by Lizzie Mary Cullen
Published by John Murray Learning on 8 September 2016
Style: double page printing, Interactive
Pages: 96
Format: Card cover, Glue & Stitched
I received this product for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the product or the content of my review.
Goodreads
Get your pencils ready for a cultural exploration of Spain. You will visit iconic urban spaces, discover elegant patterns, relax with peaceful landscapes and elaborate stained glass rosettes as you journey through Spanish heritage. Over 80 Spanish proverbs provide the inspiration while coloring Lizzie's illustrations.
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Buena Vista Coloring Book Review
The Buena Vista Coloring Book by Lizzie Mary Cullen is the second coloring book in her series of language and cultural inspired coloring books.   Her first coloring book with this theme was Bon Voyage for lovers of all things French.    Lizzie has also explored the theme of travel and cultural in her coloring book, The Magical Journey.
Cover & Layout
The cover is white and glossy with some pre printing in shades of blue, orange and red.  The title, artist credit and blue spires are all colored highlights. The white text on the orange spine really stands out and distinguishes it from the color scheme used with Bon Voyage. The back cover, has some pre printing in the same color palette with the balance being line art.  You could color this, but you would need alcohol markers to penetrate the glossy layer.
The book measures approximately 25cm x 25cm (approximately 10 in x 10 in).
A plain text title page starts the book with copyright and dedication on the reverse.   A simple nameplate page follows with an elaborate border.  An opening image of florals and leaves is shown opposite text about the book.   You will discover that Buena Vista Coloring Book sets in illustration a journey through Spain interspersed with proverbs and other words that relate to the Spanish culture.  The book is interactive. In each illustration there are things to find, thankfully, at the back of the book is the legend reveal for these hidden treasures.  I always find when I’m coloring that I completely forget about finding things.
As the book has a number of proverbs within it, and colorists may need to know the meaning of these words an English translation is at the rear of the book.   The book is page numbered in order to make it easier to locate these meanings.
The illustrations have been printed on both sides of the white, medium weight paper. All of the illustrations have been orientated portrait style.
Illustrations
Lizzie Mary Cullen is well known for her curvy style of art and this book is no different.  You will see wonky buildings and partial cities all in her style of art work.   You will also see mandala style images.    A number of the image quotes are contained within a circular pattern embellished with swirls, shapes and the like.
The book also features a number of really elaborate images and it appears that, in this book, there has been a conscious effort to choose a variety of people, places and things as well as the proverbs.   I particularly like the elaborate fan image and the lovely Spanish lady with a highly patterned dress in Lizzie’s curvy style. There are 7 “people” styled images in the book which are all stunning! The book contains a number of elements that colorists usually enjoy coloring including birds, flowers, fish and fruit.
Some of the proverbs have been included as part of the art work with the font being in outline style so you can color the lettering.  Whilst others provide the proverb as text on the side of the image.
There are 8 pages devoted to double page scenes with the balance being images contained on a single page.    The art work does run to the spine for the double page spreads but the book lays down flat very easily. Coloring near the spine should not present any difficulty for most colorists.
The line art has been printed in a dull black line and is of a medium weight throughout.  A finer lin weight has been used in some images to show detail and dimension on a picture.  The bulk of the images contain large spaces for ease of coloring for colorists of all skill levels.   There are a handful of images that have finer, tighter packed detail that may be challenging for those with visual impairment or some health issues.
The majority of the images have been centered well and positioned well on the page.
Lizzie Mary Cullen tends to fill the page with her art work.  In her language series of coloring books, however, only a handful of images do this.   The bulk of the images have a large amount of white space surrounding the illustration making it ideal for adding background color, if you choose.
If you like the language/cultural style books that Lizzie Mary Cullen is producing – check out my review of Bon Voyage for lovers of all things French.  This was the first book that Lizzie Mary Cullen illustrated based on the language and culture of France.  The next book that Lizzie is illustrating in this series is based on all things British.   This book is due for release in early 2017. You can pre – order An Adult Colouring Book for all Things British here.
Buena Vista Coloring Book Video Review
Enjoy the video review of the Buena Vista Coloring Book: A Colouring Book for lovers of all things Spanish:
Where to Buy Buena Vista Coloring Book illustrated by Lizzie Cullen
| Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon Canada | Book Depository |
Other Coloring books illustrated by Lizzie Mary Cullen
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Happy coloring x
Lea
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