I am delighted to share my review today for Graffiti Girls by Elissa Soave. This is a book about a group of friends who are hitting a certain age and are wondering what happened to them.
Many thanks to HQ Stories for accepting my requests to read this title via NetGalley.
A sharp, empowering novel about a group of women who refuse to go quietly when society tells them they’re no longer valuable beyond the age of 40, from the author of Ginger and Me.
Amy, Carole, Lenore and Susan have been best friends since school. Back then they couldn’t wait for the future, for the amazing lives they’d have.
But things haven’t worked out how they expected. Now in their forties, they’re fed up with being taken for granted by their families, being passed over for promotions at work and being told that they’re past their best. And they’re not going to go quietly anymore.
Fuelled by female rage and their charismatic leader Amy, the four embark on a campaign of graffiti in their hometown of Hamilton, scrawling feminist slogans on the walls of local buildings.
But is Hamilton ready for the feminist revolution the Graffiti Girls have in store?
MY REVIEW
Four friends have a bit of a moment, are in their 40s, have a career, family or the lifestyle they want. Or so they think. The women had big dreams when they were at school together, they discussed the things they wanted to achieve, but now as they look back they feel they are missing out on something. They have become unseen as such, they are not the young things of a few years ago, instead, they feel they are missing out.
The story is told from the perspective of each of the women, Amy, Carole, Lenore and Susan, one starting a business, another is a librarian, one a divorcee and the other a stay-at-home mum. Not the glamorous lifestyle they envisioned, the big dreams a different memory and the future, well it doesn’t look that bright. So, together they become the Graffiti Girls, they write slogans that are important to them and they gather some support.
While the story is about the women and their side-line, the graffiti is just that, a side-line to the story. This is a story about each of the women as individuals as well as part of their group. The author brings individual perspectives and at times these do tiptoe into being honest but with the best interests.
It is like a coming-of-age story for the women hitting mid-life, the realisation that as children grow up and leave home their own lives become stationary. Or that they have been doing the same thing week in and week out for years and are stuck in a rut. It makes the characters relatable. There are some interesting and fun moments, but also some serious, more personal or soul-searching ones as well.
This is a story that I enjoyed, it is one for readers who enjoy contemporary fiction and one that I would be happy to recommend.
Many thanks for reading my post, a like or share would be amazing : xx
