LEARN TO DRAW MARVEL SUPERHEROES

My son and daughter love to doodle and sketch, so they've really appreciated these books that Quarto Publishing sent our way to try out which teach kids how to draw their favorite Marvel superheroes. Spider-Man, Iron Man, The Hulk … who is your favorite hero from Marvel's comic books and movies? These Learn to Draw Marvel books range from teaching early readers about colors to showing beginning drawers how to do super sketches to tutoring advanced artists on illustrating characters worthy of being on a comic book page.

LEARN TO DRAW MARVEL: THE AVENGERS

Assemble your favorite Avengers by drawing them together. Create your own artwork featuring Earth's Mightiest Heroes with the help of this 128-page guide that will help anyone, no matter what their skill level, learn to draw Marvel's The Avengers. Inside you will find step-by-step instructions for drawing both Avengers superheroes including Ant-Man, Captain America, Black Widow, Hulk Thor, and Iron Man as well as some of their adversaries such as Loki and Hela.

Learn to Draw Marvel: The Avengers provides instruction on drawing fundamentals, basic human anatomy, along with inking and coloring techniques used by professional comic book artists. The book is full of  helpful artist tips and filled with interesting character biographies and fun facts. It teaches professional technique while also sharing some of the rich backstory behind every character. Whether you are a beginner or an advanced artist, there is something for every skill level to appreciate and learn from in Learn to Draw Marvel: The Avengers.

LEARN TO DRAW MARVEL: SPIDER-MAN

This book is for amateur artists who dream of being professional comic book illustrators someday. Wouldn't it be cool to draw one of America's most popular superheroes like a pro?! Learn to Draw Marvel: Spider-Man shows readers how to do amazing illustrations of the wall-crawling web-slinger no matter what your talent level may be by teaching spectacular sketching skills. Diehard Spidey fans will also appreciate that this 64-page manual also shows how to draw the Sinister Six.

Learn to Draw Marvel: Spider-Man demonstrates three different drawing methods: tracing, grid-drawing and the basic shape methodology. Making your way through the different methods step-by-step and you will evolve from notching down simple shapes to actually being able to draw the Amazing Spider-Man free hand. The book includes tracing paper, drawing grid sheets and practice pages to use while going through the lessons inside it. Just grab a pencil and you will be ready to get started learning to draw Marvel's Spider-Man.

MARVEL'S AVENGERS CHALK BOARD COLORS

Preschoolers can even get in on the action with Marvel's Avengers Chalk Board Colors. Iron Man, Captain America, the Hulk, Black Widow, Thor, and Hawkeye help children learn the colors red, yellow, blue, white, green, purple, orange, black, brown, and gray in this book. Children can draw right on the pages of the book as they practice writing skills, and the write-and-wipe blackboard style pages make clean-up easy. The book even comes with chalk specially sized for small hands.

My kids are a bit old for the chalk board book but we wanted to share it with you because it looks like a fun, useful guide for those of you who have toddlers at home. My son and daughter though have been spending a lot of time learning to draw their favorite characters by flipping through the pages of these Avengers and Spider-Man illustration guides. I highly recommend them for anyone who loves comic books and has an interest in drawing superheroes for themselves.  Because these books demonstrate how to do this in a manner that most anyone can follow, the LEARN TO DRAW MARVEL lineup of books from Quarto Publishing earns a Geek Daddy nod of approval.

FATHERS DAY GIFT FOR MY DAD

My dad is notoriously difficult to shop for when it comes to getting him a present.  This year though I found him just the right gift for Fathers Day courtesy of The Quarto Group.  He loves to tinker with his 1923 Ford Motor Company Model T Depot Hack and take his grandkids on adventures in this antique car. So I found a book at quartoknows.com that I'm sure he is going to enjoy!

FORD MODEL T COAST TO COAST: A SLOW DRIVE ACROSS A FAST COUNTRY written by Tom Cotter with photographs by Michael Alan Ross and a forward by Henry Ford III is sure to delight motorheads, history buffs, and traveling dads.  The book shares the cross country trek by Cotter and Ross as they drive one of America's most iconic cars from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean along the country's oldest transcontinental road.  In today's fast paced age, they take the slow lane providing an interesting perspective of America's past and present through a 3,000-mile journey in a 100-year-old car.



This 224 page book features 150 color pictures and 25 black & white photos of the Model T they are driving and other classic cars they encounter along their path as well as historic images of sites they visit and scenic places they pass.  They drive along many of the same roads that a young Edsel Ford traveled in his father's Model T on a similar journey after graduating high school in 1917.  Along the way, Cotter and Ross visit a number of automotive and transportation themed museums as well as "keepers of the flame" that include Model T clubs, mechanics, junkyards, and car collectors across the country.  Readers also experience the duets trials and tribulations of keeping an antique car running on an arduous trip.

Full of suggestions of places to visit on a cross country trek, automotive trivia, and historical facts this book is sure to captivate my dad's attention. Whether someone enjoys restoring old cars or exploring new places, this book is great to peruse. Join Cotter and Ross on their "slow drive across a fast country" as it is a fascinating adventure.

For more information or to purchase the book, head over to quartoknows.com  

Oh by the way, a Depot Hack essentially was the first station wagon. At the time they were built most long distance travel was done by train.  Depot Hacks were used in cities to carry passengers and their luggage from train depots to their final destination which was normally a hotel. Of course, now they are perfect for leisurely family drives around town and hanging out with at weekend car shows.

MAY THE FOURTH STAR WARS BOOK DEAL

Save 40% off some great Star Wars books from THE QUARTO GROUP during the month of May using the code MAYTHE4TH at quartoknows.com.  They've just published a new book called Star Wars: Lightsabers: A Guide to Weapons of the Force that anyone who has ever dreamed of being a Jedi knight will want to read.  This joins a collection of publications that include tutorials on drawing your favorite Star Wars characters and books that allow you to create paper models of droids and spaceships from the sci-fi saga.

STAR WARS: LIGHTSABERS: A GUIDE TO WEAPONS OF THE FORCE

Study the galaxy’s most notable lightsabers and the masters who wielded them, from Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi, to Rey and Kylo Ren. Every featured lightsaber includes a close-up of its one-of-a-kind hilt, a photo of the Jedi or Sith master in action. Each page is filled with detailed statistics, fascinating insights, and little-known facts.

STAR WARS MASTER MODELS R2-D2

Without R2-D2, where would the galaxy be? Queen Amidala wouldn’t haveescaped from Naboo, Luke Skywalker wouldn’t have trained under Obi-Wan Kenobi and Princess Leia would have been executed by Darth Vader on the Death Star. Build the ultimate papercraft model of everyone’s favorite R2 unit, complete with lights and sound! Star Wars Master Models: R2-D2 includes die-cut pieces with metallic-ink printing, push-button lights, a sound chip, and detailed instructions on how to construct the model—everything you need to build a one-foot tall model of R2-D2.

LEARN TO DRAW STAR WARS DRAWING BOOK

Young artists will learn to draw Star Wars characters including Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and Darth Vader. The kit comes with a 40-page project book, paper pad, drawing pencil, eraser, sharpener, colored pencils, and markers so artists can get started right away, so grab your tools and get drawing now!

STAR WARS: BLUEPRINTS

This book is an all-access pass into the Lucasfilm Archives to unveil the original technical drawings of the galaxy far, far away. It includes 250 blueprints, 500 photographs and illustrations, and ten stunning gatefolds, in a deluxe volume that reveals the work of the engineers, designers, and artists who dreamed up the look and feel of the Star Wars universe.

I didn't receive any compensation or perks for hyping this deal with you, but THE QUARTO GROUP has earned A Geek Daddy nod of approval from my past experiences reviewing some of the outstanding books they publish and this really is a great deal getting 40% off.  Head over to quartoknows.com to see all of the Star Wars publications they have available. These really are some fantastic Star Wars books! Remember to use the code MAYTHEFOURTH on their website for the discount!