kid from Montreal who got into and became successful at making poetry and music, enjoyed booze, drugs and women, made art and travelled around. It’s not that amazing to read about. Nor does the comic really give you an idea of just how unique his voice sounded or what his music was like, though this is really more a flaw with the medium.
It does provide an ok overview of his life though so you do learn about some controversy he had around Israel in the ‘80s, how nutso the record producer Phil Spector was, and, amusingly, how much more famous covers of “Hallelujah” were than his original was, even in his own lifetime (it’s true - I first encountered the song through Jeff Buckley).
Girard’s art isn’t that special - it’s quite basic and unremarkable with lots of characters looking roughly the same. Nor do I get what the title means. Something about that penultimate page of a bird of a wire, meaning Cohen was also like that, trying to be free…? Eh, whatevs.
If Girard’s book is any measure then I don’t think there is a great book to be had about Leonard Cohen’s life, comic or otherwise. I’m sure the substance of Cohen’s art is vastly more engaging but, seeing broadly the things he did which this book focuses on, he’s presented as a generic, ‘60s-’70s rock star who had a handful of hits and that’s just not very entertaining to read. Leonard Cohen On a Wire is a shallow look at the man’s life that I wouldn’t recommend bothering with, Cohen fan or not.
December 3, 2021
Like a bird on the wire
Like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free
Like a worm on a hook
Like a knight from some old fashioned book
I have saved all my ribbons for thee
I am a life long fan of Leonard Cohen, so I was excited to read this, and I can't say I didn't enjoy it, but it feels like a smorgasboard of tastes/events/people, not adding up to a greater understanding of the man or his art. The appendix features all the famous people he met/worked with/slept with, reminding me of Richard Thompson's Beeswing, a fan gift, ooh, Sandy Denny! Oooh Mick Jagger, and in this book it is ooh, Joni! Ooh Rebecca DeMornay. We get more of a glimpse into all the women he slept with than his music.
The book opens with him at the end of his life, then we flashback periodically, but in the flashbacks we just skim the surface, it's an intro: Oh, Phil Spector was so crazy! He slept with Janis Joplin. I am not saying I still didn't like it, all of it is interesting to me on some level. And I love Philippe Girard's artwork a lot, actually, and this translation by Helge Dascher and Karen Houle seems excellent. But if you want to really know more about him, dig deeper, there's a good documentary, and listen to the music for a few decades, of course, but start with the early stuff.
"Bird on a Wire," by Leonard Cohen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqGAr...
"Suzanne," by Cohen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svitE...
And yeah, we meet Suzanne, the inspiration for the song, and Marianne, the inspiration for "So Long, Marianne":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLOnQ...
Like a drunk in a midnight choir
I have tried in my way to be free
Like a worm on a hook
Like a knight from some old fashioned book
I have saved all my ribbons for thee
I am a life long fan of Leonard Cohen, so I was excited to read this, and I can't say I didn't enjoy it, but it feels like a smorgasboard of tastes/events/people, not adding up to a greater understanding of the man or his art. The appendix features all the famous people he met/worked with/slept with, reminding me of Richard Thompson's Beeswing, a fan gift, ooh, Sandy Denny! Oooh Mick Jagger, and in this book it is ooh, Joni! Ooh Rebecca DeMornay. We get more of a glimpse into all the women he slept with than his music.
The book opens with him at the end of his life, then we flashback periodically, but in the flashbacks we just skim the surface, it's an intro: Oh, Phil Spector was so crazy! He slept with Janis Joplin. I am not saying I still didn't like it, all of it is interesting to me on some level. And I love Philippe Girard's artwork a lot, actually, and this translation by Helge Dascher and Karen Houle seems excellent. But if you want to really know more about him, dig deeper, there's a good documentary, and listen to the music for a few decades, of course, but start with the early stuff.
"Bird on a Wire," by Leonard Cohen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqGAr...
"Suzanne," by Cohen:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svitE...
And yeah, we meet Suzanne, the inspiration for the song, and Marianne, the inspiration for "So Long, Marianne":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLOnQ...
September 23, 2022
21 Eylül Leonard Cohen'in doğum günüydü, ben de o gün kendi kendime bir küçük kutlama yapmak için açtım bu kitabı okudum. Homurdanan yaşlı teyze gibi olmak istemem ama hakikaten hiç sevemedim, hiç. Üstelik de çıkar çıkmaz büyük bir heyecanla almış ve bekletmiştim.
Sevmememin birkaç öznel sebebi olabilir; birincisi ben pek çizgi romancı değilim, hiç olamadım. İkincisi benim gibi Cohen'e bayılan, hayatını didik didik ezbere bilen, hakkında yapılmış neredeyse tüm filmleri izlemiş, kitapları okumuş insanlar olmayabilir bu kitabın hedef kitlesi. Bana fazlasıyla yavan ve sığ geldi.
Sığ demişken, Leonard Cohen bundan daha sığ anlatılabilir miydi bilmiyorum. Hiçbir şey bilmeden şu kitabı okuyunca en büyük mahareti kadınlara havalı yatağa atma cümleleri sayıp dökmek olan bir adam zannedersiniz kendisini. (Eminim o işi de iyi beceriyordu da, mevzu o değil.)
Bir kere zaten Cohen gibi birinin TÜM hayatını çizgi roman yapmak fikri baştan sorunlu bana sorarsanız, mümkün değil çünkü hakkını vermek. Belki hayatından bir kesiti seçmek daha doğru olurdu diye düşündüm okurken.
Bir sözüm de çeviriye, Mahir Ünsal Eriş çevirisi olduğu için çok şaşkınım ama çeviriyi de çok sorunlu buldum. Bir örnek: Kitapta Judy Collins'e biri şöyle diyor: "Albümün için bu Beatles ve Donovan kapakları mükemmel ama senin kendi şarkılarına ihtiyacın var." Ne anladınız? Kapaklar? Anlaşılan orijinalinde geçen sözcük "cover" - bunu yorumları değil kapakları diye çevirmek nasıl bir dikkatsizliktir, kimse mi fark etmez, nasıl basılır bu cümle böyle?
Neyse evet. Olmadı. Bazen olmaz, ne yapalım, hayat.
Sevmememin birkaç öznel sebebi olabilir; birincisi ben pek çizgi romancı değilim, hiç olamadım. İkincisi benim gibi Cohen'e bayılan, hayatını didik didik ezbere bilen, hakkında yapılmış neredeyse tüm filmleri izlemiş, kitapları okumuş insanlar olmayabilir bu kitabın hedef kitlesi. Bana fazlasıyla yavan ve sığ geldi.
Sığ demişken, Leonard Cohen bundan daha sığ anlatılabilir miydi bilmiyorum. Hiçbir şey bilmeden şu kitabı okuyunca en büyük mahareti kadınlara havalı yatağa atma cümleleri sayıp dökmek olan bir adam zannedersiniz kendisini. (Eminim o işi de iyi beceriyordu da, mevzu o değil.)
Bir kere zaten Cohen gibi birinin TÜM hayatını çizgi roman yapmak fikri baştan sorunlu bana sorarsanız, mümkün değil çünkü hakkını vermek. Belki hayatından bir kesiti seçmek daha doğru olurdu diye düşündüm okurken.
Bir sözüm de çeviriye, Mahir Ünsal Eriş çevirisi olduğu için çok şaşkınım ama çeviriyi de çok sorunlu buldum. Bir örnek: Kitapta Judy Collins'e biri şöyle diyor: "Albümün için bu Beatles ve Donovan kapakları mükemmel ama senin kendi şarkılarına ihtiyacın var." Ne anladınız? Kapaklar? Anlaşılan orijinalinde geçen sözcük "cover" - bunu yorumları değil kapakları diye çevirmek nasıl bir dikkatsizliktir, kimse mi fark etmez, nasıl basılır bu cümle böyle?
Neyse evet. Olmadı. Bazen olmaz, ne yapalım, hayat.
August 20, 2021
Plus ou moins fan des BD qui défilent aussi vite. Je n'ai pas l'impression d'embarquer puisque l'on n'a le droit à que quelques bulles par moment. La vie de Leonard Cohen a déboulé trop rapidement et l'on n'a presque aucune information sur le psychologique et ses choix.
April 22, 2021
Leonard Cohen. On a wire
Review of the original French language Casterman hardcover edition (March 2021)
Although my French is very basic, it is good enough for reading books on subjects about which I already have a large amount of previous knowledge, such as Julien Teyssandier's Arvo Pärt (2017). Philippe Girard's entertaining graphic novel Leonard Cohen. Sur un fil (2021) was another such case.
I suspect that your degree of enjoyment of this book will be scaled according to the amount of minutiae that you previously know about the now iconic Canadian poet/novelist/songwriter (1934-2016). Most fans will be aware of his mournful ballads to his various muses such as Suzanne Elrod in Suzanne and Marianne Ihlen in So Long, Marianne. They will know about his fling with blues-rock singer Janis Joplin from the song Chelsea Hotel #2, and that movie actress Rebecca de Mornay was his muse and producer for the recording The Future (1992).
The stories about his first guitar teacher, a street musician/Spanish flamenco guitarist will be more obscure though, unless you've read Cohen's acceptance speech in Spain for his Prince of Asturias Award for Literature (2011). Also mostly forgotten is Cohen's collaboration with the substance abuse crazed music producer Phil Spector (1939-2021) on the album Death of a Ladies Man (1977) with its over-produced wall-of-sound mix. As most do know, Spector later went to prison for the 2003 gun murder of actress Lana Clarkson. During the 1977 recording sessions, Spector had also pointed a gun at Leonard Cohen, saying "I love you Leonard!" with Cohen answering "I hope you love me Phil!"
Girard has crafted a loving tribute to Cohen's up and down career by combining the well and the less known stories and anecdotes of a widely travelled life. The art work is in a simple cartoon style which may not be exactly faithful to the likenesses of all of the celebrities portrayed, but which usually does capture key features, such as Cohen's sad eyes. I recommend the book especially to those fans who want it darker and deeper.
Trivia and Links
The Franco-Belgian publisher Casterman issued a trailer for the book's hardcover release which you can see here.
The English language translation edition Leonard Cohen: On a wire is expected to be published November 9, 2021 by Drawn & Quarterly.
In an odd coincidence, I recently read Luis Sagasti's Spanish-language book Leyden Ltd. (2019) which included a Leonard Cohen anecdote from childhood (the same one also used by Girard) in Sagasti's fictional non-fiction style:
* There is no such reference in the acceptance speech. This sort of falsified information is characteristic of Sagasti's mixed fiction and non-fiction style.
Review of the original French language Casterman hardcover edition (March 2021)
Although my French is very basic, it is good enough for reading books on subjects about which I already have a large amount of previous knowledge, such as Julien Teyssandier's Arvo Pärt (2017). Philippe Girard's entertaining graphic novel Leonard Cohen. Sur un fil (2021) was another such case.
I suspect that your degree of enjoyment of this book will be scaled according to the amount of minutiae that you previously know about the now iconic Canadian poet/novelist/songwriter (1934-2016). Most fans will be aware of his mournful ballads to his various muses such as Suzanne Elrod in Suzanne and Marianne Ihlen in So Long, Marianne. They will know about his fling with blues-rock singer Janis Joplin from the song Chelsea Hotel #2, and that movie actress Rebecca de Mornay was his muse and producer for the recording The Future (1992).
The stories about his first guitar teacher, a street musician/Spanish flamenco guitarist will be more obscure though, unless you've read Cohen's acceptance speech in Spain for his Prince of Asturias Award for Literature (2011). Also mostly forgotten is Cohen's collaboration with the substance abuse crazed music producer Phil Spector (1939-2021) on the album Death of a Ladies Man (1977) with its over-produced wall-of-sound mix. As most do know, Spector later went to prison for the 2003 gun murder of actress Lana Clarkson. During the 1977 recording sessions, Spector had also pointed a gun at Leonard Cohen, saying "I love you Leonard!" with Cohen answering "I hope you love me Phil!"
Girard has crafted a loving tribute to Cohen's up and down career by combining the well and the less known stories and anecdotes of a widely travelled life. The art work is in a simple cartoon style which may not be exactly faithful to the likenesses of all of the celebrities portrayed, but which usually does capture key features, such as Cohen's sad eyes. I recommend the book especially to those fans who want it darker and deeper.
Trivia and Links
The Franco-Belgian publisher Casterman issued a trailer for the book's hardcover release which you can see here.
The English language translation edition Leonard Cohen: On a wire is expected to be published November 9, 2021 by Drawn & Quarterly.
In an odd coincidence, I recently read Luis Sagasti's Spanish-language book Leyden Ltd. (2019) which included a Leonard Cohen anecdote from childhood (the same one also used by Girard) in Sagasti's fictional non-fiction style:
When he was nine years old, Leonard Cohen took a tie from his father, cut it open, and put in there a note that he had written to him. He went into the yard in the middle of the snow and buried it in silence. Over time, he forgot what he had written and where he had buried it. "I've been digging in the garden for years."
"Maybe it's the only thing I do, look for that note," he said in his acceptance speech for the Prince of Asturias Award.* - Footnotes 39 & 40 from Chapter 2 of Leyden Ltd.
* There is no such reference in the acceptance speech. This sort of falsified information is characteristic of Sagasti's mixed fiction and non-fiction style.
August 17, 2022
Je crois que la vie de Leonard Cohen est beaucoup trop remplie pour être condensée dans un roman graphique d’une centaine de pages. Je suis restée sur ma faim.
November 11, 2021
Belle BD biographique sur Leonard Cohen. J’ai bien aimé, mais je suis d’accord avec de nombreux commentaires qui mentionnent que tout va très vite et que si vous ne connaissez pas déjà un peu la vie et l’histoire de cet artiste, vous aurez peut-être un peu de mal à suivre. Une BD qui aurait facilement être deux fois plus longue pour bien explorer son sujet. On est sans doute plus près de l’hommage que de la biographie. Vaut tout de même la peine si vous aimez Cohen!
October 28, 2021
Disappointing. I imagine if you followed Cohen's career through the decades and know his story, connections are made. However, for a reader who hoped to gain some insight on the artist and his life, this was lacking.
February 10, 2022
This comics biography is the kind you can't put down, at least, I couldn't: read in one sitting.
Love for Leonard.
Appreciation for cartoonist Philippe Girard.
Recommended.
Love for Leonard.
Appreciation for cartoonist Philippe Girard.
Recommended.
January 31, 2023
What an opening in the first page of this graffiti novel … wow!
“Los Angeles, November 7, 2016. Thunk. Shit! Help! Fuck, nobody heard me. I’m going to die here, all alone, like a dog . Let’s hope this won’t be too uncomfortable”.
Leonard Cohen was and still is of my idols who saw me through many weird times in my life. My husband once said ‘no wonder you were depressed as his songs would make you cut your throat’! But if you’ve ever read Leonard Cohen’s books, poems and lyrics you’d find just sheer genius.
I was first produced to his music age 14 when I began playing guitar and I saw him perform in Glasgow not long after that. He was mesmerising and since then I’ve seen him in South Australia perform twice as a much older, wiser man.
I had known it heard about all of the stuff in this little graffiti novel due to reading so much about him. His manager made him bankrupt after embezzling $7.3M and served 18 months in jail which is why he had to tour again in his ageing years. He gave away the rights to Suzanne for me one of his greatest songs and one I’ve played and sung a lot too but I guess alcohol and drug abuse did that to him and he made many bad choices. The fact others thought he did covers for Hallelujah as so many others have but he wrote it! It was rejected by his team yet others made it a hit! A quiet man, a thinker, a young Jewish boy he was so much more.
Diagnosed with leukaemia was a hard hit for him and his son’s accident was tough too taking him 12 months to recover with Leonard reading the Bible to him. There’s a lot packed into this book but there’s so much more about his interesting life. Losing him and my other icon David Bowie was a tough hit both in the same year. Two very different from each other but for me very influential performers and writers. Well worth a look but if you don’t ‘know’ much about him it might be a bit confusing.
“Los Angeles, November 7, 2016. Thunk. Shit! Help! Fuck, nobody heard me. I’m going to die here, all alone, like a dog . Let’s hope this won’t be too uncomfortable”.
Leonard Cohen was and still is of my idols who saw me through many weird times in my life. My husband once said ‘no wonder you were depressed as his songs would make you cut your throat’! But if you’ve ever read Leonard Cohen’s books, poems and lyrics you’d find just sheer genius.
I was first produced to his music age 14 when I began playing guitar and I saw him perform in Glasgow not long after that. He was mesmerising and since then I’ve seen him in South Australia perform twice as a much older, wiser man.
I had known it heard about all of the stuff in this little graffiti novel due to reading so much about him. His manager made him bankrupt after embezzling $7.3M and served 18 months in jail which is why he had to tour again in his ageing years. He gave away the rights to Suzanne for me one of his greatest songs and one I’ve played and sung a lot too but I guess alcohol and drug abuse did that to him and he made many bad choices. The fact others thought he did covers for Hallelujah as so many others have but he wrote it! It was rejected by his team yet others made it a hit! A quiet man, a thinker, a young Jewish boy he was so much more.
Diagnosed with leukaemia was a hard hit for him and his son’s accident was tough too taking him 12 months to recover with Leonard reading the Bible to him. There’s a lot packed into this book but there’s so much more about his interesting life. Losing him and my other icon David Bowie was a tough hit both in the same year. Two very different from each other but for me very influential performers and writers. Well worth a look but if you don’t ‘know’ much about him it might be a bit confusing.
October 27, 2021
Closing Time
Review of the Drawn and Quarterly hardcover edition (October 2021) translated by Helge Dascher & Karen Houle from the original French language Leonard Cohen. Sur un fil published by Casterman (March 2021)
Mural of Leonard Cohen at Crescent St. Montreal, Canada. This is also the basis for an image in "Leonard Cohen: On a Wire". Photograph sourced from Pinterest.
I was so eager to read Philippe Girard's graphic novel biography of Leonard Cohen that I even fumbled through it with my very basic French language knowledge in its original edition Leonard Cohen. Sur un fil (links to earlier review in English) back in April 2021.
There isn't much to add to my first review except to say that this translation by Helge Dascher and Karen Houle is excellent.
Trivia and Links
Artist & writer Philippe Girard is interviewed by the CBC in a November 2020 article that you can read here. Girard mentions that he had envisioned his biography of Leonard Cohen as a series. This current volume seems to already be a full telling of the story though.
The cover image of both French and English language editions of Leonard Cohen: On a Wire show Leonard Cohen walking home with his guitar after a club/coffee house performance. The building in the background is Bens Deli [no apostrophe] at 990 De Maisonneuve Boulevard West in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and you can read about its history on Wikipedia.
Review of the Drawn and Quarterly hardcover edition (October 2021) translated by Helge Dascher & Karen Houle from the original French language Leonard Cohen. Sur un fil published by Casterman (March 2021)
Mural of Leonard Cohen at Crescent St. Montreal, Canada. This is also the basis for an image in "Leonard Cohen: On a Wire". Photograph sourced from Pinterest.
I was so eager to read Philippe Girard's graphic novel biography of Leonard Cohen that I even fumbled through it with my very basic French language knowledge in its original edition Leonard Cohen. Sur un fil (links to earlier review in English) back in April 2021.
There isn't much to add to my first review except to say that this translation by Helge Dascher and Karen Houle is excellent.
Trivia and Links
Artist & writer Philippe Girard is interviewed by the CBC in a November 2020 article that you can read here. Girard mentions that he had envisioned his biography of Leonard Cohen as a series. This current volume seems to already be a full telling of the story though.
The cover image of both French and English language editions of Leonard Cohen: On a Wire show Leonard Cohen walking home with his guitar after a club/coffee house performance. The building in the background is Bens Deli [no apostrophe] at 990 De Maisonneuve Boulevard West in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and you can read about its history on Wikipedia.
November 23, 2021
I realize that this isn't meant to be a definitive biography of Leonard Cohen, but I did find it lacking in some areas. A short list of things that were forgotten/misrepresented:
1. While it's great that the writer pointed out how many people covered "Hallelujah" and joked about the many verses of it, he neglected to mention how often Cohen's songs were featured in film and TV, either performed by Cohen himself or by other artists. (Shrek, Watchmen, and Sons of Anarchy are a few examples.)
2. I'm pretty sure it was Lorca who introduced Rufus Wainwright to Leonard, not Adam. But that's just me nitpicking.
3. There was no real mention of Cohen's talents as a visual artist. The drawings in Book of Longing are all his, and I think he did the cover art for Dear Heather as well. His posthumous book of poems, The Flame, also contains a lot of his drawings.
4. There was also no mention of Irving Layton being a mentor to Cohen when he was a student.
5. The author also didn't bother focusing on the documentary about Cohen, I'm Your Man, which featured performances of his songs by a lot of artists, and included Cohen performing "Tower of Song" with U2.
6. Very little of the book focused on Buddhism, which was a pretty big deal to Cohen. He even narrated a documentary on the Tibetan Book of the Dead from the National Film Board of Canada and NHK. Again, no mention of that in the book.
7. No mention of his posthumous Grammy for You Want It Darker.
8. Oh, and he worked with Philip Glass. This was also left out.
9. Some of the scenes weren't really clear. What did Cohen get arrested for when he was a student - fighting with that crowd of people, or just being drunk in public? What was the point of the closet full of suitcases? And I would've appreciated a translation of the French in the bit about his Miami Vice guest role. (The Hebrew near the end was obviously a religious reading of some kind, so I was able to understand the context of that, at least.)
Basically, this book was like a greatest hits album. If you want a more in-depth look at Cohen's life, watch I'm Your Man. If not for the decent art, I probably would give this 2 stars.
1. While it's great that the writer pointed out how many people covered "Hallelujah" and joked about the many verses of it, he neglected to mention how often Cohen's songs were featured in film and TV, either performed by Cohen himself or by other artists. (Shrek, Watchmen, and Sons of Anarchy are a few examples.)
2. I'm pretty sure it was Lorca who introduced Rufus Wainwright to Leonard, not Adam. But that's just me nitpicking.
3. There was no real mention of Cohen's talents as a visual artist. The drawings in Book of Longing are all his, and I think he did the cover art for Dear Heather as well. His posthumous book of poems, The Flame, also contains a lot of his drawings.
4. There was also no mention of Irving Layton being a mentor to Cohen when he was a student.
5. The author also didn't bother focusing on the documentary about Cohen, I'm Your Man, which featured performances of his songs by a lot of artists, and included Cohen performing "Tower of Song" with U2.
6. Very little of the book focused on Buddhism, which was a pretty big deal to Cohen. He even narrated a documentary on the Tibetan Book of the Dead from the National Film Board of Canada and NHK. Again, no mention of that in the book.
7. No mention of his posthumous Grammy for You Want It Darker.
8. Oh, and he worked with Philip Glass. This was also left out.
9. Some of the scenes weren't really clear. What did Cohen get arrested for when he was a student - fighting with that crowd of people, or just being drunk in public? What was the point of the closet full of suitcases? And I would've appreciated a translation of the French in the bit about his Miami Vice guest role. (The Hebrew near the end was obviously a religious reading of some kind, so I was able to understand the context of that, at least.)
Basically, this book was like a greatest hits album. If you want a more in-depth look at Cohen's life, watch I'm Your Man. If not for the decent art, I probably would give this 2 stars.
January 2, 2022
OMG! Quelle déception.
Un auteur québécois qui écrit les dialogues d'une bande dessinée comme si les personnages étaient Français ou comme si l'auteur, lui était Français!
"mec", "une nana", "aller bosser"...
Leonard Cohen était Montréalais. Ce n'était pas un Français.
Toutes ces expressions françaises m'ont tellement irritée dans un livre qui raconte la vie d'un homme qui parlait surtout anglais et ne s'exprimait certainement pas comme un Parisien quand il parlait français, que je n'arrivais plus à me concentrer sur l'histoire. Voyant que le livre est publié chez Casterman, je me suis demandé si on avait forcé l'auteur à utiliser des expressions de France, en ajoutant un "Tabarnak" pour dire que c'est au Québec que ça se passe! Si c'est le cas, c'est un manque de respect de l'éditeur et de la maison de publication pour l'auteur et le lecteur. Mais si c'est un choix de l'auteur, je ne le comprends pas.
Quant à l'histoire, c'est plutôt du saute-mouton qu'on nous fait faire... d'une femme à l'autre, d'un verre à l'autre, d'une pilule à l'autre. Mais Leonard Cohen, c'est tellement plus que ça. Sa sensibilité, son humour, sa poésie, on ne peut pas montrer ça en deux images et hop on passe au prochain gérant qui le volera!
C'est bien dommage parce que j'adore Leonard Cohen.
Je vais donc plutôt aller chercher un de ses livres dans ma bibliothèque pour le relire (en essayant d'oublier celui-ci le plus vite possible), parce qu'au fond, Leonard Cohen a choisi de nous dire dans ses livres et ses chansons, ce qu'il avait envie de partager. À nous de le lire et de l'écouter en étant attentifs à ses mots.
Un auteur québécois qui écrit les dialogues d'une bande dessinée comme si les personnages étaient Français ou comme si l'auteur, lui était Français!
"mec", "une nana", "aller bosser"...
Leonard Cohen était Montréalais. Ce n'était pas un Français.
Toutes ces expressions françaises m'ont tellement irritée dans un livre qui raconte la vie d'un homme qui parlait surtout anglais et ne s'exprimait certainement pas comme un Parisien quand il parlait français, que je n'arrivais plus à me concentrer sur l'histoire. Voyant que le livre est publié chez Casterman, je me suis demandé si on avait forcé l'auteur à utiliser des expressions de France, en ajoutant un "Tabarnak" pour dire que c'est au Québec que ça se passe! Si c'est le cas, c'est un manque de respect de l'éditeur et de la maison de publication pour l'auteur et le lecteur. Mais si c'est un choix de l'auteur, je ne le comprends pas.
Quant à l'histoire, c'est plutôt du saute-mouton qu'on nous fait faire... d'une femme à l'autre, d'un verre à l'autre, d'une pilule à l'autre. Mais Leonard Cohen, c'est tellement plus que ça. Sa sensibilité, son humour, sa poésie, on ne peut pas montrer ça en deux images et hop on passe au prochain gérant qui le volera!
C'est bien dommage parce que j'adore Leonard Cohen.
Je vais donc plutôt aller chercher un de ses livres dans ma bibliothèque pour le relire (en essayant d'oublier celui-ci le plus vite possible), parce qu'au fond, Leonard Cohen a choisi de nous dire dans ses livres et ses chansons, ce qu'il avait envie de partager. À nous de le lire et de l'écouter en étant attentifs à ses mots.
August 19, 2022
The author presumes that the reader has A LOT of pre-existing knowledge about Leonard Cohen, because this book is nothing but sparse text and graphic depictions which are a disjointed mess if the reader knows NOTHING about Leonard Cohen and had turned to this book to learn the basics.
I KNEW, before I read the book, AND I STILL KNOW, after reading it, NOTHING about Leonard Cohen. Reading the book has given me nothing but shards of stray information -- which I may or may not have pieced together to properly construct the story of his life and achievements. I doubt that I did.
I really now know nothing about Leonard Cohen other than who had sex with him, that he wrote songs and poems, and that he was high and drunk alot. Oh, this is helpful, he also appeared on Miami Vice. Really? What is this book? The author phoned it in. It is a lazy, half-assed work.
I read this book to learn, in a coherent narrative, the very things about Leonard Cohen that the author presupposed I already knew. Instead of learning from this book, I was profoundly disappointed in it.
Not good. I do not recommend this book at all. Do yourself a favor -- get the bibliography from the back of this book and then read some of the books listed there instead. I learned more from:
www.leonardcohenfiles.com
than from the book itself. Ugh!
I KNEW, before I read the book, AND I STILL KNOW, after reading it, NOTHING about Leonard Cohen. Reading the book has given me nothing but shards of stray information -- which I may or may not have pieced together to properly construct the story of his life and achievements. I doubt that I did.
I really now know nothing about Leonard Cohen other than who had sex with him, that he wrote songs and poems, and that he was high and drunk alot. Oh, this is helpful, he also appeared on Miami Vice. Really? What is this book? The author phoned it in. It is a lazy, half-assed work.
I read this book to learn, in a coherent narrative, the very things about Leonard Cohen that the author presupposed I already knew. Instead of learning from this book, I was profoundly disappointed in it.
Not good. I do not recommend this book at all. Do yourself a favor -- get the bibliography from the back of this book and then read some of the books listed there instead. I learned more from:
www.leonardcohenfiles.com
than from the book itself. Ugh!
September 16, 2022
Sevimli ama bayağı yüzeysel bir Leonard Cohen özeti. Müzisyen biopic'lerinin popüler olduğu bu dönemde treni yakalamak için üretilmiş izlenimi veriyor. Cohen fanlarından ziyade direkt olarak birkaç popüler şarkısını şöyle bir dinleyip geçmiş kitleye hitap ediyor.
Böyle bir şeyin üretilmesi aslında sevindirici, adamın hayatını az biraz bilenler için çizgi roman formatında kendisinin neler yaşadığını hatırlamaya vesile olan bir saatlik bir mola da olabilir ancak yine de fazlası değil. Cohen'in hayatını derinlemesine öğrenmek için satın alınmaması gereken bir cilt.
Böyle bir şeyin üretilmesi aslında sevindirici, adamın hayatını az biraz bilenler için çizgi roman formatında kendisinin neler yaşadığını hatırlamaya vesile olan bir saatlik bir mola da olabilir ancak yine de fazlası değil. Cohen'in hayatını derinlemesine öğrenmek için satın alınmaması gereken bir cilt.
November 18, 2025
Ouin pas l’affaire la plus en profondeur que j’ai lu mais bon
November 8, 2024
tanidigim sevdigim herkese rastladigim, her sayfasinda beni cok heyecanlandiran bir cizgi roman oldu.. okudugum en iyi seyler listesinde ismini en ustlere yazarim😭😭
December 31, 2021
Décembre 2021. Je ne connais pas assez Leonard Cohen pour saisir toutes les subtilités de ce roman graphique. Ça ne m’a pas déplu mais j’avais l’impression d’un survol de moments choisis sans vraiment de fil conducteur tangible. Difficile à expliquer.
Les illustrations m’ont plu.
Les illustrations m’ont plu.
October 4, 2024
Written like the bastard child of Shakespeare in Love and Forrest Gump. Inserting paraphrases of Cohen's lyrics into regular dialogue, often spoken by two page cameos of famous people, is not the way to do a Cohen biography. This is cheeky where Cohen was earnest, breezy where Cohen found depth. Also pissed me off that they left out anything about Nancy (the inspiration for “Seems So Long Ago, Nancy”). In general would’ve loved more on Cohen's relationships with women instead of just a procession of names. So much of Cohen's work and method deals with the emotions of love and sex, why not dig into this more?
December 19, 2021
Personalen på Indigo i Toronto guidade mig till graphic novels-hyllan. Hade tänkt skaffa en Scott Pilgrim, för jag gillar filmen, men så hittade jag den här.
Vi följer Leonard Cohen från uppväxten i Montreal till Hydra, London, Chelsea Hotel och andra platser. Är det sant att han gjorde en cameo i Miami Vice?
Vi följer Leonard Cohen från uppväxten i Montreal till Hydra, London, Chelsea Hotel och andra platser. Är det sant att han gjorde en cameo i Miami Vice?
August 24, 2022
Geçişlerin fazlaca hızlı olduğu, telden tele, daldan dala yüzeysel -özet- bir anlatım.
Sıkıcı ve sıradan çizimler renkler..
Nope.
Sıkıcı ve sıradan çizimler renkler..
Nope.
August 30, 2022
spoilerus alertus.. dünyada olduğu gibi memlekette de seveni bol olan cohen ile aram gitmeli gelmeli, o i'm your fan dese de ben onun fanı sayılmam, 3-5 şarkısı dışında delisi sayılmam, sesi sözü tesirli tabii ama biraz overrated bulurum, bir sürü de kitap var hayatı hakkında, bu çizgili anlatı özetlemiş paketlemiş güzel tabii.. bu kadar yahudicilikle tanrıyla alakalı takıntılı olduğunu bilmiyordum, daha çok budistliğini bilirdik; o durgun görüntüsünün altında amfetaminci olduğunu, büyük aşk adamı görüntüsü altında baya bi manitacı olduğunu filan bilmiyordum. suzanne şarkısı ile ilgili olaylar, menacer kazıklamaları, dede yaşında beş kuruşsuz kalması, chelsea otelde janis'e yalatması, nico-lou reed filan enteresan baya olay geçmiş başından.. çizimler iyi hoş da herkes birbirine benziyor kitapta :) neyse ki sonuna kim kimdir diye bi hatırlatma daha koymuşlar. gençlikte hastası olduğumuz rebecca demornay'ı yalamış olması ayrı bi saygı duydurttu da rebecca'yı da baya tipsiz çizmiş çizer abi.
çevirmen arkadaşa gelince judy collins'in albümünde beatles'tan yapacağı coverlarla ilgili metinde cover'ı kapak diye çevirmesi chicken translate olayına apayrı bir boyut kattı bravo. herhalde özelde vasat yazarlığının ezikliğini çevirilerde kötülük yaparak üzerinden atmaya çalışan bir kişi.
alın okuyun okutun diycem ama kitabın fiyatı hardcover filan olmamasına rağmen kol gibi, amazon app'in kampanyası olmasa almaya kıyamazdım. iflah olmaz bi cohen fanı değilseniz en iyisi bu kitabı çalın. Ay! o başka bi kitaptı, pardonz.
çevirmen arkadaşa gelince judy collins'in albümünde beatles'tan yapacağı coverlarla ilgili metinde cover'ı kapak diye çevirmesi chicken translate olayına apayrı bir boyut kattı bravo. herhalde özelde vasat yazarlığının ezikliğini çevirilerde kötülük yaparak üzerinden atmaya çalışan bir kişi.
alın okuyun okutun diycem ama kitabın fiyatı hardcover filan olmamasına rağmen kol gibi, amazon app'in kampanyası olmasa almaya kıyamazdım. iflah olmaz bi cohen fanı değilseniz en iyisi bu kitabı çalın. Ay! o başka bi kitaptı, pardonz.
February 19, 2022
Reipas läpijuoksu Leonard Cohenin elämästä. Onhan siinä ollut monenlaisia käänteitä ja tapahtumia. Melkein kokonaan kronologisesti etenevä tarina ei suuremmin kikkaile. Tarina muodostuu maksimissaan
muutaman sivun mittaisista pätkistä, lyhimmillään anekdootin tapaisista jutuista. Cohenia ei nosteta myyttiselle jalustalle eikä hänen saavutuksiaan suuremmin hehkuteta, vaan pikemminkin kaiken yllä on vino hymy. Se on hyvä asia, vaikka muuten en ihan hirveästi tästä albumista innostunut. Uutena tietona tuli kuitenkin esimerkiksi se, että Cohen esiintyi Miami Vicessa yhdessä jaksossa.
muutaman sivun mittaisista pätkistä, lyhimmillään anekdootin tapaisista jutuista. Cohenia ei nosteta myyttiselle jalustalle eikä hänen saavutuksiaan suuremmin hehkuteta, vaan pikemminkin kaiken yllä on vino hymy. Se on hyvä asia, vaikka muuten en ihan hirveästi tästä albumista innostunut. Uutena tietona tuli kuitenkin esimerkiksi se, että Cohen esiintyi Miami Vicessa yhdessä jaksossa.
March 3, 2023
C'est rare que ça arrive, mais j'ai trouvé cette bd pénible à lire. Je ne saurais trop expliquer pourquoi... Je connais peu Cohen et je crois que je voulais la lire pour en apprendre plus sur lui, peut-être pas le meilleur choix!
October 21, 2021
Vignettes biographiques de la vie de Leonard Cohen où défilent les figures marquantes de son oeuvre. Pour les initiés.
April 3, 2022
Ok book ig. Tbh je m’en fou un peu de Léonard Cohen je sais même pas c’est qui so. Les dessins sont nice tho
July 4, 2024
tudo meio superficial
November 16, 2021
I’ve been listening to Leonard Cohen’s wrecked voice since I was a sophomore depressed in the early 70s. I bought the albums, absorbed the mythology of his songs, poetry and women, the Zen retreats, bankruptcy and comeback tour, endured the success of “Hallelujah” until I never wanted to hear that secret chord again – everything up to that final black album, downloaded a few days before Cohen died. What a spirit-crushing night that was: Trump had just won the election. I spent an hour or two shuffling around the Mission listening to Cohen’s songs block after block through the November shadows. You want it darker…
No one needs to know a bit of that, but you probably do need to know most of Cohen’s story for this memento mori to make any sense. Otherwise it’s a collection of koans. Characters and key moments are telegraphed for a few panels and then we’re on to the next. Difficult to hazard the point but the drawing is great, so one extra highly-valued Goodreads star.
No one needs to know a bit of that, but you probably do need to know most of Cohen’s story for this memento mori to make any sense. Otherwise it’s a collection of koans. Characters and key moments are telegraphed for a few panels and then we’re on to the next. Difficult to hazard the point but the drawing is great, so one extra highly-valued Goodreads star.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 210 reviews