Graffiti Girls

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Pub Date 13 Mar 2025 | Archive Date 10 Mar 2025

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Description

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.

Shortlisted for the Saltire Society's Scottish First Book of the Year Award 2023

'A rebellious and uplifting tale of punkish, middle-aged, feminist defiance' Lucy Ribchester

'A delicious tale of female rebellion and a glorious tribute to female friendship. Warm, funny, and uplifting' Caron McKinlay

★★★

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?

★★★

Praise for Graffiti Girls:

'Graffiti Girls is a sharply observed and thought-provoking cri de coeur about everyday sexism. It is the uplifting story of a group of women re-setting their lives and re-discovering their purpose during mid-life crises extraordinaire – a tale told with passion and verve' Catherine Simpson, author of One Body

'A fiery, funny and fierce feminist read that packs an emotional punch, Graffiti Girls explores big themes with empathy, insight and grace. I miss spending time with these characters' Emma Styles, author of No Country for Girls

'Stingingly observed, expertly executed, Graffiti Girls is a laugh-out-loud, relatably painful, feminist rage-induced tour de force' Claire Wilson, author of Five by Five

'Graffiti Girls drips with feminine rage, a story for any woman of a certain age who’s ever felt invisible.' My Weekly, Books to Read in 2025

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....


Available Editions

EDITION Other Format
ISBN 9780008673314
PRICE £16.99 (GBP)

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Average rating from 58 members


Featured Reviews

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to break the law? Maybe you have, or do, regularly. I am absolutely a rule-follower though, and so even the thought brings me out in an anxiety rash. Thankfully I can live vicariously through books, and it was in this spirit I picked up Graffiti Girls from NetGalley. 

Amy, Carole, Lenore and Susan went to high school together. Now in their 40s, they’re rapidly realising that they are being continually undervalued by - well, everyone, to be honest. Their partners, children, employers and customers take them for granted and they’re constantly hearing that their best years are behind them. 

Fuelled by the sting of one slight too many (and a few wines), the four embark on a covert campaign of graffiti vandalism around their hometown of Hamilton, scrawling feminist slogans on walls in the middle of the night. Soon their actions are a hot topic amongst media and locals - and while there is some condemnation, there is a rising tide of agreement and sympathy with their message. Maybe they’re not so past-it after all?

I lived just near Hamilton for some years, and being of exactly the same age range as the Graffiti Girls I could relate to so many of their experiences - if not me directly, from some of my friends. Life challenges across relationships, parenting, careers, and friendships are all covered here. If I were to have a small niggle it would be that occasionally some dialogue didn’t scan entirely authentically - I suspect due to over-zealous editing rather than the writer’s own voice. But it’s still recognisably Lanarkshire in location and vibes, complete with some d’nicely obscured local landmarks.

Many readers in their 40s and beyond will recognise the sense (fleeting or regular) that life is passing us by, or that early promise we may have displayed hasn’t quite come to fruition. We can all pinpoint missed opportunities, or wrong choices we’ve taken, and this book taps right into that.

There’s a lot of seemingly awful men in the book - though some unexpected outcomes kept my interest piqued - but few of them were irredeemable, and I felt that played well against the flawed heroines. I enjoyed the flashback scenes to the friends’ high school experiences - it really rounded out the characters and provided authenticity to their motivations and behaviours.

There’s so much to relate to in Graffiti Girls, whether you’re a rule follower or breaker. Now, where’s my spray paint?

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Reading the blurb for this I wasn’t sure if this was a book for me………on reading it I realised it is a book for everyone,men and women and everyone can take something away from it……
We all know the feelings we get of ‘life has passed us by’ and ‘it’s too late to do anything about it now’ but for Amy and her 3 friends they decide to rebel and vent their feelings via graffiti in their hometown
It shocks and satisfies and empowers and brings alive the dormant but never gone younger selves of the 4
Quirky and ambitious as said it will make anyone who reads it who has faced any kind of prejudice think ‘YES’ well done you 4
Great read

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