I’m so happy I picked up this lovely little book from Sibylline Press, a small press dedicated to publishing books by women over fifty. I was drawn in by the cover and title—as a music lover, I was curious to dive into even an unknown person’s experiences with the art form and was quickly wrapped up in her experiences of music loved in her youth, experiences with music in church, and the world of fundraising. I am also a musician who ultimately didn’t go on to pursue performance or teaching as a career, and it was intriguing (and validating) to read about another woman who preserved her passion for music while harnessing it into multiple careers—first fundraising and then writing about it. This is a lovely, well-written memoir, and I enjoyed the time I spent with it.

Grace Notes: A Musical Memoir by Katie DeBonville hit me right in the heart. In that full bodied way only music stories can. As someone who studied classical voice and has always secretly (and not so secretly) adored pop, I felt seen on every page. I loved reading about her life long musical journey. Katie captures that push and pull between discipline and joy, tradition and pure love of music. What moved me most was her honesty. Especially about the beauty, the ego, the pressure, the longing, and the moments when music feels like home and when it feels like a cage. And when she ultimately chooses to step away from pursuing performance as a career, it doesn’t read like giving up. It really reads like exhaling, like choosing herself. Her reflections on “grace notes” as the small, shimmering details that change the feeling of an entire phrase are gorgeous, and they left me emotional in the best way. I now feel so grateful for the music I’ve had. And now feel gentler with myself about the music I’m still becoming.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Sibylline Press for this ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

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