The Complete Book of Caricature

At only 134 pages this book is way too physically small to adequately display the subject matter. The author's drawings required a book that was at least twice the physical size or twice the length and preferably both. Instead we get too many small drawings crushed into too little space. Also, several of the more complex drawings suffer from terrible low contrast and should either have been greatly improved or excluded. Another book readers will have to squint their way through. If I had been able to examine this in a book store I would've passed on purchasing it.

This book really is the best thing a Caricature artist like myself can have in his libary. Crammed with tons of drawings by both Mr. Staake and dozens of other artists, there's definitly no shortage of examples in this brillantly illustrated book. However, this is not your traditonal "step-by-step, this is how to draw" kind of book. Rather than directly teaching you how to draw caricatures, Bob Staake explains in great detail all the important aspects of caricature, such as how to incorporate the subject's personality into the drawing and what are the best reference materials to use while drawing. Truly a must have for ANY artist.

I had heard this was the "definitive" book on Caricature, and a truer statement couldn't be made! My goodness, this book is absolutely incredible. The caricature samples are diverse and inspiring, the presentation well designed, but Bob Staake's text is just marvelous. Doesn't matter if you're an artist, cartoonist, caricaturist or just a casual reader, this book will have you hooked from the first page. Can't possibly over-recommend it -- truly the most complete book on the art form of caricature.