Keertana @ Ivy Book Bindings

Rating: 3.5 Stars For some reason, I was utterly surprised by this. A Little Wanting Song is the type of story that creeps upon you, slowly invading your every thought, memory, and emotion and proving to be both an evocative and powerful read. Although I'll admit that Cath Crowley's Graffiti Moon was definitely a much better book - both in terms of the writing style, depth, and story - A Little Wanting Song was beautiful and will be sure to resonate deeply with every girl. All Charlie Duskin has wanted is to be noticed - by her father, who is still mourning her mother's death seven years later; by her grandfather, who is now mourning her grandmother's recent death; by Dahlia, her best friend who no longer seems to be her best friend; by Rose, her country-side neighbor who seems to despise her; and by Dave, the gorgeous boy who she's been pining after for nearly a decade. All Rose Butler wants is to escape - escape her parents, who won't let her do anything; escape her boyfriend, who does nothing but land himself in trouble; escape her school, which is stuck in the middle of nowhere; and escape her small town that she's never been out of. Charlie and Rose couldn't be more different from each other if they tried, but when Rose begins to see Charlie as her ticket out of her dull life, things start to look up - for both of them. To be honest, my brief summary of this novel does not do it enough justice. A Little Wanting Song is so much more than a tale of friendship between two girls. It's also about a tale of love, caring, family, and discovering who you are, what you want, and how to move on. It's about Dave, dealing with a father who is constantly yelling at him but underneath all that anger, is love. It's about Charlie's dad, too guilt-ridden and broken to move on past his wife's untimely death. It's about Rose's mother, wanting to hold on to her little girl for just that much longer. Every single character in this tale has their own story to tell, journey to make, battle to fight. It isn't simply Charlie and Rose who are suffering in their own small bubble of misunderstandings, grief, and seclusion - it's nearly everyone. I love that Crowley makes us see beyond these two girls and into their lives, their friends, the people they are with. She thoroughly sucks us into their lives, makes us fall in love with them, appreciate them, understand them, and feel their every emotion as if it were ours.One of the most resonating aspects of this novel is that it sticks with you. It invokes memories you thought you had forgotten and nearly everyone can relate with Charlie and Rose. You don't have to have lost a mother to feel as Charlie does - lonely, forgotten, insignificant. You don't have to be stuck in a small town to feel like Rose does - trapped, suffocated, torn, and confused. You just need to be human, open your heart to their stories, and let them in. A Little Wanting Song was a truly wonderful read. I especially enjoyed seeing how much Crowley has grown as an author from writing this to Graffiti Moon, an utter masterpiece. Although she employs her same technique of shifting between Rose and Charlie's perspectives, I never felt as if it was truly working or powerful enough. In many ways, Charlie's tale dominated over Rose's, making us feel for her and empathize with her far more. Furthermore, Rose's POV was used as a stepping stone to fill in blanks in the story where Charlie was not present (and even when she was), so I never felt as if I had as deep of a connection with her. Still, it is rewarding to know that books such as these have launched beautiful stories with tight, meaningful perspectives such as those in Graffiti Moon.Overall, A Little Wanting Song was a fun, cute, and simple read with a deep and heartfelt message. I'll admit that I was a tad bit disappointed by this book, only because it wasn't as good as Graffiti Moon, but it was still a beautiful story. In addition, it was utterly refreshing to read a story centered around friendship opposed to romance (don't worry, there's plenty of that too - it's simply not as poignant when compared to the friendship)! A Little Wanting Song leaves you with a little wanting for more...more music, beauty, and friendships in your life. Yet, its ending is perfect and makes you feel completely satisfied. If you've never read Cath Crowley before, I urge you to at once. Her writing is powerful and will completely take your breath away - just like this book.