Graffiti Moon Review

Graffiti Moon
by Cath Crowley

Senior year is over, and Lucy has the perfect way to celebrate: tonight, she's going to find Shadow, the mysterious graffiti artist whose work appears all over the city. He's out there somewhere—spraying color, spraying birds and blue sky on the night—and Lucy knows a guy who paints like Shadow is someone she could fall for. Really fall for. Instead, Lucy's stuck at a party with Ed, the guy she's managed to avoid since the most awkward date of her life. But when Ed tells her he knows where to find Shadow, they're suddenly on an all-night search around the city. And what Lucy can't see is the one thing that's right before her eyes.





ARTISTIC.
Graffiti Moon is what I always want a contemporary YA romance to be. After all the sappy, love at first sight, "our love helped me through all my emotional problems" books out there, this book is finally REAL.

Cath Crowley develops a world that is so centered around art and the artistic mind that you can't help but be drawn into the creative mindset of the characters. Lucy, a glassblower, is searching for Shadow, the amazing graffiti artist who is so perfect in her mind that no guy can even compare to the conflicted soul she has drawn in her mind. Ed, who is secretly Shadow, helps take her on the journey to find Shadow and realizes he can never live up to the portrait Lucy has painted of him. As the night progresses and they learn more and more about the artistic lifestyles they both live they realize they are perfect for each other. Side stories of their friends grow simultaneously and equally as artistically, though through poetry.

The characters of this book are so well developed that you can't help but fall in love with them. Lucy has a different home life of odd parents and a surrogate father figure who is her glassblowing teacher. All she wants in life is to find someone to share the beauty of art with. Ed comes from a rough upbringing of a single mom barely making end's meet. He has trouble reading and writing and escapes through his walls. The paintings he does on walls parallel his mental state. He is struggling through the recent death of his only father figure, his manager and the first person to really believe in his talent.

The writing is exquisite and exactly what it needs to be to really pull off the feeling of this book. I can't express enough how artistic and beautifully done this book is. The thoughts, comparisons, descriptions and metaphors are all written as if you are looking at a painting. Not only does Crowley paint the scene that is occurring in the story, but the paintings the characters see in their minds. Flawless writing.

5 out of 5 stars, top of the bookshelf, definitely buying this as soon as it comes out.