Reviewed by Jocelyn Pearce for TeensReadToo.com
Angel is a teenage girl whose life, or much of it, at least, is about her art. She loves art, but when she enters a contest for a mural, and doesn't win, she's more than a little disappointed. In her disappointment, Angel turns to another form of art, one that's more often than not practiced illegally: graffiti.
Miguel shows her his artwork, his graffiti, and even lets her into his graffiti crew, Reyes del Norte. She finds her voice in graffiti, and also finds herself drawn more and more to Miguel.
However, Miguel's not the only guy in the picture. Nathan is a much more clean-cut, wholesome guy, whose art is a lot more conventional, too; he won the mural contest that Angel wanted to win.
To say Nathan and Miguel don't get along is an understatement. And with both of them taking a rather sudden interest in Angel, their rivalry is getting even more intense. What side in it all will Angel pick--and will she stay true to herself and her art?
I was very excited to pick up this book; the summary sounds pretty great, and also really original. For the most part, GRAFFITI GIRL lived up to my expectations and was pretty awesome!
I love the characters, especially Angel, and I was impressed with the way the difficult decisions Angel had to make were realistically fuzzy and grey rather than clearly black and white, the way these sorts of choices (picking between two guys, for example) so often are to the reader.
The writing in the story was excellent, and the subject matter was fresh and interesting, making this story well worth reading. Kelly Parra is an impressive new voice in YA literature--keep an eye out!
Angel is a teenage girl whose life, or much of it, at least, is about her art. She loves art, but when she enters a contest for a mural, and doesn't win, she's more than a little disappointed. In her disappointment, Angel turns to another form of art, one that's more often than not practiced illegally: graffiti.
Miguel shows her his artwork, his graffiti, and even lets her into his graffiti crew, Reyes del Norte. She finds her voice in graffiti, and also finds herself drawn more and more to Miguel.
However, Miguel's not the only guy in the picture. Nathan is a much more clean-cut, wholesome guy, whose art is a lot more conventional, too; he won the mural contest that Angel wanted to win.
To say Nathan and Miguel don't get along is an understatement. And with both of them taking a rather sudden interest in Angel, their rivalry is getting even more intense. What side in it all will Angel pick--and will she stay true to herself and her art?
I was very excited to pick up this book; the summary sounds pretty great, and also really original. For the most part, GRAFFITI GIRL lived up to my expectations and was pretty awesome!
I love the characters, especially Angel, and I was impressed with the way the difficult decisions Angel had to make were realistically fuzzy and grey rather than clearly black and white, the way these sorts of choices (picking between two guys, for example) so often are to the reader.
The writing in the story was excellent, and the subject matter was fresh and interesting, making this story well worth reading. Kelly Parra is an impressive new voice in YA literature--keep an eye out!
