The Drawing Lesson - by Mark Crilley (Paperback)

About the Book

An instructional story presented in comic book format, featuring a twelve-year-old boy who learns about drawing and life from an artist he meets in the park.

Book Synopsis

Read This Comic and Start Drawing Today! Nominated for a 2017 Eisner Award

For the first time ever, drawing instructor and graphic novelist Mark Crilley brings his easy-to-follow artistic instruction to aspiring artists in the form of a comic book, providing you with a one-of-a-kind how-to experience. In The Drawing Lesson, you'll meet David--a young boy who wants nothing more than to learn how to draw. Luckily for David, he's just met Becky--his helpful drawing mentor. Page by page, Becky teaches David (and you!) about the essential fundamentals that artists need in order to master drawing, all in a unique visual format. In panel after panel, Crilley provides lessons on shading, negative space, creating compositions, and more, with accompanying exercises that you can try for yourself. Are you ready to start your drawing lesson today?

Review Quotes

2017 Eisner Award Nominee

2017-2018 Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award List

2019 Grand Canyon Reader Award Nominee

"[H]eartfelt and quite moving...An artful balance of character and technique, of observed human moments and carefully pitched instruction, that will appeal to students with artistic aspirations. Gr 4 + Up"
--School Library Journal

"Engaging...A pleasant diversion for a long summer afternoon, The Drawing Lesson is likely to result in lots of ambitious sketching among readers ages 7 to 14."
--Wall Street Journal

"The narrative is often funny and unexpectedly poignant, while the tutorials are impressively clear and easy for readers to implement...A great pick for juveniles and young teens looking to learn the craft of drawing."
--Library Journal

"Proportion, negative space, perspective, lighting, and other drawing basics are covered concisely and informatively, so a student could easily follow the clear drawings to benefit from Becky's lessons. Crilley develops his characters fully, making this a true novel and not simply a narrated drawing lesson. An original and accessible way to learn to draw. (Graphic nonfiction. 10-14)"
--Kirkus Reviews

"Offers thorough and practical lessons in drawing. The instruction is solid, covering proportion, shading, loose sketching, self-criticism, drawing shadows, and negative space."
--Publishers Weekly

"You'll laugh, you'll learn, and you might even discover a hidden talent. What's not to love?"
--Girls' Life Magazine

"A great book for young artists and their parents, sure to encourage artistry while building confidence and fundamental drawing skills."
--Book Riot

"Everyone has looked at a piece of art, whether it is a comic book or classical painting, and thought I wish I could do that...Mark Crilley's latest drawing manual, 'The Drawing Lesson: A Graphic Novel That Teaches You How to Draw, ' turns that wish into an absolution."
--GeekChicElite

"The book doesn't just show you the right way to do things but also common, fixable mistakes. Then it shows you what to do in order to make things right."
--Nerdophiles

"This book tackles all the topics they covered in my High School AP Art Class...An excellent book to give to a young person (tween to teen) if they're interested in learning about the technical aspects of art."
--What'cha Reading

"Illustration inspiration."
--The Children's Book Review

"The Drawing Lesson is a truly innovative way to learn art. I can't wait to get this book for every kid on my gift buying list. Whatever your age, The Drawing Lesson is an essential primer on how to draw what you see."
--Gene Ha, artist for Alan Moore's Top 10, Fables, and Action Comics, creator of Mae, and four-time Eisner Award winner

About the Author

Mark Crilley is the author of nearly twenty books, including The Realism Challenge, Mastering Manga, and Mastering Manga 2, as well as several series of books and graphic novels, including Akiko, Miki Falls, Billy Clikk, and Brody's Ghost. Since being selected for Entertainment Weekly's "It List" in 1998, Crilley has developed a massive Internet following for his drawing demonstration videos, which have received well over two hundred million views on YouTube. His books have been featured in USA Today, the New York Daily News, and Disney Adventures magazine, as well as on CNN Headline News. He resides in Novi, Michigan.