Graffiti Moon

by Cath Crowley

Lucy is in love with Shadow, a mysterious graffiti artist.

Ed thought he was in love with Lucy, until she broke his nose.

Dylan loves Daisy, but throwing eggs at her probably wasn't the best way to show it.

Jazz and Leo are slowly encircling each other.

An intense and exhilarating 24 hours in the lives of four teenagers on the verge: of adulthood, of HSC, of finding out just who they are, and who they want to be.

A lyrical new YA novel from the award-winning author of Chasing Charlie Duskin and the Gracie Faltrain series.

Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Art, Young Adult Contemporary

264 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2010

About the author

Author of Words in Deep Blue, A Little Wanting Song (Chasing Charlie Duskin), Graffiti Moon and the Gracie series.

Take Three Girls, a collaboration with Simmone Howell and Fiona Wood, is out in September 2017.

Reviews

[Ariana · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I was nothing inside but light and color"

Can you be in love with a book? I know that I can fall in love with a character, I had a few crushes here and there, but if I were to want to get married with a book, I would propose to this one in a heartbeat.

Dear Graffiti Moon, will you please marry me?.. For richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, as long as we both shall live, until my kindle do us part..

*waiting for the answer*

You want to know more about our story?
It was love at first sight, yes I am shallow like that, I fell in love with the Australian cover. It's simple, just a yellow can of spray that could paint you the whole world, that can take all the beautiful words in the world and put them together in the most perfect story I've ever read.
I've seen it a few times on a website or too, it looked a little bit shy, hiding between all those amazing Australian writings, and when it looked at me - in that perfect moment - I knew this would be the one.
I took it on a date on NetGalley's and all I can say it's that it was perfect, I couldn't wait for the next time I saw it.. We had 3 amazing dates and every time I wished I had more time to spend with it, I wished to stay there, holding it in my arms and reading it all my life.

*still waiting for the answer*

Ok.. so this sounds pretty awkward ( I think I made a fool of myself by proposing in front of everyone - I told you it was shy) but the truth is that yes, I am in love with this book, I'm in love with the writing style, and if it wasn't awkward at all and the author would be at least a guy, I would say that I fell in love with Cath Crowley too.
No, dear Cath, you don't have to hide from me, I won't stalk you, I am just a big fan of yours and I want to thank you for all those beautiful words that sometimes almost made me tear of emotion.
Thank you! I am no good at words but I wish I could say this in a matching perfect way, as you did in this book.



I have a dream now, I want to visit Australia, I want to see Melbourne at night, I want to get lost watching beautiful graffiti art on the walls, and I pray to God that Shadow really exists, not for me to fall in love with him (if this book accepts my proposal I will be 2 times happily married by next Sunday and it will be too much already) but to have the honor to see such wonderful paintings as described in the book.

If you could spray feelings on the walls it will be exactly what this book is, if you could hold dreams in your hands it would feel exactly like reading this book, and maybe you don't understand a word of what I am saying, but I think you will after reading it. Yes, it's perfect, believe me. I've been waiting for this book for a while and I was more than happy when I got the chance to finally read it.

The story is simple and beautiful. It's about friendship, and love, and struggle. It's about decisions and moments that are lost between the words. It's about art and beauty, it's full of life and emotion, it will make you happy and sad, and at the end it will win your heart. Forever.

Dear Graffiti Moon, please say yes, please say yes!

"I took a can and my brain clicked off and my hands clicked on and I escaped onto the wall, a painted ghost trapped in a jar. I stood back to look at it and I knew the sad thing wasn't that the ghost was running out of air. The sad thing was that he had enough air in that small space to last him a lifetime. What were you thinking, little ghost? Letting yourself get trapped like that?"

"There was no skin on my voice and she heard the bones in my words like I did"

"Her words are paintings, and I'm painting them on the wall in my head as she talks"

This review can also be found at ReadingAfterMidnight.com
Book Source: ARC from HarperCollins via NetGalley
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Re-read May, 20 2013:

I am happy to say that the cuteness of this book has made my heart melt once more.

Cath Crowley paints with words over my heart, she paints emotions on my teary eyes, she makes even my soul smile but also ache for the beauty of the art described in this book. I love to see the world through her eyes, I love to fall in love with her characters, I love to get lost in her beautiful writing.. I LOVE this book!

I am usually not much of a re-reader, but lately I couldn't make myself start another book and some that I did read have left me quite disappointed, so I decided to re-visit some of the books I loved to pieces over the years.

[L A i N E Y (will be back) · Rating 5 out of 5]

And I am but I'm not and I want to put her on pause and paint a wall where I explain everything.

Earthy, 'crafty', gorgeously-written and awesomely funny.

Eventhough this is a contemporary read, I wanted so bad to shelf this in 'fantasy' not because it's unrealistic but because it was bursting with magic. The kind that made you feel so strongly, you get it and it 'got' you.

» The balance between plot and characters were insanely, insanely well done. From the reviews I've read, I assumed the book would be about the events of this one night. And yes it was but it was also equally about these characters: Lucy, Ed, Leo, Jazz, Daisy and Dylan. About who they were and how they'd come to be that way. About thier friendships and their lives, their fears and their hopes.

I would not hesitate at all to recommend this   to anyone who love characters-driven contemporary YA books. It was truly one of the best ones I've come across.


» I don't know what I expect but Graffiti Moon surprised me with its brilliant kind of humour. You know that kind, like when you're talking to someone and you just know they're not even try to be funny but you're almost fall out of your chair laughing? Yes that kind. It was natural, real yet unexpected. And made me laugh so much!


» This story made me realized I've never seen a powerful graffiti in person before. Ever. I mean I've seen graffiti of course but they all were more vandalism than art. I mean I'm not an artsy person or anything but even to me those swear words and bragging about your school's glory and lots of middle fingers do not count as art. And I've only seen those. Which is a real bummer. I wonder if it can be that powerful? Can it move me half as much as it does Lucy?

» I appreciate those poems by Poet that peppered throughout the book. Such a neat little detail that really worked. Now if I can just get to see Shadow's works too....


» Since I didn't read the sypnosis, this book had the most totally realistic and yet totally unexpected (to me) 'twist' at 14% mark that rendered me comically speechless and rendered the book itself absolutely a lot more interesting.

Ps. I've never read her works before now but I am getting as many books as I can find of Cath Crowley's.

I liked that he had hair that was growing without a plan. A grin that came out of nowhere and left the same way. That he was tall enough so I had to look up at him in my dream sequences.

[Janina · Rating 5 out of 5]

(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

[♛ may · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full review posted

If you’ve ever loved me you’ll read this book
Or I will cry and it’ll be your fault

I just want to bring to attention that when you wanna write a contemporary, TAKE FRICKEN NOTES FROM THIS MAGICAL PIECES OF WORK

Also
I want to bring to attention that I’m aware that this book probably has one of the ugliest covers I’ve ever seen in my life

I’m just
Keeping it real

This book is basically perfection in all its forms. And before you continue on, I’d like you to envision me screaming like this for the duration of the review to keep it authentic

My entire emotions of this book can be summed up nicely by this picture



Onto the points:

- It’s funny as hell
- The characters are flawed and do stupid, teenage things (like throwing an egg at your girlfriend on her birthday is probably not a good idea)
- A boy is infatuated with a girl until she breaks his nose :’)
- IT’S SO ART SPIRITED IT MADE MY LITTLE ARTIST HEART SMILE
- Ed is a little pumpkin someone protect him
- Lucy is such a fierce, won’t-take-any-crap-from-you kinda girl and basically I love her
- The girl friendship is so wonderfully perfect
- MELINA MARCHETTA RECOMMENDED IT
- I stayed up till 1 am and suffered the following day because I couldn’t put this book down

- “I've got this special way of getting the truth out of Dylan."
"How?" i ask.
"I kick him in the balls."
"That's pretty special,”

- Jazz is the greatest best friend ever
- Shes convinced she can tell the future and shes WILD boi
- All night long adventure be still my heart
- Kids that come from troubled homes but are little balls of sunshine
- A GRAFFITI ARTIST AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
- Its all about art and expression and cuteness and perfection
- It has lots of motivational, poetic stuff like:

- “I guess love's kind of like a marshmallow in a microwave on high. After it explodes it's still a marshmallow. but, you know, now it's a complicated marshmallow.”

- I totally did not just spend a half hour rereading quotes from this book
- The book is REAL and it doesn’t do halfhearted ish or portray teenagers weirdly
- It’s so GENUINE AND REAL AND AUTHENTIC I JUST WANT TO SCREAM
- I love this book so much wowowowowowoowowowowowo
- If you don’t read it then ill have to resort to dire messures
- Aka
-


5 stars!!



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YOU KNOW WHAT'S A FRICKEN JOKE???? THAT Melina Marchetta, MY QUEEN RECOMMENDED THIS BOOK AND I, BEING THE FAKE I AM, DIDN'T GET MY HANDS ON IT IMMEDIATELY



this is me trying to atone for my past

[Vinaya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love graffiti. I've been a huge fan of Banksy from the day I first saw a mural on Brick Lane, and I find every one of his pieces stimulating, entertaining and empathetic. (Although the one above is my FAVOURITE!!) There's not too many artists who can manage that. And the point of street art, the reason for its existence, is to connect. Screw the million-dollar canvases in the galleries, street art is a montage of images designed to appeal to every man. So pretty.

So anyway, Graffiti Moon. It's a pretty standard contemporary romance, about a girl and a boy and one special night where they discover each other. Graffiti Moon's appeal lies not in its innovation, but in its ability to evoke the same emotions graffiti does- a dash of nostalgia, a splash of colour, the thrill of the illicit and a stimulation of the senses. Cath Crowley's words are vivid, painting a pretty picture of all those pictures her characters are seeing. I love the idea of Shadow and Poet, of two lost boys painting out their insecurities and their secret selves, putting it out there on a wall- showing themselves without ever really showing themselves.

The book was cute, and funny and satisfying. It was about losing illusions, exploring reality and the tender yet painful journey towards growing up. It was about friendship, and pink vans, and doing the wrong thing, but still finding redemption in the end.

I loved the dynamics between all the characters. Daisy and Dylan were outright adorable, Leo and Jazz provided just the right amount of conflict, and Lucy and Ed were the heart. I also loved the interaction between the three girls, and the boys. The strength of the bond between these very likeable set of friends came across warm and clear.

The writing, the relationships, the chemistry, the conflict- these are the things that Australian YA authors seem to excel at, and Cath Crowley upholds those standards. Whether it's the occassionally-mentioned but very real parents in the story, or the scary-funny bad guy or the slowly-developing romance between two people who had always known each other without ever really seeing the other person, this book takes you on a picturesque, evocative, funny journey into the lives of a bunch of very likeable teenagers. If only more YA was written with the same heart and skill!

[Maja (The Nocturnal Library) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars.

< i>Every time he looked at me I felt like I’d touched my tongue to the tip of a battery. In art class I’d watch him lean back and listen and I was nothing but zing and tingle. After a while the tingle turned to electricity, and when he asked me out my whole body amped to a level where technically I should have been dead. I had nothing in common with a sheddy like him, but a girl doesn’t think straight when she’s that close to electrocution.

Wow. My GoodReads friends are all people with excellent taste. I thought so before, but I’m sure of it now. A few of you took the time to notice what I like and recommend this book to me. Thank you! And a special thanks to Lisa O. and her lovely review for making me read this when I did. Anyway, where was I?

The strength of Crowley's novel isn’t so much in the story itself as it is in the poetic writing that left a bittersweet taste in my mouth. Don’t get me wrong: her writing isn’t overly descriptive. She doesn’t go on and on about places, events or works of art. Somehow she says more in one sentence than most people are able to say in twenty. She also has an excellent sense of humor and I found myself crying with laughter over some of her passages.

I know they still love each other, but I guess love is kind of like a marshmallow in a microwave on high. After it explodes, it’s still a marshmallow. But, you know, now it’s a complicated marshmallow.

Lucy doesn’t date regular guys. She went out on one date in her life and ended up breaking the guy’s nose. The fact that her parents spent two straight months screaming at each other isn’t helping her at all. Instead, she dreams about meeting a graffiti artist called Shadow, convinced that he is the guy who could never disappoint her.

Ed left school when it became obvious that he won’t be able to hide his dyslexia much longer. It also happened to be right around the time when Lucy broke his nose on their first date. Words don’t mean anything to him, but he draws the most amazing graffiti all over town. He is Shadow and his best friend Leo is Poet. And he wishes Shadow was as amazing as Lucy seems to believe he is.

Jazz and Leo are both weird in their own way but they might be compatible. He only needs to find the courage to tell her that he’s actually Poet, the guy whose works she’s been admiring all over town. It may sound easy, but once you get tangled in your own lies, it’s very hard to tell the truth.

All of them end up together in a pink van where the truth must come out - whether they like it or not.

There’s something in this book for everyone: amazing writing, poetry, flawless characters, a funny story, love, glass, art, pink van and criminals. Highly recommended.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

“It’s the time wasting that gets you somewhere.”

Initial Final Page Thoughts.
I have five fingers pressed on my desk in reaction to this book right now. I can’t get much more love for this book.

High Points.
Shadow. Lucy. Best friends. Poetry. Melbourne. A night that lasts forever. Mistaken identities. Missed connections. Graffiti. Eggs. Secrets. Arse-grabbers. Lyrical. Adventure. Insecurities. Mesmerizing. Art. Train carriages. Undercover good guys. Letting go of the breaks. Visibility. Twirls in the place. Cubicles of truth. In for the thrill. No guts, no glory. Moving to the extra beats. Zing.

Low Points.
I wishwishwish this book had pictures of Shadow and Poet’s work. Ms Crowley described it so perfectly (I could almost smell the paint drying) but I wanted to see and experience what Lucy did. Even my over active imagination couldn’t do those pictures justice.
Also, I always thought that New York was the city for late night adventures and mischief. Now I’m going to have to recalibrate my life plan.
Sigh.
Here I come, Melbourne.
Hope you’re ready.


Heroine.
Oh Lucy. I didn’t like you at first. There was something missing that stopped me falling head over heels in love with you.
It could be that I was completely jealous that you were living my dream in the most perfect, swoony, beautiful, gorgeous [insert gushing adjective here] way and I wanted to push you off a mountain so I could step into your place because I have long brown hair and I once went to a glass museum and I watch a man blow glass so I could blag it and I lovelovelove graffiti so I could blag that too and no one would know the difference and me and Ed would live happily ever after on love, art and delicious, delicious sausage rolls.
But… you know, it probably wasn’t that.
No. Not at all.
Even though I connected with t’other one lot more than Lucy, I still think she was a spectacular character. She is intelligent, she is funny, she is a tad oblivious, she is a great friend, she’s artistic, she has goals, she’s feisty and, most importantly, she has a good head on her shoulders and gets mad in the right places.
Which normally wouldn’t matter… but we’re talking about YA heroines here who get mad over the stupid things but don’t seem to get angry/stabby when they really should, like when a boy with mysterious powers and weird, unnatural coloured eyes worms his way into their life/business/undercrackers.
So it matters.
To me.

Hero.
Oh I fell for Ed. Hook, line and sinker.
I won’t really go into how much I love you because kiddlywinks may read this review and I couldn’t trust myself to keep it PG it would be a very long review.
I loved your passion, your humour, your sadness, your determination, your soul, your eloquence, your vision, your relentless quest to find the perfect shade of blue and your insecurities.
I would never mow your heart grass.
Um, OK.
That sounded more romantic and less weird in my head.
I would stick my knife in your toaster and let you electrocute me.
Not better.
You know what I mean, Ed.

Best Friends.
YES. I love it when an author realises the importance of a brilliant supporting cast. So often books have these insipid cookie cutter secondary characters that are just there.I loved how Jazz, Poet, Daisy and Dylan had their own fears, dreams, insecurities and they all blended together in a kaleidoscope of WONDER and hilarity.
I want to ride in a pink VW with them.
*pouts*

Theme Tune.

Walking on a Dream by Empire of the Sun

Thought I'd never see
The love you found in me
Now it's changing all the time
Living in a rhythm where the minutes working overtime.

These guys get a lot of airplay over here on my marginally rainier shores which is fantastic because they are amazing. This song is perfect for this book and, looking at the video, I can tell these are the kind of gentlemen that I’d want to run around an Australian city with as the night is exploding with colours and tomfoolery. We’d get up to some potentially lethal crazy adventures that would probably end up with me being in jail and/or in a different country.
But it’s fine. I just wouldn’t take my passport out with me.
Sorted, mate.

Strictly Savage Garden Story Song.

I Want You by Savage Garden.

This song reminds me of my best friend because we used to listen to Savage Garden on YouTube while we drank cheap wine from Aldi before heading out for a night of dancing and debauchery. That's just how we roll.
One time, we actually managed to sing the entire song, straight-faced and completely rat-arsed. That’s right. Even the fast bit.

Ooo, I want you
I don't know if I need you
But, ooo, I'd die to find out
So can we find out?

Seriously Ed…. Can we?

Boy/Girl Angst.
Notice I’m leaving this bit out because I don’t want to give anything away, because this part of the book kept me on my tippytoes and made me scream ‘WHAAAAAT’ and ‘EEEEEEEH’ out loud on many occasions.
I loved it and there wasn’t an eye-roll in sight.

Sadness Scale.
There was a bit of sadness within the story, some on Ed’s part, some on Lucy’s and some on Leo’s, but mostly it was on my part at the fact that I could never in a million years create something as beautiful and hopeful as Ms Crowley has with this book.
This book made my insides feel twirly and my soul swirl like the colourful bit in a glass marble.

Recommended For.
Everyone. People who are one of the good guys, but just working undercover. People who are looking for the collision. People who compare all their crushes against Atticus Finch. People who like the zing. People who wouldn’t mind going to a party where the boys look like they’ve just walked off the set of Prison Break. People who, all things considered, wouldn’t mind getting their arse grabbed on the first date. People who don’t who don’t mind losing their inner Jane Austen once in a while. People who like to make grabs at stars. People who appreciate the importance of eyebrow action. Artists. Dreamers. Drop-outs. Poets. Lovers.

[Drcong O ' · Rating 2 out of 5]

Here is the cause of my death: B O R E D O M from this book.

Review to come, I just ugh, I can't even look at this book without wanting to fall asleep.

---
i was bullied into reading this.

[Limonessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars.

Last week, as I was strolling with my two little ones around town for our morning promenade, I happened to pass in front of our neighborhood's church. In its front yard there was quite a congregation of young kids, their instruments and a lot of out of tune music, as they were preparing to rehearse for some parochial event. Of course my daughter, who's 4 and knows the whole Aladdin soundtrack by heart, begged me to stop and listen to whatever they were going to play.
When I said "young kids" I forgot to mention these kids where more on the 12 to 14 y.o. range than on the 16 to 18, so imagine my amazement (and my daughter's dismay) when the notes they started to strum on their instruments didn't belong to either Walt Disney, Justin Bieber or Tokio Hotel but to "Smoke on the Water"... these kids were practically born the day before yesterday, they could easily be MY kids and they were playing Deep Purple, for god's sake.
So I got to thinking that I generally tend to underestimate teenagers and think their brains work only on Wii waves, text-messaging and angst. But there are also some very talented and artistic kids out there whose sole interest in life is not limited to a remote control.
The Graffiti Moon crew, despite being a bit older, is composed by such kids. Slightly eccentric, artistic, urban teens whom author Cath Crowley still manages to depict in a very believable way, complete with teen dorkiness and false romantic ideals.

There's Lucy, the glassblower, who when asked by her best friend Jazz to compile a list of guys she would "do it with", writes down only fictional characters. Enamored with a mysterious graffiter's work called Shadow, she is determined to find him, convinced they can't be but twin souls.

Ed. Part Adam Wilde from If I Stay, part Tom MacKee from The Piper's Son, Ed is a high school dropout, a graffiter and thinks he's a total loser. After having lost his job at a paint shop, he embarks in an illicit adventure with his friend Leo which involves a pink getaway van, some bad men and some "travel plans" with Lucy.

Daisy and Dylan, trait d'union between Lucy, Jazz, Ed and Leo, are going through a relationship crisis and are, apparently, the only ones who can lead Lucy and Jazz to Shadow and his friend Poet.

I loved this book. The story, told in alternating POVs by Lucy and Ed with some of Poet's poems thrown in for effect, is brilliant. It recounts the happenings of one night (a bit à la Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist) and it is just great. I loved how the two POVs overlaps so the reader can be inside both heads for the same scene, I loved how, throughout the book, roles get reversed and misunderstood, like in a comedy of errors. I loved the dialogues, the characters' sense of humor, the banter: this book is just downright hilarious.

Dylan's words:

"If my like for you was footy crowd, you'd be deaf cos of the roar. And if my like for you were a boxer, there'd be dead guy lying on the floor. And if my like for you were sugar, you'd lose your teeth before you were twenty. And if my like for you was money, let's just say you'd be spending plenty."

And finally, I loved the author's writing style. Another talented author which manages to give us a realistic, cute, hilarious teenage story, coupled with believable and well developed characters with great personalities, all encased in pretty words, a bit flowery but not too purply.

I'm hacking half a star off just because I thought the ending was a bit too Gone with the Wind style. But this is, definitely, definitely, a book that needs your attention.

Another great Australian author, another great YA story.

[Nomes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Graffiti Moon takes place over one night (although there are some flashbacks) and is told from two POV's: Lucy and Ed.

This book is genius.

It's exactly why I love reading YA.

Somehow this book perfectly captures how I felt as a teen - that big dreaming scheming place in my head, a place where night time is magical and when boys can make you tingle just by looking at them across the room.

It's funny and heart felt and the whole scenario is one of the best set-ups I've read. And I wish I could tell you the hook but I don't want to give away spoilers... so, you'll have to see for yourself.

Graffiti Moon is completely addictive with the tension building so beautifully that I just had to keep reading, wondering how it was all going to play out.

It's sprinkled with stunning prose and scenes described to masterfully that I felt I was right there. really, I have rarely read such beautiful, compelling prose - poetic and lyrical and funny and smart - words that beg to be re-read and swilled around in your mouth like a good wine.

The dialogue was brilliant. BRILLIANT. It kills me, dialogue like that. Sigh.

The characters are so completely awesome that they stand up and walk around, leaping off the page. They are also completely teenagery in the very best of ways.

The boys in this novel are charming and off-beat, wildly funny and completely crush-worthy and so nuanced that they are unique - not carbon copied characters that you'd find between the pages of another book.

The girls are captivating, sometimes sly and always fun. They are genuine and their moments of angst have such flair that you can't help but completely love them.

It's not just me who is raving about this. Check out more reviews @ goodreads

Anyway, Graffiti Moon spoke to me and is one of my favourite reads this year and for a girl who loves contemp YA with a splash of romance - well the love story in this one is completely awesome.

5 Stars, hey? Absolutely :)

[Aj the Ravenous Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully written, really cute plot in a span of 24 hours, smart characters and affecting story. For me, it was love at first read with Ms. Cath Crowley and although I loved Words in Deep Blue more, I still very much enjoyed Graffiti Moon. Both books thrive in the arts. The former on books and literature while the latter on fine arts- glass art, paintings and graffiti combined with poetry.

Of course the main theme of the story is basically about love or more particularly about finding one. I really enjoyed the humor and the cute romance, three different ones at that but I loved that of the two main characters, Lucy and Ed’s, the most. Of course we read the story in their POVs and it’s spot on. And well it’s an Aussie YA contemporary so I guess I was bound to like it. A definitely recommended YA contemporary romance.

[Kristalia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Final rating: 5/5 stars

“I guess love's kind of like a marshmallow in a microwave on high. After it explodes it's still a marshmallow. but, you know, now it's a complicated marshmallow.”

This was such such such sweet romance!! I loved everything about it,especially the writing. Writing is done in two styles, the normal style and poetry style. Every poetry part is from Leo's point of view and i loved it very very much. The couples were sweet and loveable, the pacing was fast, there were many moments that made me chuckle and best of all - i love it to bits.

“I like that about art, that what you see is sometimes more about who you are than what’s on the wall. I look at this painting and think about how everyone has some secret inside, something sleeping like that yellow bird.”

And after reading this book, i fell in love with Australia...You know the feeling when you want to visit places where your favorite actors/singers/fictional characters live? Well this is how i feel about Australia now.

The story is quite simple though - A girl wants to find a mysterious guy who paints graffiti across the town. She is in love with his art, and she thinks that the person doing them must feel that way... But what she doesn't know is that the one she searches for is with her all of the time.... P.s. i loved all bike scenes ♥

“Most times I look at Shadow and Poet's work, I see something different from what the words are telling me. I like that about art, that what you see is sometimes more about who you are than what's on the wall. I look at this painting and think about how everyone has some secret inside, something sleeping like that yellow bird.”

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CHARACTERS :
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“Open skies painted above painted doorways and painted birds skimming across bricks trying to fly away. Little bird, what are you thinking? You come from a can.”

I loved them all, i wanted to hug them all tell that everything will be alright! i am in love with them all - I loved their relationships, couples, but especially loved Ed and Leo. They were so much fun :D Even the girls,i liked them all.

But i still think, the best part of everything is that Lucy broke Ed's nose for touching her butt. LOL!!!

“I can't believe you're still mad at me," Ed says.
"You grabbed my arse."
"You broke my nose."
"You broke his nose?" Jazz asks. "You grabbed her arse?"
"It was two years ago-"
"Two years, four months, and eight days," I tell him.
"-and I was fifteen, and I slipped and she broke my nose."
"Wait a minute. How do you slip onto someone's arse?"
Jazz asks.
"I meant slipped up. I slipped up and she broke my nose."
"You're lucky that's all I broke," I say.
"You're lucky I didn't call the police."
Leo, Dylan, and Daisy slid into the booth. "Did you guys know that Lucy broke Ed's nose? Jazz asks.
Ed closes his eyes silently and bangs his head on the wall.”

Ed is cool, seriously talented and really smart guy, but he doesn't know it. He painted graffiti to express his feelings.

“I spray the sky fast. Eyes ahead and behind. Looking for cops. Looking for anyone I don't want to be here. Paint sails and the things that kick in my head scream from can to brick. See this, see this. See me emptied onto a wall.”

The same can be said for Leo (aka the Poet), who writes poetry to express what he thinks and what he wants. He is also brave, sometimes even foolish, but i loved him to bits.

“Remember
Love
Lays its fingers on your heart
And holds it
Under water
Remember that
When the next girl smiles”

And lastly Lucy is so focused on searching what she wants that she doesn't see it - she doesn't see Ed who is the person she is looking for...

“Let me meet Poet, too, but mainly Shadow. The guy who paints in the dark. Paints birds trapped on brick walls and people lost in ghost forests. Paints guys with grass growing from their hearts and girls with buzzing lawn mowers. A guy who paints things like that is a guy I could fall for. Really fall for”

Note: The good thing is, it wasn't love triangle.

“I escaped onto the wall, a painted ghost trapped in a jar. I stood back to look at it and I knew the sad thing wasn't that the ghost was running out of air. the sad thing was that he had enough air in that small space to last him a lifetime. What were you thinking, little ghost? Letting yourself get trapped like that?”

____________________________________________

OVERALL :
____________________________________________

I just loved it. The writing.
The setting. The struggles.
The plot. Craziness.
Recklessness. Romance.
Art. Poetry.
Love. The end.


This review can be found on my blog: infinity-of-time.blogspot.com also known as...

[Arlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love.love.loved it!!

What a great story! I enjoyed it from cover to cover with not a moment of downtime.

This is exactly what I needed to get me out of my book slump… an Aussie wonder that’s filled with moments of laughter and nothing but love for the characters of Graffiti Moon. I was an instant fan of Cath Crowley when I came across her beautiful story A Little Wanting Song, but now with Graffiti Moon I know for a definite fact that I can’t pass up anything by this great Australian writer.

Lucy and Ed made a great pair as they shared their story using alternate POVs. I laughed and I sighed as Crowley packed a full adventure these two accomplished in one night.

The writing was vivid as I could clearly picture the art Shadow tagged around the town and the glass blowing projects Lucy created. I’ve never been a fan of graffiti and glass blowing is interesting, but this story made it come to life and bring on a whole new meaning for me. Impressed!

Definitely a book I highly recommend as it’s worth the time and emotional investment. Awesome Aussie book!

[Isamlq · Rating 5 out of 5]

I swear I'm trying not to gush but you don't know how happy I am to have read this. It's a little after dawn... (and having started this at one in the morning,) that's maybe four or five hours of me sitting here unable to pull my eyes from this one. I'd been waiting for this for so long and now that I've read sped through it, I'm pumped and happy. Graffiti Moon is why I read YA. Once in a while I come across a story that stands out against others. Crappy past reads aren't so lackluster, don't seem all that crappy because there are books like these that simply leave me feeling happy and satisfied.

I swear I'm trying not to gush but I loved every moment of this, even when someone had screwed up, was screwing up and was just about to screw up. (side note: my favorite moments were the bike scenes... all the bike moments!) Everyone who's ever added this book to their favorites pile is absolutely right to do so and this is another addition to my growing fave list. I barely finished the third chapter and already I could tell what was going to happen, and yet... I loved it and enjoyed them. GM totally makes my week! The sentiment's probably been said time and again, but this makes me want to move to Australia!

To the book: Shadow paints and speaks through his work. And while its his images that first draw our girl in, its his thoughts and hers and Leo's that pulled me in. Even the shortest and simplest of exchanges were loaded. But more likely it's the characters that I loved. All of them were perfect in how flawed they were:

Again, I swear I'm trying not to gush, but good golly, I enjoyed these people! Ed is talented and smart but doesn't know it, and he's scared. Leo is brave but sometimes foolishly so. Lucy is focused, sometimes too focused that she misses out on what's right in front of her. But instead of being annoyed by these flaws, I got drawn in. While there were moments of sweet and of funny it's that they read possible and real that I couldn't get out of my head. They're what I look for in YA. Rather than being Kens and Barbies, they're people figuring out what their next move would be. They were all flawed but not too imperfect because they did have a sweetness to them... even stupid Dylan and his eggs!

As I felt after reading A Little Wanting Song, I find Cath Crolwey has a way with words that she writes smart and clever stories with characters who ring truthful and with heart.

****
Lines I liked (for one reason or another...)

"Most times I look at Shadow and Poet's work, I see something different from what the words are telling me. I like that about art, that what you see is sometimes more about who you are than what's on the wall. I look at this painting and think about how everyone has some secret inside, something sleeping like that yellow bird."

“I get this heavy feeling when I daydream about him. I’m not awake and I’m not asleep, I’m in a soft blue corridor that runs between the two,"

"I liked that he had hair growing wihout a plan. A smile that came out of nowhere and left the same way"

"It's like the sun during an eclipse. I know it'll blind me but I have to look."

“You were right. Real is better. The truth is better. It makes you feel kind of stupid but it’s better.”

4.5/5

BIG THANKS NETGALLEY!!!

[Noelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just loved this book. Loooooved it. I've already re-read it several times and as I mentioned in another review, it's pretty much spray painted on my heart. (See what I did there???? BUT IT'S TRUE!) Obviously, this deserved a more in-depth review.

I loved the protagonists. Lucy is naive but no pushover. I cracked up when it was revealed that her list of people she’d like to “do it” with was entirely comprised of fictional characters. Remember that age of having a crush on someone that you hardly knew, the basis of who you had made up almost entirely in your head? Never mind that you never actually talked to this guy. The very impossibility of anything happening with him was the most comforting part! It was more fun to imagine love in abstract rather than experience the messy, frightening reality of getting to actually know and care for a real, flawed person. And I mean, who wants to deal with the reality of a high school boy? They are just about custom-made as you can get to disillusion the crap out of any romantic ideals.

And that brings us to Ed, a boy betrayed by words and saved by art. He doesn't seem to have a lot going on at first glance but given the chance, revealed delightfully unexpected depths. For all of Lucy’s romanticizing and idealizing, I thought Ed was pretty romantic at heart. I think there’s something inherently romantic about creating art and not just in the creation of something heartfelt, or the visual representation of emotions. It doesn’t matter the subject matter. Art can be as fanciful, impractical and unrealistic as you (the artist or viewer) want. It can mean whatever you want. It has endless possibility. But more than anything, art is expressing a true self. And what’s more romantic than that?

I thought Graffiti Moon perfectly captured the moment where the breathless exhilaration of youth and possibility collides with "real world" gravity establishing its weight. I loved the undercurrent of yearning and the theme of self-expression. I loved how it was bittersweet, naive, hopeful and absolutely hysterical. The banter and dialogue were particularly enchanting.

"For a while, for as long as you're looking at it, that painting is the world and you get to be in it." To me, Graffiti Moon was that work of art, and what a pleasure it was to spend time in it's world.

Some odds and ends:

• After reading this, I started a Graffiti Moon-inspired painting, that's how much I loved it. I'm still messing with it here and there but in honor of the US release date, here it is. I called it I Want to Collide (but of course! :D):



• Make sure to check out this awesome link of all the art mentions in Graffiti Moon at Persnickety Snark

• An example of Cath Crowley's pure amazingness:

"She sounds smart." I try to make that comment seem casual but weirdly, anything I say about Beth comes out of my mouth dressed in a full-length ball gown.

This is a review of the Australian edition of this book.

[Kaya · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sweet, light novel, a little bit shallow and naive. Or maybe it's about time for me to accept the fact that I'm too selective when it comes to YA books. I didn't like our protagonists. Lucy was obnoxious and Ed was passive. Leo's poems were also a downfall. I suppose simple story about young love isn't enough for me anymore.

The book is about one night of adventure, risky bicycle rides and different types of confrontation and confessions. It's about art, poetry, and misunderstandings. Taking place in one night in Melbourne, the story is told in different perspectives of Lucy, Ed and Leo's dull poems. It starts out with Lucy pedalling on her bike to see Shadow, a Graffiti artist whose works she's obsessed with. Lucy thinks Shadow is her prince on a white horse and when she gets there she misses him by five minutes.

Later on, she meets her friends Jazz and Daisy and they spend the night out to celebrate the end of high school. Jazz assumes she's a psychic and it's so repetitive I wanted to smack her down multiple times. The girls hang out with Ed, Leo and Dylan at the same place. Daisy and Dylan have been dating for two years and they go through a rough patch. Jazz and Leo start flirting, which leaves Lucy with Ed. They went out once few years ago and she literally broke his nose and left him bleeding because he touched her ass. Ed tells Lucy he knows where to find Shadow and Poet and then the whole gang goes to find them.

As a book, this is only ok, but I think it would've made a great movie. What Graffiti Moon lacks the most is witty dialogue and penetrating background. It didn't raise any emotions, being so boring at times. It really is only for high school readers. The story gives nothing new to the genre and is very predictable. About halfway through the story I predicted the ending and I wasn't wrong. Leo's poems served no purpose, they were just there to make him likeable which didn't succeed obviously. Though, all characters are really passionate about art.

I also didn't like frequent switching of viewpoints because both Ed and Lucy sounded alike. I often have forgotten who was who because their voices sounded the same. There was a lot of repetition of dialogues when switching points of view and that was extremely pointless. Basically, this book is about spending the night out with your friends and your friend's boyfriend's friends whom you barely know and to make them go around the city in the hopes of finding two guys (Shadow and Poet) you only know because of their graffiti. If one of my friends suggested something like that, I'd instantly go home.

Lucy is a classical judgemental, prudish and two-dimensional YA heroine. She has nothing to offer to the readers because she acts like a five year old, but expects others to treat her like she's an adult. Ugh, I seriously don't understand what Ed likes about her. Someone needed to put some sense into her.

Ed was a bit more compelling, but still failed to be an interesting narrator. All he did was brood about how his life sucks. Fine, if you're not happy with your life, fucking do something about it and stop complaining. Yes, I know he's 18, but if he wants to be independent, he better starts acting like it.

Our main characters meet in the first few chapters, but they hate each other. Lucy doesn’t know Ed is actually Shadow and dismisses him as a jerk. Ed isn't aware of Lucy's obsession with Shadow and is still upset over what happened on their date years ago. Most of the time, their bond was kind of flat, but I still ended up rooting for them.

[~Tina~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aussie Book challenge 2011 #9

Okay! I definitely hate myself since I really had no intention of reading this book (insert gasp here). I don't favor contemporary much, but being that a lot of my friends have read and raved about this and it being an Aussie book (nuff said) I decided to just give it a shot, and boy was I thrilled and surprised how much I truly loved this.

I absolutely fell in love with every single one of these characters!
Ed and Lucy, Leo and Jazz and even Dylan and Daisy. Each are extremely well written, complex and a total blast to read. But my favorite characters would have to go out to Ed and Leo. I love there tight 'you go I go' friendship and how they have each others backs and how they each have unique gifts that they share in common ways.
How freaken cute are Ed and Lucy? I loved how he ended up being the guy Lucy went out with a couple years back. I loved that they got their second chance, even if they didn't know it at the time. I adore how Ed feels so much and love the way he expresses it. Lucy is just to adorable for words. She's sweet and feisty and feels just as much as Ed, but doesn't hold back. Also, you got to love a protag that can break a boys nose. You just do.
Ed and Lucy's night searching for Shadow was like reading in 3D. I could vividly picture ever wall and every feeling that went into that piece. I simply adore how each one is explained by a memory or conversation. It really gave me a wonderful connection with who Ed really was and how Lucy saw each impression. Same goes for Leo's words and I love the reason behind why he needed the money and the fact that he's a bit scared of his Gran. Respect;)

As for the writing? It really is it's own brilliant piece of art. I've read Cath Crowley A Little Wanting Song and I had to admit I was shocked that this was the same author. I liked that book just fine, but this book is a masterpiece. From the moment I read the very first line, I was totally invested in these characters. I loved loved the humor, the flirtatious banter and easy fit wit. I love that there are intense moments but it didn't overwhelm me, just made me want to read this as fast as I could and savor it at the same time.

All in all, I absolutely adored this book, in fact, it's going down as one of the best reads in 2011 and an instant favorite. I can't wait till this book hits the shelves!
I am not an artist in any shape or form. I can't draw, I can't play music, sing or dance and I am no writer. But...I am a huge art lover. Graffiti Moon is art my friends, in the best, surprising way possible!

Smart, infectious and completely absorbing. Everyone needs to read this Outstanding gem!

(Arc provided by Netgalley and Random House Children's Books)

[Nic · Rating 5 out of 5]

"For a while, for as long as you're looking at it, that painting is the world and you get to be in it."

I decided to give Graffiti Moon a try after reading my Goodreads friend Nomes' review. And I am so glad I did because it was brilliant!

The story is written in both Lucy’s and Ed’s point of view. You have got to love dual narration where you get into both character's minds. There is also some poetry from Poet (Shadow‘s friend) thrown in as well just to mix it up a bit more. And despite all these elements it never gets confusing or feels like the author is repeating herself. The writing has lyrical feel to it and Crowley definitely has a way with words. The way she described the art in the story I felt like I was standing there looking at it and I wish I was. So beautifully descriptive. The plot was set over the course of one night and it was fast paced and had plenty of surprises. I think the cover describes the plot the so well "an artist, a dreamer, a long, mean night".

Crowley writes vibrant and believable characters. Lucy, I liked instantly. She was smart but also a dreamer and wasn’t afraid to break a guy nose if he deserves it. Ed is definitely a crush worthy character although I wasn’t sure at first. But underneath that troublemaker image is a sweet guy with a beautiful artistic soul that doesn’t realise his own self worth. Lucy and Ed had plenty of witty banter and loads of chemistry. There also was lots of funny moments provided by a great mix of secondary characters.

Overall a clever, funny and heartfelt story. The only problem is I did not want this story to end!

[♥Rachel♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This time I tried the audio version and it was wonderful! Three separate Australian narrators, one for each POV: Lucy, Ed, and Poet. Loved it!

[Giselle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know nothing about graffiti, I know even less about art - why the heck did I read this book? Well, for the same reason you should! It's an incredibly sweet, delightfully romantic story that can not be on your unread shelf. Why?
    -True to life, complex romance
    -Artistic imagery that will enthrall any reader- art fanatic or not
    -Characters that make you fall in love
    -A story that is simply too gorgeous to be left unexplored

If this isn't enough to convince you, maybe you should go back to playing with Legos.

I must admit, I did not get into the story right away. I don't know if it was the unique lyrical writing, or the artsy details, but I kept getting distracted. The writing, although beautiful, is much more elaborate than what I was expecting from a young-adult novel so it threw me off at first. However, once I got into it, I couldn't stop staring at these beautiful sentences that simply blew me away. Or these outstanding characters that do nothing less than take your heart, and pull you inside the pages.

Lucy is desperate to find this graffiti artist who calls himself Shadow. Ed is a lost soul who paints to find himself. We're taken into this story with a dual perspective that lets us see into each of these characters hearts; these characters who are notably profound, yet believable. I loved how they aren't stylized to fit the unconvincing image of prim and proper teenagers we often get in YA novels. These are real, raw personalities who express themselves with art, while trying to find their place in this big, unforgiving world. Cath does not soften the edges to make a cute, romantic story, she gives us a story so pure, so deep, that it bleeds out the truest of love stories.

There is a lot more in here than a love story, however. We see these kids struggle through real life problems - financial dilemmas, marital issues and death are all a part of this well rounded tale. It's undoubtedly a one of a kind novel that is bound to impress a wide range of readers, from young to adult. I'm glad that, despite my lack of artistic knowledge, I decided to give this one a try- and you should too!

--
For more of my reviews, visit my blog at Xpresso Reads

[Lamia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review can also be found at The Book Eater

ATTN READING MANIACS AND BOOK LOVERS: To all of you who have regular reading slumps, READ THIS. I can guarantee this book will get you out of it.

So, I finished this book 4 days ago and I'm still trying to gather my thoughts into coherent sentences.
The writing was so beautiful that I kept stopping to stare at the words. I wanted to crawl across the page and come up to the words and snuggle them. And also hug the characters.
This is the kind of book that puts a huge smile on your face. The kind of book that makes your day better. Hell, it makes your day, period.
The storyline was realistic and lovely, the characters had depth and personalities, the banter was perfect and I just wish I could take a swim in this novel and never come out. And hug the characters. Always hug the characters.

I do hope the author will make some kind of companion novel to Graffiti Moon. She has more than enough talent to pull it off, and honestly, I'm not ready to say goodbye to these folks quite yet. I'd even want to read the parents' story (they're actually multi-dimensional! And interesting!) I don't care. JUST WRITE MORE.

I would recommend this book to anyone, anybody who loves good writing and lovable characters. It's right up there with Saving Francesca and the likes. And if you don't trust me, trust the judging panel of this year's Australian Prime Minister's Literary Awards. Graffiti Moon won the first prize in the "Young adult fiction" category. Yup. Go read now.

[Rezza Dwi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Edit: setelah baca yang kedua kalinya 😆

Aku masih sukaaa banget buku ini, terlebih narasi dan dialognya yang intens. Sangat ngena ke aku.

Lucu juga. Sarkasmenya suka banget.

Daaan aku beneran pengen baca buku Cath Crowley yang lain huhuhu

_______
Menamatkan buku ini dalam sekali duduk (dan tiduran) malem-malem dan baru ngeh kalau udah pagi. Waduh, aku lupa tidur! Sukaaaa banget. Walaupun pertama bacanya karena disuruh *uhuk* Alis, tapi ternyata aku emang enjoy banget melahap ceritanya.

Diksinya bagusss. Wiriting style-nya bagus. Karakternya suka!! Alurnya, plotnya, dialog-dialognya, puisinya, ngomong kasarnya, adegan-adegannya. Lucu, indah, intens. Palingan aku agak gelap tiap mereka banyak membahas seni yang aku gak tau. Tapi, karena itulah aku jadi tau.

Background si tokohnya menarik. Tentang gimana keluarganya, gaya hidupnya, cara dia berpikir, perjalanan dia selama ini. Well, itu membuatku merenung dan menaikkan sisi empatiku. Ada sesuatu di dalam buku ini yang membuatku hangat.

Buku dengan setting waktu hanya satu malam dan setting tempat di dalam kota yang penuh dengan tembok-tembok bercat graffiti indah. Selalu suka tiap Ed atau Lucy berimajinasi dalam melihat/membuat karya seninya.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Art is a human activity consisting in this, that one man consciously, by means of certain external signs, hands on to others feelings he has lived through, and that other people are infected by these feelings and also experience them.
—The other Leo, Leo Tolstoy

You know, if my high school teacher had just handed me Graffiti Moon to explain aesthetics, Tolstoy and Kant would've made so much more sense. And been so much more enjoyable.

What can I say about Cath Crowley and this book that Tolstoy hasn't? How about I show you how people have been infected by her feelings and experienced them.

Noelle did a painting inspired by Graffiti Moon after reading it.

Click on the picture to see a larger version in her review. I'm still harasking (not a typo) her to make prints.

A Sharon Hayes made this video:
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Video featured in Ari's fantastic review

Graffiti Moon is art. It takes you along as it follows Lucy and Ed on the last night of high school, but it's also about their relationship with Ed's secret alter ego, Shadow, the guy who paints in the dark. Lucy doesn't know who he is, but she knows enough about him from the pieces of himself he leaves around the city via his paintings. Ed is... lost. Except when he's Shadow. As Ed, he's just lost his job, his boss/mentor/confidant, his girlfriend, and his direction. One thing Lucy and Ed have in common, aside from Shadow, is their art. Lucy is learning to be a glass blower from her own boss/mentor/confidant, and she's as good in her art as Shadow is in his. Through their friends, Lucy and Ed end up thrown together despite their mutual reluctance. The reason for that reluctance is classic Crowley. (See Faltrain, Gracie.)

I knew I loved Lucy from the moment she tells off a guy with, "You don't do that on a first date. Atticus Finch would never have done that." My girl! And she has parents who say things like,

Mum laughs. “We raised a very conservative daughter. Too much Pride and Prejudice.”

“That could change,” Dad says. “There’s still time to get her onto Margaret Atwood.”

How is it that I simultaneously want to be the daughter and the parent in this situation?

And Ed. Tom Mackee, Jonah Griggs, and Adam Wilde would like to welcome you into the book crush hall of fame.

Leo/Poet is right there too. Lucy's description of Leo in the Australian edition nearly, very nearly, made me forget about Ed for a second.

I once saw him from a distance and thought a tree was strolling towards me. An oak tree with a shaved head, soft eyes, and a tattoo.

Perhaps that's why they chose to leave that little snippet out of the US edition, which brings me to my next topic.

Cultural Differences Between Australians and Americans as Evidenced in YA Literature Class to be taught by Professor Crowley at the University of In Our Dreams at a date TBD

Catie does a brilliant job of breaking down the Aussie vs US editions in her post at The Readventurer. To piggyback on her discussion, the main thing I noticed based on what was cut vs what was added in the US version is that Australians are rock 'n roll and Americans are emo. Rolling Stones "I can't get no..." references cut! Alanis Morissette reference added. My notes had a giant "MEH!" here. Also, the noble single mother goes down very well with an American audience. Whereas Ed's mum was a figure in the Aussie edition, she is now a PRESENCE in the US edition. Ed's absentee father also gets a bigger role in the US edition with his absence. Ed wonders about what kind of legacy his father has left for him by leaving. These things don't detract from the story at all. In fact, I think most audiences would embrace Ed's struggles. However, having read the Aussie edition first and loving that story as it was presented, it felt unnecessary to me.


Still, I can't hate on the US edition when one of the added lines is one I absolutely love:

“I know that,” I say, trying to act like I’m not embarrassed for thinking love and sex are the same thing. I know they’re not, but I want them to be close enough to at least brush each other as they pass.

The US edition also has two new poems by Leo, which is a nice bonus.

Regardless of which edition you have, you're good. If George Lucas can come out with 125 editions of Star Wars, Cath Crowley can have 2 editions of her books. Like the Star Wars geeks I can never make fun of again, I found myself ordering the Australian version, the US version, and today, the audiobook version. I may not be able to express my love for this book by painting, but I can do it by shopping!

[Simona Stoica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recenzia completă: http://palarisme.ro/chef/carti/recenz...

Notă: 4.5

„- Ştiai că suntem făcuţi din aceeaşi materie ca stelele? Suntem energie nucleară în explozie.”

Ai simţit vreodată nevoia de a striga numele personajelor în mijlocul nopţii, de parcă astfel ai putea să creezi o punte de legătură între cer şi pământ, între iluzie şi realitate? Tentaţia de a recomanda o carte unui străin pe stradă, o persoană care nu poate înţelege de ce eşti atât de fericit şi de optimist, de ce ţi-ai întors privirea spre el, de parcă ai avea un plan neobişnuit în minte, o idee îndrăzneaţă de pus în aplicare, iar el a devenit complicele ideal? La mai bine de o săptămână după ce am terminat Graffiti Moon, acest sentiment nu m-a părăsit, acompaniat acum de o bucurie tipic copilărească, de o energie fără precedent, care sper să nu dispară prea curând, umbrită de problemele de zi cu zi.

După atât de multe cărţii dramatice sau copleşitoare, care m-au întristat şi mi-au înjumătăţit (şi aşa) puţinele ore alocate somnului, autoarea Cath Crowley mi-a aruncat un colac de salvare şi mi-a amintit cât de uşor este să zâmbeşti, să râzi şi să te bucuri de un roman YA pentru adolescenţi „clasic”, lipsit de triunghiuri amoroase forţate sau de „drame” exagerate, care răpesc din plăcerea lecturii şi încarcă (inutil) acţiunea.

Scriu acest articol după o pauză îndelungată de la recenzii (îmi este ruşine, dar voi ameliora „problema” în următoarele zile), însă îl scriu cu entuziasm, cu drag şi din plăcere, „acompaniată” de nelipsita mea cană cu ceai, de dansul picăturilor de ploaie pe geam şi de torsul unei pisici pufoase (ah, ce bine e să te întorci acasă), care ronţăie cu delicateţe coperta când îmi întorc privirea. Nu-ţi face griji, o voi pedepsi mai târziu.

Graffiti Moon este un roman încântător, cu o acţiune compactă, care se desfăşoară pe parcursul a 24 de ore, pe durata cărora îi cunoaştem pe Lucy şi pe Ed, doi tineri alături de care vom străbate un oraş al umbrelor, unde metalul şi lemnul vorbesc, iar poveştile şi culorile prind viaţă sub mantia lunii.



„De cele mai multe ori, atunci când privesc desenele făcute de Shadow şi de Poet, văd ceva cu totul diferit de ceea ce-mi spun cuvintele. Tocmai asta e ceea ce-mi place legat de artă, faptul că ceea ce vezi are uneori legătură mai degrabă cu adâncul propriei persoane decât cu imaginea de pe perete. În timp ce privesc desenul, mă gândesc că toţi purtăm un secret în noi, care zace în adormire, la fel ca mica pasăre galbenă.”

Liceul s-a terminat, „tortura” s-a încheiat. Pentru câţiva elevi, viitorul este scris în stele. Nu şi pentru Lucy, care îşi doreşte mai mult de la viaţă, de la ea, de la oraşul care se joacă în fiecare noapte cu sentimentele ei, dând naştere unui nou desen, unui nou mesaj din partea lui Shadow, cel care scrie, compune şi pictează, cel care ridică termenul de „artă” la un alt nivel.

[Reynje · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m going to preface this review with a warning that I find it hard to talk about this book without gushing - an urge that has not diminished with each subsequent reading. I'm not sure how to sufficiently express how much I adore this book, so I may just start flinging adjectives wildly as I go on. Sorry.

Taking place over one unseasonably hot night in Melbourne, Graffiti Moon is a story about art, poetry and love. About secret identities, past mistakes and punches in the face. About pink vans and an elusive perfect shade of blue. And a girl on a mission to find Shadow, a graffiti artist who documents his thoughts on walls around the city.

Crowley weaves the plot together through the perspectives of Ed and Lucy, two unique, nuanced teenage voices, interspersed with the works of Poet as the night unfolds. A slight overlap between some scenes allows you to see how the same events are filtered by each of the protagonists, and watch as the relationships between them develop and change. The interactions between the characters were refreshingly realistic: Dylan and Daisy’s barbed exchanges, Ed’s caution, Lucy’s unfiltered observations. I loved them all. Flawed but charming boys, girls with style and strength. Chemistry that fizzes from the page.

A story by turns funny and poignant, Crowley’s prose is lyrical yet understated. The writing is evocative, pulling you in and immersing you in the story. Its an experience not unlike the way Ed describes a Rothko painting: “.. for a while, as long as you’re looking at it, that painting is the world and you get to be in it.” (p 167). Graffiti Moon is the type of book that holds you close, wrapping you up in the tension, until the final page.

I particularly enjoyed the discussion and use of art throughout the book, from references to local artists Ghostpatrol and Angela Brennan, to the ongoing motif of Rene Magritte’s The Lovers in Lucy’s point of view. I’ll be the first to admit I know next to nothing about art, but I found the use in the story both relatable and effective.

Also, the shout outs to Melbourne’s street art really made me want to go out and rediscover the city I live in :)

Graffiti Moon in a gorgeous book that captures the hopefulness and uncertainty of standing on the brink of your future.

It now has a permanent spot as one of my favourite reads of all time.

[Jasprit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once in a while you come across a book which literally rocks your world. Graffiti Moon is one of those books.

Lucy has been tracking the graffiti artist Shadow for the last two years, she’s been in awe of him and his work, but has never been able to meet him face to face. Ed is struggling through life, with no job; he can’t afford to pay towards his rent. Until his friend Leo comes up with a plan to rob the school art wing one night. With Ed and Lucy on their separate paths, one night brings them together; it ends up being a night they will never forget.

I don’t think my review could fully demonstrate how much I adored Graffiti Moon. I loved Lucy and her feistiness, I adored Ed, and at times I just wanted to give him a big hug. I liked how both their stories were connected somehow, with both having problems with their family, Ed feeling guilty for not being able to provide anymore and Lucy’s parents living in separate “houses”, how they both had someone who was there for them, Ed had Bert and Lucy has Al. I loved reading about their history between them and watching the banter between them, they were just hugely loveable characters. The same goes without saying of Leo, Jazz, Daisy and Dylan, they were freaking hilarious! I also liked how the story could change so suddenly from the present to them recalling a memory from the past. Some of the quotes in this book were sooooo beautiful; they just leave an aching in your chest.

Cath Crowley is another amazing Aussie author I’ve come across this year, her writing is so mesmerising and poignant and she manages to create a read which is both heart wrenching and funny. I can’t wait to read more of her books.

All that’s left for me to say is that Graffiti Moon is one of those books I will deeply treasure. I recommend EVERYONE to read this book!!!

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review can also be found on my blog Collections.

"...we watch the dirty silk of the factory smoke float across the sky."

I loved that there was a lot of graffiti and mentions of glassblowing in Graffiti Moon. Photographs of urban decay featuring old, abandoned buildings and factories are my favorite form of art to look at, but graffiti is a close second. Whenever I see graffiti sprayed on the wall of a building or painted on the side of a boxcar moving along the railroad tracks, I always wonder, 'Who made that? When did they do it? Why did they do it? And where are they now?' It just blows my mind, and it's one of the reasons why I loved this book.

Lucy wonders about the graffiti made by the artist who calls himself Shadow. She finds Shadow's work to be extremely inspiring, and she is determined to figure out his identity so that she can meet him in person. She wants to tell him everything she feels whenever she sees his work...and what she feels for him because of it. But she's been searching for Shadow for awhile now and it seems she misses him by mere minutes every single time. Then one night, Lucy and her friends meet a few guys from school who claim to know Shadow. One of the guys is Ed, someone she has a history with and doesn't want to be around. But she's willing to endure Ed's company for the night if hanging out with him means finally meeting Shadow.

I have read one other book by Cath Crowley ( A Little Wanting Song , which I loved!), and she has already made my favorite authors list. I absolutely love her writing. Her characters are extremely likable and funny, and they have such great relationships. I could easily relate to Lucy, and she was spunky and just completely awesome. Ed... I adored him. I want my own Ed. Lucy seems to have gotten the wrong impression of him because I think he's actually the kind of guy you want to be around. In the book, Ed takes Lucy on an adventure through the city to see more of Shadow's graffiti. I thought the atmosphere and the setting were perfect. It made me want to be there with them, hanging out and exploring the city at night in search of amazing graffiti.

Like I mentioned, I always have questions whenever I see graffiti, and I felt Lucy and I shared the same curiosity. Who is this mysterious guy who fills her with so much inspiration? And where is he? Since Graffiti Moon is told in alternating point of views between Lucy and Ed, Shadow's real identity is quite obvious to the readers. However, I didn't feel it lessened the mystery or allure of Shadow, especially since Lucy truly has no idea. I always wonder if someone will live up to my expectations when I meet them, and for Lucy it's even more crucial because she's falling for Shadow. I was holding my breath for the moment when Lucy finally figures out who he is. Will he be like the Shadow she's imagined? Or will she end up being disappointed? I think moments like that are pretty priceless.

I cannot wait to read more novels by Cath Crowley because this was another book that I didn't want to end. I highly recommend Graffiti Moon to YA contemporary and Aussie fans. If you can't get a hold of this book and you desperately want to read it, don't worry. It will be published in the US on February 14, 2012 from Knopf Books for Young Readers. The cover is amazing, by the way. Be sure to check it out!


(Note: The factory picture is by PET.)

[Keertana · Rating 5 out of 5]

The only mistake I made in picking up Graffiti Moon was to start it nearly at midnight. I was planning to quickly read a few chapters and go to sleep, but I found myself unable to tear my eyes away from the pages and by the time I was done, it was well past two in the morning. Needless to say, I found myself dreaming about warm cozy beds for much of my day, but Graffiti Moon was totally worth the late night (or should I say early morning?) read.

Graffiti Moon is told in alternating perspectives, shifting from Lucy, Ed, and occasionally Leo's point of view. The story starts out with Lucy pedaling on her bike as fast as she can to see Shadow, a graffiti artist whose work she loves and, who she believes, just may be the guy of her dreams. When Lucy misses Shadow by five minutes, she is forced to meet with her best friends Jazz and Daisy and watch as Jazz decides to hook up with Leo and Daisy with her boyfriend Dylan, leaving Lucy with Ed, the guy whose nose she broke in tenth grade. Just as Lucy is about to regret her all-nighter decision, Ed tells her he knows where to find Shadow. What follows is a late-night adventure and blooming romance, but Ed may not be the guy Lucy thinks he is - he may be more.

I absolutely fell in love with the story of Graffiti Moon. Crowley's writing is flawless and sucks you in so that you feel as if you, not Lucy and Ed, are walking the streets of Australia. The perspective shifts are done with ease and although some scenes are re-told from either Lucy or Ed's POV, the story-telling never becomes cumbersome. One of my favorite things about this book were the poems that were scattered in between Lucy and Ed's thoughts. They were not only beautifully written, but gave a remarkable amount of insight into Leo's mind in a unique and perfectly presented manner.

Still, the thing I loved most about Graffiti Moon was it's love story. Ed and Lucy are both unique characters and their thoughts flowed with such ease and honest simplicity that it felt as if I myself was thinking them opposed to reading them on the page. Furthermore, their love story grew through conversation, a deep appreciation of art, and a special understanding and acceptance of each other. Despite their rocky past, they managed to move on, learning not only from their mistakes, but learning about each other. Surprisingly, theirs was not the only love story in this novel. Jazz and Leo, Daisy and Dylan, Lucy's eccentric parents, Bert and Valerie - I found myself inexplicably in love with all of them and rooting for their romances just as much as I was rooting for Lucy and Ed.

Perhaps the best part of this book is that the romance never took away or overshadowed the serious issues of acceptance, belonging, and family that were prevalent throughout the novel. Graffiti Moon made me laugh, made me scream in frustration, jump for joy, and made me fall completely in love with it. If you chose to read just one contemporary Australian book in your lifetime, let it be this. You'll be utterly sucked in to the story, fall hard for the characters, and I'm sure that you will glean something new with every re-read. It can be said, without a doubt, that Graffiti Moon is one of my favorite novels this year - and perhaps - ever.

You can read this review and more on my blog, Ivy Book Bindings.

[♥Rachel♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story! I didn't want it to end.

The story of Graffiti Moon takes place over twenty-four hours. Lucy is a seventeen-year old student who's just finished year twelve and is out for the night with her friends to celebrate. Her whole focus for the evening is to find Shadow, a graffiti artist that does these amazing heartfelt paintings all over the city. She feels a powerful connection to these paintings, and the emotion behind them. Lucy has a passion for art and thinks whoever Shadow is, he's the one for her. I loved this quote, from Lucy on Shadow:

I want to collide. I want to run right into Shadow and let the force spill our thoughts so we can pick each other up and pass each other back like piles of shiny stones.

So Lucy meets up with her friends Jazz and Daisy to have an all-nighter of fun. They quickly run into Ed, Leo, and Dylan a group of friends from school. Dylan is sort of Daisy's boyfriend who idea of romance is throwing eggs on her head. Surprisingly, Daisy doesn’t consider this a romantic gesture, and so is currently on the outs with him. Lucy has her own history with Ed, so she's not to keen on hanging out with him but Jazz is definitely keen on Leo. Plus, Leo and Dylan claim to know who Shadow and Poet are, so they could spend the night looking for them at all their haunts. So Lucy agrees to this night with the promise of finally tracking down the boy of her dreams. (Forgot to mention Poet always pens a little something with each painting so they're known as a duo: Shadow and Poet). So this is how the adventure begins.

This story was so lovely with all the descriptions of art, from Lucy's glass blowing to Shadows paintings, you felt like you were really seeing them through your mind's eye. One of my favorite of Shadows pieces is of "a heart cracked by earthquake with the words Beyond the Richter scale written underneath." This story is told alternating from Ed and Lucy's POV, and I guess there's also a POV of Poet in there because every few chapters you get pieces of poetry from him (which are amazing). I'm a big fan of alternate POVs, I loved getting both Lucy and Ed's thoughts throughout. Lucy was an amazing main character, spunky and determined, full of heart. You got to love a girl who's not afraid to bash a boy in the nose when required. Ed, I'm in love with you! You are definitely on my list of book boyfriends. He's a thinker, lover-of-art, full of witty and smart conversation. I loved the banter with these two, the push and pull was so much fun. As if all of this wasn't enough to love this story, there are some scenes that had me laughing to the point of crying. The bicycle scene in the park was priceless. This book is a must read! I received this through Netgalley, but I'm buying my own copy so that I can hold it in my hands, and know it's on my shelf, to re-read anytime I want!

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for allowing me to read this amazing story!

[Cara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah I loved it. What a beautiful atmosphere and eclectic characters that I couldn't help but like. I know this may seem odd but I thought I wasn't going to love it as much as other people did. I was completely wrong.

Ed is Shadow, the local graffiti artist. His best friend Leo is Poet and does the writing. Lucy is a glassblower. Her best friend Jazz is psychic. Then there is the odd, complicated, adorable couple of Daisy and Dylan. One night these people meet up to celebrate the end of year twelve. What ensues is the hunt for Shadow, a pink get away van, threats of nipple piercings, and copious amounts of near embarrassing/interesting incidents.

The book shows teenagers in a realistic way. Flawed but hopeful. Animated but at the same time philosophical. Melodramatic but idealistic. It's complicated being a teenager but with the right group of people it can be great. I knew when I was reading it that it was set for only one night but it certainly feels longer than that. I felt like I knew the characters enough to understand why they did things, and was crossing my fingers for them. The “specialness” of the night can be felt, and it's filled with a buzzing anticipation. A climatic event is bound to happen.

The author is almost pitch perfect with her word choices. The dialogue has the right amount of bite but realism to it. I caught myself visualizing all of Shadow's art, and then found myself wishing it existed in real life. I loved how the story was not only narrated between Lucy and Ed, but also with Leo's poems. Actually out of the bunch he was my favorite character. Then there is that cover! What a unique and eye-catching mix of colors contrasting with the black and white. Perfect for this story.

I wish I had a nice way to end the review but I really don't. I loved it and I think that's gonna have to be enough.

Extra side story: I have a story of why I was so impressed with this novel. First off (please don't hate me after I write this) I am not an art person. I took an Art History course a couple of semesters back and I hated it. It was probably the most boring class I have taken in college. As a class we had to take a trip to an art museum. I had no fun and to be honest I was kind of miserable for the whole trip. I saw the other students who were taking the class as part of their major and they were just enthralled and excited. I didn't get it, especially for the abstract pieces. But I'm betting if I were with Ed or Lucy I would have. The art popped out to me and I caught the bug. I got what the big deal was.