Flashback Friday #2: Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley

Hello everyone! Welcome to The Left-Handed Book Lover's Flashback Friday. I'm not sure if this feature has been done on other blogs. I haven't seen it, but if it has been, let me know so I can give some credit! 

FF is a feature here where I talk about books I read a while ago but still want to give major love to. This feature is designed to give some exposure to books that may have been forgotten about or that some people haven't heard of, even though they're really great! 

This week's FF goes to.,.

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley
(standalone)
Published: February 14, 2012 by Knopf Books for Young Readers

Summary from Goodreads: 
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. 

When did I read this?  

I read this in 2012, when the U.S. version was released. I'm pretty sure I got it as an eARC. I stayed up until 4:30 AM reading it.

Why did I pick this book?  

Y'all don't understand. I love love love contemporary books, but that has not always been the case. I was like a die-hard paranormal fan, and this is one of the first contemporary books I ever fell in love with. It's this beautiful adventure of a book. I takes place in only one night, but it is a night full of growth, flashbacks, and feelings beyond belief. I feel like it was pretty popular in the blogosphere when it was released, but I haven't heard mention of it in way too long.

It is a dual narrative novel, and both the narrators are a delight! They're flawed and so honestly written. Sometimes in between chapters there would be a poem that actually enhanced the story a lot, so that was really cool. There is a gorgeous, genuine romance, brimming with chemistry. I promise you, you will ship so hard in this novel. You will feel the kisses in your bones. You will feel this entire novel in your bones. The writing is stunning.

Bonus: This novel has an art focus, if you're into that sort of thing. There's painting and glass blowing and pottery. It's really cool even if you're not into that sort of thing.

Bonus part 2: It takes place in Australia. I was obsessed with Australia in 2012, so that was like amazing to me. It's still pretty cool, because the point of books is to take you to far-off places.

Now that all my love for this book is resurfacing, I'm probably going to go order it and re-read it. You should order it and read it, too. You will not regret it.

Other info--

Author info: 

Cath Crowley is an award-winning author of young adult novels, The Gracie Faltrain series, Chasing Charlie Duskin and Graffiti Moon. She lives, writes, and teaches creative writing in Melbourne. Her next book, The Howling Boy, will be out in 2016.

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