Daily Archives: March 13, 2017

Curious Creatures: A Coloring Book Adventure (A Millie Marotta Adult Coloring Book)

By: Millie Marotta

Rating: 5 of 5

I own all of Millie Marotta’s previous animal theme coloring books: Animal Kingdom, Tropical World and Wild Savannah. In Curious Creatures Ms. Marotta has taken on more unusual animals from around the world. She states that some where chosen for their bizarre behavior while others for their unusual appearance and others still for their survival skills. At the end of the book, there is a listing of the animals (in page order) with both their common name and their Latin name.

The designs are detailed without being intricate. The illustrations are beautifully done. There are a number of designs that cross over the binding and, in my copy, they line up well but it is difficult to get into the binding area to color.
The book is in the larger square format at 9 7/8 x 9 7/8 x .5 inches as are the other books in Ms. Marotta’s series. The book cover is very pretty. It has touches of color and gold foil on the front of the cover. You could certainly color the remainder of the design if you so choose. The inside of the covers are plain white and slightly rough
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing it with my coloring medium:
Designs are printed on both sides of the page
Some designs merge into the binding and some spread across the binding for a two-page design.
Paper is white, heavyweight, slight rough and non-perforated.
Glue bound
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the paper easily.
Water-based markers, India ink pens and gel pens leave extremely light shadows on the back of the page.
My coloring pencils did the best of the various medium. They went on well and blended well. I tested both oil and wax based pencils and could layer and blend easily using a blender stick.

Pop Manga Coloring Book: A Surreal Journey Through a Cute, Curious, Bizarre, and Beautiful World

By: Camilla d’Errico

Rating: 5 of 5

This is a wonderful coloring book filled with imaginative and unusual Manga style designs. I am used to straight-forward Manga with cute girls with big eyes. In this book, the girls are still beautiful but are incorporated into fantasy style images. Quite often, the subject girl is pensive, staring off into space.

This is a book that I am buying for several of my friends for gifts at the holidays. It is so unusual and different, they will be sure to love it, too.
The designs are detailed and some are intricate. Coloring them is definitely akin to coloring artwork rather than simple line drawings. I think the book is pretty much one of a kind, though I can hope that the artist may consider issuing another coloring book in the future.
This is what I found while coloring in this book and testing my coloring medium on the paper:
80 pages of imaginative and unusual Manga style designs (includes title page and copyright page.)
Printed on both sides of the page
Paper is heavy weight, white, slightly rough and non-perforated
Glue binding
Designs merge into the binding area and a number of them cross over the binding for a two-page design
Book can be opened fairly flat but takes some effort and breaks the spine of the book.
Alcohol-based markers bleed through the paperbacks
Water-based markers, India ink pens, and gel pens do not bleed through or leave shadows. Some gel pens require additional drying time.
Colored pencils work well with this paper. I found that I could layers the same color for deeper pigment or multiple colors and I could blend easily using a blending stick. I tested both oil and wax based pencils.