Love that Sponge Bob? Always lurking in Dexter’s lab? Wishing for Fairly Odd Parents? Millions of fans watch these shows avidly, often solely for their zingy, stylized look and hip visual jokes. Now there’s a drawing book just right for everyone who admires that quirky style: Cartoon Cool. Top-selling author Christopher Hart shows beginning cartoonists, retro fans, and all other hipsters how to get that almost-1950s look in their drawings. His trademark step-by-step drawings and crystal-clear text are sure to make Saturday mornings more creative!
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218 reviews for Cartoon Cool: How to Draw New Retro-Style Characters
4.5out of 5
★★★★★
★★★★★
8
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★★★★★
Clinton Watkins –
If you are interested in learning to draw the new retro-style cartoons, you can’t go wrong with this book. Christopher Hart begins “Cartoon Cool” by explaining what makes cartoons retro as opposed to more traditional style of cartooning. He then moves on to specifics such as standard characters often found in retro cartoons. Characters such as kids, the shopaholic mother, the clueless dad, mad scientists and family pets are described in great detail. Mr. Hart makes this a fun read by adding humor to the text. He also includes tips that, while specific to the particular project, will be useful in any style of drawing. But what I really loved about this book is how it’s written so a young teen or bright tween will understand it, but adults who use it don’t feel like they’re using a children’s book, and that’s important to an adult beginner like myself. As I wrote in the first sentence, anyone who’s interested in this style of cartooning will love this book. I’d go as far as to say it’s the only book you’ll need.
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★★★★★
Sue Maynes –
For a beginning cartoonist – this book is a gem – well laid out, simple styles and great ideas.
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★★★★★
Keyz Karanza –
I have purchase a good number of Chris Hart books. I have been through regular style, happy-go-lucky cartooning to comic book style to manga. I just wasn’t getting the hang of them. Then I saw this book. I figured since I was a Dexter’s Lab fan, I would give it a try. It was so easy for me to do! It just clicked with me.
I had found Christopher Hart books to range from well-explained to poorly-explained. This one falls deeply into the well-explained category! It explains differences in representing genders, how different types of eyes and other features can change a school girl into a sexy seductress. There are just so many tips that take the regular lessons and sort of glue them together or reinforce them.
It goes without saying that everyone is going to have one style they can do better than any other. If you have tried the others like I had, give this one a shot and don’t be suprised if it is the one for you.
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★★★★★
Tuca –
Estos libros de Christopher Hart, con instrucciones muy fáciles de seguir, te enseñan a dibujar caricaturas como si fueras profesional Con estos libros he comprobado que si es posible aprender a dibujar.
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★★★★★
Angelikada –
Good book! It shows a good tutorials for learning.
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★★★★★
BryanMc –
This was a 4 am, insomnia-inspired purchase. Unlike similar purchases, I’m very happy with this one. I’m not some 10-year-old kid with a dream of being the next great cartoonist, but I was…about 50 years ago. Through those years I’ve never lost my love for cartoons, comic strips, and illustrations. Being an old guy, the word, “retro” caught my attention. I really enjoy Mid Century Modern designs and illustrations, and while this book isn’t technically Mid Century Modern, it does give a taste of it with the sharp angles, exaggerated curves, and simple geometric shapes that are used to create the characters. Not only are the illustrations wonderful, but Mr. Hart’s explanations on why you do certain things are very helpful. The book provides the basic tools you need to create similar retro-looking characters of your own design. Anyone interested in this style of drawing won’t go wrong purchasing this book. One thing I can almost guarantee is that, if you buy this book, the next time you watch an animated modern retro-style show, you’ll start seeing the circles, ovals, triangles, rectangles, and other shapes the animators used to create those characters. Honestly, this book makes me want to start drawing as I did 50 years ago. Great job Mr, Hart.
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★★★★★
Aryel –
Ótimo conhecimento para iniciantes na arte do desenho, bem informativo, vale a pena.
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★★★★★
Amazon Customer –
I never thought traditional cartoons were as attractive as they could be and then a few years ago I noticed that the style of animation had changed and that now attractive had become very common. This book details how to take standard cartoons and make them very attractive and stylish. This is my favorite cartoon book by any author ever. I accidentally ordered 2 copies of this book and I’m keeping both just because I couldn’t bear to be without one if I lost a copy. Thank you Chris Hart for writing this book!!!
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★★★★★
Koby –
Christopher Hart ist ungemein populär bei Nachwuchszeichnern, während professionelle(re) Zeichner bei seinen Büchern öfter mal die Hände über dem Kopf zusammenschlagen. Was das COOL-Buch betrifft, gibt das Buch einige sehr nützliche Tips und Hinweise, aber CARTOON COOL weist auch klaffende Lücken auf. So lernt man alles mögliche über Augen, aber NIX über Nasen, man sieht Lippen von vorne und von der Seite, aber nicht in Action, in Bewegung und sprechend. Man gewinnt den Eindruck, dass der Autor sich die Themen rausgepickt hat, wo er Durchblick hatte, und alles, was er selbst nicht konnte, weggelassen hat. Ich bereue den Kauf nicht, aber man sollte keine ernsthafte, tiefergehende Bearbeitung des Themas erwarten.
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★★★★★
B & T –
As usual the item arrived in good shape in on time. No complaints.
The book itself is nice to look at, there are some nice pages of drawing inside. Perhaps it’s geared for little kids or something. I can see giving this to a bunch of ten year old’s and letting them loose! There are lots of pictures and filler but the actual instructional content could have been printed up on a bus schedule!
The book is good for kids, or people starting out from scratch, but anyone else will likely feel let down.
Helpful(0)Unhelpful(0)You have already voted this
★★★★★
Anise –
As most people reading this review probably know, Hart’s books are a mixed bag. But some of them are surprisingly good if you’re willing to take them as they are, and Cartoon Cool is one of those.
Basically, Hart outlines a cartooning style that isn’t profound, but is a lot of fun. I don’t know if I’d really call it the most retro thing you could ever imagine; it’s sort of Flintstones meets Oddparents. I’d rather see something like simplified Dick Giordano/Vince Colletti.(Giordano does have a book, but I haven’t heard the best reviews, and there are only so many things I’m going to spend money on!) But there are so few books really dealing with the subject of how to draw truly retro cartoon-style comics that it’s nice to see anything at all.
As other reviewers have noticed, this is NOT a book about the fundamentals of drawing. This style isn’t really as easy as it looks, and if you haven’t already covered the basics, you’ll be much more lost than you think when you pick it up. That having been said, it’s a good addition to knowledge you already had. It covers the basics of how to get figures to look like this style, as well as specific groups (family, teenagers, pets, boys, girls, etc.) I could really have lived without the commentary, but there’s enough in here to make it worthwhile if you skim over any irrelevant statements that annoy you (the “ADHD family” being a good example.) Overall, I’d recommend this, keeping its limitations in mind.
Clinton Watkins –
If you are interested in learning to draw the new retro-style cartoons, you can’t go wrong with this book. Christopher Hart begins “Cartoon Cool” by explaining what makes cartoons retro as opposed to more traditional style of cartooning. He then moves on to specifics such as standard characters often found in retro cartoons. Characters such as kids, the shopaholic mother, the clueless dad, mad scientists and family pets are described in great detail. Mr. Hart makes this a fun read by adding humor to the text. He also includes tips that, while specific to the particular project, will be useful in any style of drawing. But what I really loved about this book is how it’s written so a young teen or bright tween will understand it, but adults who use it don’t feel like they’re using a children’s book, and that’s important to an adult beginner like myself. As I wrote in the first sentence, anyone who’s interested in this style of cartooning will love this book. I’d go as far as to say it’s the only book you’ll need.
Sue Maynes –
For a beginning cartoonist – this book is a gem – well laid out, simple styles and great ideas.
Keyz Karanza –
I have purchase a good number of Chris Hart books. I have been through regular style, happy-go-lucky cartooning to comic book style to manga. I just wasn’t getting the hang of them. Then I saw this book. I figured since I was a Dexter’s Lab fan, I would give it a try. It was so easy for me to do! It just clicked with me.
I had found Christopher Hart books to range from well-explained to poorly-explained. This one falls deeply into the well-explained category! It explains differences in representing genders, how different types of eyes and other features can change a school girl into a sexy seductress. There are just so many tips that take the regular lessons and sort of glue them together or reinforce them.
It goes without saying that everyone is going to have one style they can do better than any other. If you have tried the others like I had, give this one a shot and don’t be suprised if it is the one for you.
Tuca –
Estos libros de Christopher Hart, con instrucciones muy fáciles de seguir, te enseñan a dibujar caricaturas como si fueras profesional Con estos libros he comprobado que si es posible aprender a dibujar.
Angelikada –
Good book! It shows a good tutorials for learning.
BryanMc –
This was a 4 am, insomnia-inspired purchase. Unlike similar purchases, I’m very happy with this one. I’m not some 10-year-old kid with a dream of being the next great cartoonist, but I was…about 50 years ago. Through those years I’ve never lost my love for cartoons, comic strips, and illustrations. Being an old guy, the word, “retro” caught my attention. I really enjoy Mid Century Modern designs and illustrations, and while this book isn’t technically Mid Century Modern, it does give a taste of it with the sharp angles, exaggerated curves, and simple geometric shapes that are used to create the characters. Not only are the illustrations wonderful, but Mr. Hart’s explanations on why you do certain things are very helpful. The book provides the basic tools you need to create similar retro-looking characters of your own design. Anyone interested in this style of drawing won’t go wrong purchasing this book. One thing I can almost guarantee is that, if you buy this book, the next time you watch an animated modern retro-style show, you’ll start seeing the circles, ovals, triangles, rectangles, and other shapes the animators used to create those characters. Honestly, this book makes me want to start drawing as I did 50 years ago. Great job Mr, Hart.
Aryel –
Ótimo conhecimento para iniciantes na arte do desenho, bem informativo, vale a pena.
Amazon Customer –
I never thought traditional cartoons were as attractive as they could be and then a few years ago I noticed that the style of animation had changed and that now attractive had become very common. This book details how to take standard cartoons and make them very attractive and stylish. This is my favorite cartoon book by any author ever. I accidentally ordered 2 copies of this book and I’m keeping both just because I couldn’t bear to be without one if I lost a copy. Thank you Chris Hart for writing this book!!!
Koby –
Christopher Hart ist ungemein populär bei Nachwuchszeichnern, während professionelle(re) Zeichner bei seinen Büchern öfter mal die Hände über dem Kopf zusammenschlagen. Was das COOL-Buch betrifft, gibt das Buch einige sehr nützliche Tips und Hinweise, aber CARTOON COOL weist auch klaffende Lücken auf. So lernt man alles mögliche über Augen, aber NIX über Nasen, man sieht Lippen von vorne und von der Seite, aber nicht in Action, in Bewegung und sprechend. Man gewinnt den Eindruck, dass der Autor sich die Themen rausgepickt hat, wo er Durchblick hatte, und alles, was er selbst nicht konnte, weggelassen hat. Ich bereue den Kauf nicht, aber man sollte keine ernsthafte, tiefergehende Bearbeitung des Themas erwarten.
B & T –
As usual the item arrived in good shape in on time. No complaints.
The book itself is nice to look at, there are some nice pages of drawing inside. Perhaps it’s geared for little kids or something. I can see giving this to a bunch of ten year old’s and letting them loose! There are lots of pictures and filler but the actual instructional content could have been printed up on a bus schedule!
The book is good for kids, or people starting out from scratch, but anyone else will likely feel let down.
Anise –
As most people reading this review probably know, Hart’s books are a mixed bag. But some of them are surprisingly good if you’re willing to take them as they are, and Cartoon Cool is one of those.
Basically, Hart outlines a cartooning style that isn’t profound, but is a lot of fun. I don’t know if I’d really call it the most retro thing you could ever imagine; it’s sort of Flintstones meets Oddparents. I’d rather see something like simplified Dick Giordano/Vince Colletti.(Giordano does have a book, but I haven’t heard the best reviews, and there are only so many things I’m going to spend money on!) But there are so few books really dealing with the subject of how to draw truly retro cartoon-style comics that it’s nice to see anything at all.
As other reviewers have noticed, this is NOT a book about the fundamentals of drawing. This style isn’t really as easy as it looks, and if you haven’t already covered the basics, you’ll be much more lost than you think when you pick it up. That having been said, it’s a good addition to knowledge you already had. It covers the basics of how to get figures to look like this style, as well as specific groups (family, teenagers, pets, boys, girls, etc.) I could really have lived without the commentary, but there’s enough in here to make it worthwhile if you skim over any irrelevant statements that annoy you (the “ADHD family” being a good example.) Overall, I’d recommend this, keeping its limitations in mind.