Tuesday, May 26, 2015

The Last Coloring Book List You'll Ever Need (Part 3 - Single Books)

Part 1 of this list featured coloring books that had gargantuan (or not so gargantuan) series or multiple books by an author. Part 2 featured the universe-chilling mandala, some with authors that had more than one book under his/her belt. Now we're into the single digits. These are coloring books that are one-hit wonders. Books all by their lonesome either published a while ago before the craze hit, or that will be published very soon in order to give people even more variety than before. So, any of these suit your fancy?


The Mindfulness Coloring Book will be out June 2nd and we already have some on order. It looks fun and simple, but I can't promise anything yet since I clearly haven't seen it.



A simple book of basic designs, I'm guessing Alexander Girard is some kind of designer given that the book is named after him - Alexander Girard Coloring Book. You can take a peek inside of this book online. If you're a little exhausted of all the super-intricate designs, despite how pretty they are, this book can provide a great escape for just adding in swaths of color. Of course, who says you can't do a bit of doodling while you're at it? There's plenty of whitespace and the images themselves almost invite a few extra fun lines. Or hey, just color. Whatever floats your boat.



I won't lie to you - this is straight up a children's coloring book. Back when we were still scrambling to fill customers' desire to color, I went to the Children's section and dug up anything I thought wasn't too kid-like. This one, I think, works out. It's lighthearted, whimsical, and full of fun little things that you can color as you see fit. Pretty Fashions isn't the only book of it's kind back there - so if the adult coloring section isn't working for you and your store hasn't brought out everything from the kid's section yet, by all means head back there and poke around. Remember, Dover is coded as children's as well.



This one has been a wee bit of a chore to keep in stock, but it's still out there and available. It's exactly what it sounds like - The Celtic Colouring Book. Full of celtic designs for you to fill in as you see fit. If you're tired of animals, cityscapes, and mandalas, this could be a good change of pace. Or just something fun and different to try. It's also not super-crazy intricate, adding to the joy of de-stressing while coloring for those times when you just want to go nuts with a particular color and forget about the tiny lines.



Simple flowers here, nothing more in the Flowers Coloring Book. Quite popular for this very reason, I've seen this one end up out of stock and then back in stock a few times now. If you see it in the store, you might as well snatch one up because you never know when they'll run out again. Perfect for coloring outside near a garden - make the flowers colors you'd expect or something you'd find in a fantasy world. A fairly large book, you'll have plenty of pages to fill up.



As with some other books, I found this one in a separate list online. While B&N can't get this book, it may be possible for you to find it elsewhere through secondhand stores online using the ISBN number, 9781780551098. So why do I bring this book up? Because it looks really cool, that's why. This is the sort of coloring book I'd buy because I like things that are different and fun. This one is similar to the Dover Stained Glass books in that you color on white bits while the background is all black - just without the see-through-ish stained glass aspect.



Another one discovered in a separate online list, this book is perfect if you're looking for something outside the box - in case the name didn't give it away. Outside the Lines is weird, unexpected, and just what you're looking for if mandalas, pretty lines, nature, and animals aren't your thing. And it's actually a collection of various drawings rather than something done by one person, which means you'll get a lot of varying designs throughout the book - and it's quite a sizable book, so you'll be coloring for a while.



I've been waiting for this one to come back in stock for quite some time. I hesitate to recommend it, but while I may not have any more in my store, that doesn't mean other stores don't still have a few hanging around. I do hope they make more, though, because this is a really nice coloring book. The illustrations are excellent - nice and lifelike. All you have to do (of course) is add in the color. While they do offer little images on what the bird actually looks like, obviously you can color them any way you like. I'm not sure what the publisher is up to, but given that they're making other coloring books as well, I'd like to think that they're working on giving Coloring Birds some more printing runs.



Similar to the birds above, the Butterflies Art Pad shows up as unavailable online, but even our store still has a few hanging out, so you might check your local B&N to see if they have any. (Again, best bet - give them the ISBN number.) It's quite pretty with a lot of nifty butterflies to color in with markers, colored pencils, or crayons. Hooray!



Tricky to find, but potentially possible, there's all sorts of plants, flowers, and more in here to color. Glorious Gardens is put out by a publisher that, if I remember right, is sort of scrambling to put out more - including a few new titles. How long it's going to take them, I can't say. If you enjoy these sort of designs, then see about getting a copy from a secondhand store or seeing if your local B&N still has some in stock.



The Indie Rock Coloring Book is a fun little book that brings something different to the table. A little bit of peace, love, and coloring. But more than that, you also get pages that feature entertaining activities such as mazes and dot-to-dots. So when you're tired of coloring, but still want something to do, scribble, dot, and doodle your way to indie-styled zen. It's tiny, cute, and all the royalties go to charity.



If you're truly interested in something different, then The Tattoo Coloring Book is a really cool one to go with. This one has been flying off the display to the point that we are now out. Full of intricate and unique tattoo designs, who knows? Maybe it will give you a few ideas for a tattoo once you're done.




This Tattoo Coloring Book has even more designs for you to choose from, though I can't say how easy it will be to get this book either. The tattoo books really went out the doors in quick fashion. I guess coloring birds and flowers (...which, amusingly enough, are included here too) can only entertain one for so long. Skulls and fire always liven up a party, don't they?



Now The Art of Nature Coloring Book is pretty nifty, but I will admit that I'm on the fence about this one. The illustrations are very cool and more realistic than almost any other coloring book featuring animals that you'll come across (except the bird one above), yet at the same time there's an awful lot of shading. But hey, I guess if you get it to turn out like Mr. Octopus up there, then it all works out. I'll let you decide. Take a look at this one yourself and get your true nature coloring self on.


Ok, look - I'm just going to be a smartass and throw this one out there. While The Anatomy Coloring Book is basically meant for people actively learning about anatomical structures, if you really want something that strays off the beaten path, then this hits the nail on the head. Not only do you color in all manner body parts and specific areas based upon information given, but you also learn in the process. And it's also not much more expensive than some of the other coloring books out there. So de-stress and learn at the same time!


This next batch of coloring books are all made by the same publisher, but there was no good way for me to craft a search string that would collect them all in one place. So since I work hard for you folks, I went ahead and pulled up each one individually to check out if you'd like. A solid selection to work with, they come neatly wrapped in a fun little package for you.

 


 










Thus ends The Last Coloring Book List You'll Ever Need. After all these books, I'm sure you'll have plenty for the year to come. It's a good idea to take into account how some of these books are published and who they're with. It can make all the difference into why your local store doesn't carry them or potentially can't get them. For example, anything under the publisher CreateSpace is actually something that the author published him/herself and the books are only printed as they are ordered. They cannot be returned in any fashion (because there's nowhere to send them - there is no warehouse for them to hang out at like with other publishing houses). Best bet? Write down the ISBNs and see what's available and where you can get it. If I discover any others as we continue to build our lovely coloring book table, I'll be sure to add them on. And of course - happy coloring!

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