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A review by janina_reads
Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley
5.0
(I read the "original" Aussie edition, but now own this US hardcover edition.)
Oh book, I love you so ...
It is really hard for me to put into words how I feel about this story. I am sure I won't be able to do it justice.
It is amazing how many things can happen in just one night. And it is even more amazing how Cath Crowley manages to capture them all – in a way that is both funny and heartbreakingly sad, full of fear of an unknown future, bright with colours and brimming with feelings. Crowley brings Melbourne's night to you – the velvety black, the blinking stars, the heat, the factory smoke, and then the beginning of dawn – and it felt just like I was there with them, riding a bike through the empty streets.
We only get to spend one night with Lucy and Ed. Yet, they are complex characters, well-drawn with their hopes and fears, their strengths and weaknesses, their talents. I loved their love for art, the way they talked about it. It was in no way pretentious, it was just who they were. Ed's graffiti really came to life through Crowley's writing, and I wish it was real. I wish it was something I could look at. This way, I can only imagine his oceans, the bright birds, the ghost in the jar …
Then, their friends. Fun people to be with (I would do everything to spend a night with this gang), but not only sidekicks just there for the sake of throwing in some good lines.
Last night, after finishing this book, I was sitting in front of my laptop, trying to put my feelings into words. It was not possible. This is when I wish I were a writer, someone who could capture this achy, bittersweet feeling that lingers even today. I can only describe it as indescribable. The writing is so beautiful it almost hurts. I could put this whole book in my favourite quotes.
Hands down, probably the best book I have read so far this year.
All (okay, some of) the things I loved: undercover good guys, psychic (not psycho) Jazz, the arse-grabbing episode (I laughed so hard), Al's chiming glass flowers, Ed's bright birds, René Magritte's "The Lovers", the pink love van, Bert, Lucy punching Malcolm in the face, The Daytime Things, talking with your eyes covered, Lucy’s blue lightning helmet …
#6 Aussie YA Challenge 2011
Oh book, I love you so ...
It is really hard for me to put into words how I feel about this story. I am sure I won't be able to do it justice.
It is amazing how many things can happen in just one night. And it is even more amazing how Cath Crowley manages to capture them all – in a way that is both funny and heartbreakingly sad, full of fear of an unknown future, bright with colours and brimming with feelings. Crowley brings Melbourne's night to you – the velvety black, the blinking stars, the heat, the factory smoke, and then the beginning of dawn – and it felt just like I was there with them, riding a bike through the empty streets.
We only get to spend one night with Lucy and Ed. Yet, they are complex characters, well-drawn with their hopes and fears, their strengths and weaknesses, their talents. I loved their love for art, the way they talked about it. It was in no way pretentious, it was just who they were. Ed's graffiti really came to life through Crowley's writing, and I wish it was real. I wish it was something I could look at. This way, I can only imagine his oceans, the bright birds, the ghost in the jar …
Then, their friends. Fun people to be with (I would do everything to spend a night with this gang), but not only sidekicks just there for the sake of throwing in some good lines.
Last night, after finishing this book, I was sitting in front of my laptop, trying to put my feelings into words. It was not possible. This is when I wish I were a writer, someone who could capture this achy, bittersweet feeling that lingers even today. I can only describe it as indescribable. The writing is so beautiful it almost hurts. I could put this whole book in my favourite quotes.
Hands down, probably the best book I have read so far this year.
All (okay, some of) the things I loved: undercover good guys, psychic (not psycho) Jazz, the arse-grabbing episode (I laughed so hard), Al's chiming glass flowers, Ed's bright birds, René Magritte's "The Lovers", the pink love van, Bert, Lucy punching Malcolm in the face, The Daytime Things, talking with your eyes covered, Lucy’s blue lightning helmet …
#6 Aussie YA Challenge 2011