Action! Cartooning

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Written and illustrated by a former Marvel Comics' artist with brilliant hand-done images throughout, this graphic handbook of cartooning is without equal. It's simply larger, better illustrated, and more in depth than any similar title on the market. In elaborate detail, it focuses on superheroes and their atmospheric world filled with speed and movement. Every aspect of creating cartoons is taught: the supplies, developing mood, and the techniques that endow characters with personality. See how to draw a variety of faces (female, heroic, cute, gaunt), and give the appearance of age. From the skeleton to the torso, to the arms, hands, and legs, follow every stroke that goes into producing bodies of all shapes and sizes. Finally, there's instruction on sending those figures into running, jumping, punching, kicking action in a fully realized scene. With advice so thorough, any amateur can become a pro.

FROM THE CRITICS

Children's Literature - Karen Leggett

"96 pages of how-to havoc" shouts a burst on the cover and the how-to is sufficiently detailed to encourage even a non-artist to pick up a pencil. The young people who will have the most fun with this book, though, are those who doodle in the margins of their homework. Caldwell's step-by-step instructions and drawings will improve their skill and give them ideas to nurse their own creativity. Ultimately, that is Caldwell's goal. He wants kids to take his basic instructions and have fun: "If you're bored, your drawings will look boring. Your drawings can be funny or creepy or simple or detailed—just make them your own." He provides substantive information on drawing actual bodies and faces and then exaggerates certain features to show power or emotion or attitude: making an upper lip just a little bit longer makes a face less graceful; using bold, jagged lines helps create an irritable old wizard. Caldwell even shows how to draw knuckles and toes with impact. This is indeed a book of action and it will not spend much time getting dusty on a library shelf. 2004, Sterling, Ages 8 to 16.

Library Journal