Her name's Grace. She's been sick for as long as she can remember, and lies in bed all day. Her family's wealthy, so she has all the comforts in the world...except for love. Her father's a drunk, and her mother's dead.

But when a mysterious young man appears at Grace's balcony, everything changes. The boy challenges Grace to leave her room, despite her condition. Eventually she does...and, strangely, she doesn't feel sick anymore. Because the world outside is nothing like what she imagined it to be...

Grace:
Aspires to become a writer and spends her time reading literature and poetry. Her passion for writing, however, isn't nearly strong enough to reinforce her will to live. Grace, tired of being unheard and unappreciated, has begun to see death as her only escape from the pains of living.

Andy:
Rebellious, wild and daring. Often doesn't know his limits unless he's already pushed them, and can rarely see beyond the moment. To Grace, he appears innocent and curious.

Mr. Miller:
Grace's stepfather. A selfish and bitter man, Mr. Miller sees Grace as an insult, realizing Emily married him only so she could be taken care of. As a result, he barely pays attention to her, while being very strict with Ashley, his real daughter.

Ashley:
Grace's little sister. A hard worker and extremely loving, Ashley always puts others before herself. Although she is extremely mature for her age, every now and again she has to let go and be a kid.

George Alexopoulos:
George Alexopoulos won third place in TOKYOPOP's Rising Stars of Manga Vol. 5 with his entry, "Can I Sit Here?" He also drew and co-wrote an online graphic novel entitled Artist's Block. He is twenty years old and lives in New Jersey.

His favorite things include listening to Coldplay, hunting down new volumes of Kare Kano, and watching the French film Amelie.

As soon as I saw George's entry in Rising Stars 5, "Can I Sit Here?" I knew I had to work with him. The story was deceptively simple—a guy waiting for the bus works up the courage to talk to a girl—yet amazingly satisfying. The art was very stylized and unique, but the little background details made you feel like you were there, and the relatable inner dialogue made you feel like you were him. That was the kind of manga I wanted to make: stories that were more than conventions and surface elements, with characters that were more than designs and dialogue. Something simple, yet unique, yet all too real—in other words, a classic.

The concept of Go with Grace is also deceptively simple: a bedridden girl with no reason to live falls in love with a mysterious boy who may or may not be a complete figment of her imagination. Typical shojo, right?

On the other hand, its themes include life, death, suicide, autonomy, inspiration, true love and the immortal soul. And its characters—you know them. Even the figments. No, especially those.

~Carol Fox, Editor