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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
I really, really enjoyed this. A lot. Love the premise, love the voices, the dialogue, the wit, the situations, and developments. Freaking loved the characters too. Love all around.
In “Graffiti Moon” by Cath Crowley, Lucy spends a long night trying to find a teenage graffiti artist that goes by the name Shadow. Even though she’s never met him, she feels a connection with him through his artwork. However, it becomes clear right away that her image of Shadow is not realistic.
Crowley did an excellent job creating complex, realistic characters. While Lucy shows that she’s perfectly capable of taking care of herself, she also has an underlying naivety. This is particularly evident when she mentions that she’s going to “do it” with Shadow. And then there’s Ed, who joins Lucy on her search. Ed is a former classmate of Lucy’s, who left school in year ten. There’s such a sadness to his struggle, living in poverty, stuck in a seemingly dead-end future, and still mourning the death of his friend and mentor, Bert.
As the night wears on, Lucy and Ed discover that they have much more in common than they imagined. They also begin to see that sometimes expectations do not live up to the reality and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
If I had one criticism of this book, it’s that it can be a bit repetitive when Lucy and Ed’s points of view overlap. I didn’t think it was necessary to summarize an entire scene from the other character’s perspective. I really did enjoy the book overall, though. It was a great story, and I enjoyed Googling the artwork they mentioned in the story.
Crowley did an excellent job creating complex, realistic characters. While Lucy shows that she’s perfectly capable of taking care of herself, she also has an underlying naivety. This is particularly evident when she mentions that she’s going to “do it” with Shadow. And then there’s Ed, who joins Lucy on her search. Ed is a former classmate of Lucy’s, who left school in year ten. There’s such a sadness to his struggle, living in poverty, stuck in a seemingly dead-end future, and still mourning the death of his friend and mentor, Bert.
As the night wears on, Lucy and Ed discover that they have much more in common than they imagined. They also begin to see that sometimes expectations do not live up to the reality and that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
If I had one criticism of this book, it’s that it can be a bit repetitive when Lucy and Ed’s points of view overlap. I didn’t think it was necessary to summarize an entire scene from the other character’s perspective. I really did enjoy the book overall, though. It was a great story, and I enjoyed Googling the artwork they mentioned in the story.
I'm so glad I've reread this! It's been almost eight years since the last time I read this and I still love it! This just confirms that I am in love with the characters and prose of every Cath Crowley book! I hope she writes more <3
Such a delightful find. Five stars for voice alone. This story has a lyrical voice that is beyond beautiful in places.
"I had this urge to throw cans at the windows so I could hear a noise that sounded like escape." Page 144
Australian writers never let me down. Another winner across the board, beautiful both with its imagery and artistic references (google them!)and prose like writing. The characters felt real and I cared about their journey, two things that have been missing in the last couple YA novels I have read. I couldn't recommend this book more. The end.
Australian writers never let me down. Another winner across the board, beautiful both with its imagery and artistic references (google them!)and prose like writing. The characters felt real and I cared about their journey, two things that have been missing in the last couple YA novels I have read. I couldn't recommend this book more. The end.
We'll meet and click and sit up all night and everything will tip out of me and into him and the other way around and while we're tipping the night will fade and the world will get pink and in that pinkness he'll kiss me.
I was really hoping I'd love this as much as A Little Wanting Song but I didn't. I certainly didn't hate it or think it was bad in any way but it didn't match the feelings I felt when I read ALWS.
BUT, 4 stars is still a good rating. I think the story and characters just didn't grab me as much as the ones in ALWS did, plus I thought the writing was a smidge better in ALWS. A smidge!
I will try and refrain from any more comparisons. Lets just move on from the obvious: I LOVED ALWS. Epic epic love. Now to talk about Graffiti Moon.
It was a cute book and the writing was pretty fantastic. I didn't adore the poems as much as the songs in ALWS(I need to stop comparing!). Lucy and Ed's night of getting to know each other reminded me a bit of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist(which I also liked more than this book).
It was a good book. I was really excited to read it but I expected more. I couldn't help comparing it to ALWS(which I found superior), as well as Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist(which I also found superior).
It was still pretty awesome. If you love a good romantic contemporary Y.A, you will probably really like this book. I'm definitely a fan of Cath Crowley's writing style.
Right now, I'd be willing to kiss Ed through a bag. So it's true what they say about teenage hormones. It seems I'm raging out of control. It's not very Jane Austen of me but it feels pretty good. The problem is, Ed's acting all Jane Austen on me and he won't stop talking. Shut up, I want to say. All talk and no action is really kind of frustrating.
Ok this book was a simply amazingly wonderful YA read - a beautifuly engaging story told from multiple viewpoints (predominantly of the two main characters Lucy & Ed) set across one evening.
Ed is a graffiti artist known as Shadow, Lucy is a glass artist who has seen Shadow's work around the city and wants to track him down the evening she and her friends finish Year 12. Only she doesn't know Shadow is Ed, a guy she had a crush on that ended in a disastrous date with a couple of years ago, who she hasn't seen since. And Ed is one of the group of people she hangs out with on this End of Year 12 night.
And I don't really want to say anymore on the specific plot than that so as not to spoil it for others.
More generally, the story was so well (and deftly) crafted by Crowley I simply did not want to stop reading.
It does have a bit of a predictable ending, but I can completley forgive that given the wonderful weaving of story that Crowley put together to get to that point.
I loved that the male and female characters were all interesting and engaging, I loved that the Edward-Bella style of annoyance for me in this novel was absolutely zero.
I can't wait till my daughter is a bit older for her to read it. :)
Ed is a graffiti artist known as Shadow, Lucy is a glass artist who has seen Shadow's work around the city and wants to track him down the evening she and her friends finish Year 12. Only she doesn't know Shadow is Ed, a guy she had a crush on that ended in a disastrous date with a couple of years ago, who she hasn't seen since. And Ed is one of the group of people she hangs out with on this End of Year 12 night.
And I don't really want to say anymore on the specific plot than that so as not to spoil it for others.
More generally, the story was so well (and deftly) crafted by Crowley I simply did not want to stop reading.
It does have a bit of a predictable ending, but I can completley forgive that given the wonderful weaving of story that Crowley put together to get to that point.
I loved that the male and female characters were all interesting and engaging, I loved that the Edward-Bella style of annoyance for me in this novel was absolutely zero.
I can't wait till my daughter is a bit older for her to read it. :)
WOW! This is knock your socks off good writing.i loved my all night urban art adventure on a bike with Ed and Lucy.
Cath Crowley must be one of our great unsung YA writers. With a smallish body of work, her books (and characters) are consistently smart, provocative, funny, intelligent and sexy. And beautifully written. Graffiti Moon might be her most accomplished and lyrical work yet—and not just because of a character sometimes known as Poet. This book, set (a little in the way of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist) over the course of one long, crazy night criss-crossing Melbourne, seems simultaneously timeless and universal, while also authentically of the moment—and of Melbourne. Also like Nick and Norah, we have two potentially moon-crossed lovers, who we know (or trust) will sort themselves out by morning light, but whom we are compelled to follow through every moment, punch, bike accident, splash of paint and near-arrest until we know for sure what morning will bring. I loved it. Read it. Recommended it.
It was a fun and one of a kind; I love it!
full review on http://wefancybooks.blogspot.com soon!
full review on http://wefancybooks.blogspot.com soon!