Don’t laugh it off. The trend of the adult coloring book is both new and old. But it wasn’t until [author: Johanna Basford|14155682] came up with her version of a coloring book for grown-ups back in 2011 that wasn’t cartoonish and silly that this genre (is that the right word?) took off. What made her books so amazing was her ability to create stylish black and white designs that begged to be colored in. That book has since sold over two million copies. The ripple effect of that success has now spurred a push for more adult-oriented coloring books. A few years ago, you had only a few non-tacky options; now, we’re seeing a flood of books that not only have gorgeous spreads but developed storylines as well.

[author: Daria Song|13854562]’s The Time Garden is one of those books. The story isn’t complex or wordy, and it leans toward minimalism and subtext, but the writing does add to the air of whimsy and mystery conveyed by the images so at least there is a harmony between textual story and visual story. Of course, most readers picking this up will ignore the text. Luckily, the imagery in The Time Garden carries the story.

As with a lot of other coloring books, the visual style in The Time Garden is mostly based on line/ink work that features repeating, intricate patterns. This can either frustrate you as a colorist or delight. Compared to Basford’s work, I would say that Song’s style is less delicate and labyrinthine. In fact, The Time Garden has large swaths of blank spaces. Visually, as black and white standalone pieces, these page layouts are striking, but all that negative space provides less opportunity for coloring (unless your style is to color every part of the page, empty spaces/gaps be damned!). If you are a veteran colorist who loved Basford’s work, you might find The Time Garden above average but not spectacular in its pattern-work.

The Time Garden’s narrative, like so many of its ilk, hints at escapist mystery and dreamy joy. And that’s wonderful. Personally, I crave to see storylines set in contemporary settings, with darker, edgier themes. Or to see coloring books with more graphic novel storytelling sophistication in the panel work. I think that would be a great evolution of the form. Frankly, I’m ready to sharpen my pencils in the darker palette and put those pretty pastel colors and gardens/nature imagery to bed.

[Disclaimer: I received this book from Blogging for Books for an honest and candid review.] ( )

This is my first adult coloring book and I’m enjoying the experience immensely. It’s been a rough time for me recently and I really felt I needed some help to relax. This book does help. When I’m coloring the tiny, tiny little sections of the page, I’m completely focused and absorbed and all my worries fly out of my head. I usually try to color a little before going to bed and have been sleeping a bit better.

The book is a beauty. The cover glistens with touches of gold. The pages are thick and supposedly markers would not bleed through though I’m using color pencils so can’t attest to that. I’ve read that some other coloring books have such thin pages that you can see the dark lines right through from the opposite page. That’s not the case with this book. It doesn't lie completely flat but that doesn't interfere with the coloring.

The drawings are lovely and are quite a coloring challenge. Since I’m only doing this for my own relaxation, I’m surprised at how seriously I’m taking each drawing. The thought I’m putting into which color to use is almost comical. But it’s such a lovely book, I want to do a good job!

I did read through the story before I started coloring and it’s a delightfully charming story about a little girl, a magical clock and a fairy. It’s going to take me a very, very long time to color this whole book. There are about 80 pages to color and most are quite intricate. I was surprised when I went to the store to buy the color pencils and the shelves were bare. More and more adults are jumping on this coloring bandwagon!

This book was given to me by Blogging for Books in return for an honest review. ( )

I have been intrigued by the Adult Coloring Book phenomenon that's been around for a couple of years now so when I saw this book, I just had to get it. Coloring books marketed for adult are nothing new but this book - The Time Garden by Daria Song is a bit different than the ones I've seen in store because there's an actual story line. The coloring book follows the journey of a young girl with boundless imagination that entered a realm of fantasy and dreams with the help of an antique cuckoo clock & a red-haired fairy. So as you color through the pages you get to follow along her adventure which is a bit fun and different.

the time garden, daria song

The artwork in this book is absolutely stunning and the quality of the paper is very nice. I've been using colored pencils + a couple of Gelly Roll gel pens and they've been fine but I don't think it's thick enough for me to try water colors. I have a 24-count colored pencils that I got at Target for this book but it just doesn't give me enough colors to play around with and the colors are kind of muddy. I plan to go to either Michaels or A.C. Moore to pick up either a Faber-Castell, Prismacolor or Derwent set because I've used them before and they are definitely a lot more vibrant which is what I want to use for this book.

the time garden, daria song
Front of Cuckoo Clock

So the question is - was it relaxing? And the answer is yes. At Book Con, I received a one page sample of Joanna Basford's Lost Ocean and since that was the only page I had, I filled it out and didn't really enjoyed the experience because I felt the need to finish it in one sitting. With this book, I approach it more similar to when I'm playing the piano for relaxation and that's by working on the pages that I want, with the colors I want, with no expectation. I did surprise myself the other day when I basically missed a whole episode on Netflix because I was coloring and didn't realized that 20 something minutes passed.

The Time Garden is currently on my bed side table with my Target coloring pencils which I hope to upgrade soon. I don't consider myself to be very good in art. I play the piano, sing, bake and can manage simple DIYs but I'm hopeless with drawing and painting so this book is perfect for someone like me because I just have to color things in and feel that I've made a masterpiece. ( )

There was a time when I painted, drew, or colored at least twice a week between attending a weekly private art class, high school art class, and just creating work at home. Somewhere along the way I sort of lost my passion for it. Maybe it was the pressure of deciding on what career path to train for in college or social or something else. These days doodling with kids and the occasional painting events at the local art center are about the extent of my artistry. It’s hard to find time so hobbies have to be prioritized.

I’m not going to lie, when I first heard about adult coloring books I assumed it was some ungodly union between crayola and pornographers. Thankfully it’s nothing like that, but rather a new movement among adults to unwind, relax, and regenerate. Unfortunately all of the good and beneficial adult activities that drew me away from a focus on art have negative effects like stress, lack of creativity, etc… Science has shown that the act of coloring can counteract these negative adult traits and generate a sense of wellbeing. There are certainly great areas of overlap between the practices and benefits of coloring and mindfulness meditations. So I decided to give it a try.

I chose The Time Garden: A Magical Journey and Coloring Book tells sparse story that’s very reminiscent of the Nutcracker. There are only a few short paragraphs in the beginning of the book and most of the story is told in pictures. The story begins with a girl who discovers a strange fairy residing in a clock in her house. After falling from the surprise the girl awake to find herself inside the clock and she gives chase to the fairy through the pages of the book.

Each page of the book’s pages show the girl travelling through another strange scene after the fairy. The pages are filled with intricately detailed images to color. Dreamy patterns and structured architecture are repeating themes throughout each scene. While there were some “organic” scenes, I was a bit disappointed with the over abundance of buildings and clocks. When I read the title of the book I had visions of trees, nature, and british gardens, but it didn’t really deliver to those expectations.

While I mostly prefer black and white drawing, I have become fond of colored pencils lately while drawing with my daughter. Since black and white seems to defeat the purpose of a coloring book I went with colored pencils. Unfortunately I think this was a poor choice. Because of the all the small details in this book it was hard to keep the point on my pencils sharp enough to stay in the lines. The colored pencils also weren’t very vibrant on the paper. Because this book is printed on thick, sturdy, art quality paper I think markers or pen would have been a much better choice.

This was a fun diversion from my regular reading and daily tasks. I even have begun to keep a book and set of colored pencils in my desk for when I take breaks or need a little space from coding. I definitely think there is something to the proposed mental and emotional benefits of adult coloring. I definitely recommend checking out the practice even if you don’t consider yourself artistic. But, this particular book just wasn’t for me. There was too much tiny detail and the scenes became a bit repetitive and boring after a few pages. I found the book “Outside the Lines, Too” to be my style and preference.

I’m a child at heart, and have always enjoyed coloring. When my children were little, I’d let them each pick out a coloring book to purchase, and I’d pick one out for myself. It’s a relaxing and enjoyable pastime, and I’m not embarrassed to say that even though I’m now an empty nester, I have a stack of coloring books and several boxes of treasured Crayola crayons.

With that said, I am now excited that I don’t have to color childlike princesses, animals, or Disney characters! I’ve recently discovered there are coloring books for adults!

The Time Garden, by best-selling Korean pen and ink artist Daria Song, is filled with childlike wonder and make-believe, but the pages are so intricate that adults will find them both challenging and satisfying.

This magical journey and coloring book, as it’s labeled on the front cover, is so entertaining, enjoyable, and creative! And how cool is it that the book has a fun storyline to go with it? And how delightful to make the pages come alive with color. I plan to complete mine from cover to cover and use it as a coffee table/conversation book.

Storyline: A curious young girl takes a magical journey behind the doors of a mystifying cuckoo clock. Owls, stars, and fairies—oh my!

As she continued her journey, she saw a series of beautiful worlds one after the other, each full of mystery and allure. ~excerpt from The Time Garden storyline.

Craftsmanship: The softbound book has a beautiful, colorable slipcover with sparkling gold inlays that give it an elegant appearance. The pages are made from thick cardstock, which assures colors will bleed or show through to the backside of the page.

Suggestions: Using crayons might be a little taxing, since it might be difficult to color within some of the tinier lines, so I suggest using coloring pencils instead.

This coloring book is beautiful, creative, and makes me giddy with childlike excitement. Sounds silly – but I don’t care. I love this book and the hours of entertainment it will provide. I’m thrilled to learn there is a sequel, The Time Chamber, and will most certainly be purchasing it as well.

If you are a creative soul and enjoy coloring and or pen and pencil crafts, I can’t think of a single reason you would not adore this art book. The to/from section on the first page makes it easy to present it as a unique and thoughtful gift.

5 Stars!

Cover: Love
Title: Love
Publisher: Watson-Guptill
Pages: 80
Target ages: 10 and up
Release date: September 1, 2015

I received a copy from Blogging for Books. I was not required to write a positive review. T ( )