Book Reviews for 2021

The last time I had to write a book review was when I was in High School and under great distress. Today, I am happy those days are gone and have the opportunity to review a few new books that I really want to let you know about.

The following two publications are from 3Dtotal Publishing and I am not receiving any payment to promote these books. I was looking for a books about the basics of Character Design to help explain the subject to my animation students. I happily discovered "Fundamentals of Character Design" to be that "go to" book on the subject.

When you open this softcover book, you will find quality color printing and paper. You will discover on the very first page, a pledge from the publisher that for every book sold, they will plant a tree. What a great idea!

Here's what you will find in the Table of Contents as every chapter is written by a different artist. 

• What is Character Design? 
• Research and Ideation
• Key Design Principles
• Figure Basics
• Pose, Movement & Gesture
• The Face
• Age
• Accessories
• Putting it all together
• Working with multiple characters
• Working in Character Design

A really informative text with tons of colorful character designs to inspire and learn from. This is a great book for anyone interested in learning more about the subject and process of character design.

I'm also very impressed with, "How to be a Children's book Illustrator" as well. This is a thick, hardcover book covering everything you need to know about Illustrating and working as an Artist of Children's books. 

They have also included several sample stories illustrated by different artists and then include their comments about their design process from start to finish. 

If you would like to view these books and others, I will post a flip thru video on the Animateducated YouTube channel soon. 

Happy New Year!

T