Fantastic drawing book! I would absolutely use this in my curriculum or classroom for learning to draw for students of any age. Excellent lessons by Catherine Holmes, and step by step directions.

The thing I liked the best about this book was the, “Know, Understand, Do” pages preceding every lesson. So many step-by-step books do not explain anything about the art process or the vocabulary and terms of what the student is learning. This book goes into depth explaining vocabulary and methodology of each lesson in an easy to understand way.

I will look for more of Catherine Holmes‘s books in the future, knowing I will be getting a thorough understanding of the subject, and will be sure to recommend this to students and parents.

Thank you to NetGalley and Library Publishing‘s for providing a free copy of this book for my honest opinion.

This is the second title in the How to Draw Cool Stuff series and goes further in-depth with shading, values, patterns, and optical illusions. There are fewer specific exercises to copy than in the first volume, and much more theoretics and vocabulary. A moderate amount of review from the first title is included. The drawing tutorials are conceptually broken down into three components: know, understand, and do. This is a great follow-up to the previous volume for an aspiring artist who does not have access to a teacher or wishes to work at their own pace independently.

Catherine V. Holmes provides step-by-step easy-to-follow lessons to drawing, shading, and talking about one's creations. Lessons combined art vocabulary and apply principles from math and science to help learners create realistic art and illusions. Tips and cautions of common mistakes are included in each short 1-2 page lesson. This book could be used to based lessons upon for oneself or a group. Older children could also use this for self-study or home-school art. Built-in pages provide room for guided practice of techniques discussed in the reading. Mandalas and Zen doodles are covered for those seeking more therapeutic uses for their art. A whole set of lessons cover anatomical drawings and Rube Goldberg machines to help encompass the Sciences. Optical illusions are also covered and could make great Maths and Language Arts writing connections.

A great way to start or restart drawing. Every chapter has a section explaining WHY the skill or technique is important, a section to practice, and a list of Tips to help with more practice later. A great gift idea or just for myself.

How to Draw Cool Stuff is a perfect book for artistic creatives. This book is filled with drawing ideas for people of any age with step-by-step instructions. Perfect for novice and people trying to come up with new techniques and drawing ideas. I love the clear visual examples of ways to draw a human face, which is challenging for most. As the author pointed out in the epilogue, anyone can learn how to draw, it just takes practice. How to Draw Cool Stuff will be a perfect addition to our art classroom library.