Drawing with Mark: Good to Grow/Life on the Farm

K-Gr 5—Mark Marderosian has created art for such media and toy giants as Disney, Universal Theme Parks, and Hasbro. His "Angels from the Attic" comic strip appears in newspapers nationwide, and is the inspiration for his television series Drawing with Mark. Each DVD includes two episodes and features a mini-field trip to an educational setting, two drawing lessons in the "magic attic," animated shorts, some facts and trivia, and a suggested reading list. Bonus features include two extra drawing or crafting lessons. An included "Draw Along Booklet" explains some of the basic building blocks used to create the drawings and folds out into a coloring sheet. Marderosian has a quiet, patient manner that works well with his informational patter as he demonstrates each drawing. He uses basic shapes that young children will be familiar with, along with foundational lines on which to build each cartoon-style drawing. Advanced concepts like perspective, dimension, and shading are introduced in a simplified fashion. Drawings begin with a light sketch using multiple pencil strokes to allow enough time for kids to follow along. Younger viewers will love the field trips and the saccharine sweet animated segments, but the drawings will require the more advanced dexterity of children between the ages of 8 and 10. Parents may find it a useful rainy day diversion, but libraries should only consider as an additional purchase.—Cary Frostick, formerly of Mary Riley Styles Public Library, Falls Church, VA