A book held open outdoors by two stonesThe wind lifts the loose pages; a stone on each side keeps them down.
A book lying face down like a tentAn upside-down V with the cover's edges on the table. The pages show as a thin band.
A book open on your lap, seen from your own eyesThe near edge is wide and the far edge narrow. Your knees show round it.
A book whose pages are flipping in the windEach lifted page is a curve from the spine. Overlap five or six, lighter as they rise.
A cookbook propped open by a rolling pinFloury fingerprints on the page, the pin lying across the lower corners.
A dictionary open under a magnifying glassThe lens makes the words under it larger. Draw the small print as grey lines.
A picture book open at a double spreadOne picture runs across both pages and dips into the fold.
A pop-up castle standing out of an open bookDraw the book flat first, then the castle as folded card rising from the fold.
An open book seen from above, pages curving upTwo curved pages dip to the spine. A soft shadow runs down the fold.
An open book with a ribbon marker trailing outThe ribbon runs from the top of the spine, over the page and off the edge.
An open notebook with a pen in the foldRuled lines, a margin, a pen lying down the middle where the pages meet.
An open sketchbook with a half-finished drawingDraw the drawing on the page, part inked and part pencil, a pencil in the gutter.
Stacks and shelves 12
A bookshelf with one book leaning overA row of upright spines and one fallen at an angle against the next.
A crate of second-hand books at a market stallSpines up in the crate, a handwritten price card on a stick.
A library trolley in an aisle between shelvesTwo shelves on wheels, books at angles, the aisle vanishing behind.
A pile of books used as a bedside tableA lamp and a glass of water on top, a phone charger cable running down.
A rolling ladder on a rail along library shelvesHooks on a rail at the top, wheels at the bottom. The rungs narrow as they rise.
A row of books between two bookendsBookends at each end, the books leaning slightly toward one side.
A stack of books spine out, titles letteredSpines of different thickness and colour. Letter titles along them, some sideways.
A tower of books taller than the person carrying itThe tower leans; the carrier peers round its side.
A windowsill lined with paperbacksSoft spines, faded by the light, with a plant at the end of the row.
A wobbly stack of five books at different anglesEach book a box, turned a little from the one below. Spines face different ways.
Books laid in a spiral on the floorEach book overlaps the last, curling in toward the middle.
Three old books bound with a leather strapThe strap crosses the middle with a buckle on top. Each spine a different height.
Old and special 12
A book with a cracked spine and loose pagesA few pages sticking out, the spine creased in white lines.
A book with gold page edges catching the lightThe gilded edge is a band of bright and dark stripes following the curve.
A decorated capital letter on an old pageA large letter in a square box, filled with vines and a small scene.
A diary with a tiny padlock and keyA strap across the cover, a heart-shaped lock and a key on a ribbon.
A journal with a flower pressed between its pagesA flattened flower, brown at the edges, with a faint stain round it.
A leather-bound book with raised bands on the spineRidges run across the spine. Each one catches light on top and throws a small shadow.
A miniature book in the palm of a handThe book is no bigger than a thumb. Draw the hand first for scale.
A rolled scroll tied with a ribbonA long tube with a curl at each end showing the paper's layers.
A thick old book with a brass claspThe clasp strap crosses the page edges. Metal gets one sharp highlight.
A torn book held together with tapeStrips of tape across the spine, a page corner missing.
A water-stained paperback with curled pagesWavy pages that no longer lie flat; a tide mark on the cover.
A zigzag-folded book standing openA long strip of pages folded like a fan, standing on its edges.
Magic books 12
A book that is also a houseWindows in the spine, a chimney at the top, a path up to the page edges.
A book with a small door in its coverA round-topped door with a knob and a keyhole cut into the front.
A castle rising out of the pagesThe castle grows from the fold; the printed words curve up into its walls.
A dragon asleep on a hoard of booksCurl the dragon round a mound of spines, tail tucked over the top.
A sea spilling off an open bookWaves pour off the page edge onto the table, a tiny ship riding them.
A spell book glowing on a standLight rising off the pages lights the reader's face from below.
A staircase made of turning pagesEach page is a step curling up out of the book.
A tiny reader sitting inside a giant bookThe reader sits in the fold, the pages towering on either side.
A tree growing out of an open bookRoots spread across the pages, the trunk rising from the fold.
Birds made of pages flying out of a bookEach bird is a folded page with lines of print still on its wings.
Light shining out between the pages of a closed bookDraw rays escaping from the page edges and a glow on the table.
Words falling off the edge of a pageLetters tumbling off the bottom of the page like leaves.
Reading 12
A book resting open on a sleeper in a hammockThe hammock sags in a curve; the book lies open on the chest.
A cat asleep on an open bookThe cat covers most of the page; only the edges and a corner of print show.
A child reading under the covers with a torchA duvet tent lit from inside; the book and the face glow.
A dog carrying a book in its mouthThe book held by the spine, pages flapping, tail up.
A mug and a book on a rainy windowsillRain streaks on the glass, steam from the mug, the book open face down.
A reader nodding off, book slippingHead tipped, glasses sliding, the book falling from one hand.
A reader on a bus, book held closeThe window behind them, a strap handle, the book near the face.
Glasses folded on top of a closed bookThe lenses show the cover's colour, bent. Two small shadows on the cover.
Reading in a tent by torchlightThe tent's triangle lit from inside, the reader's shadow on the canvas.
Someone reading in a window seatKnees up, a book on them, light from the window on one side of the face.
Someone reading in the bathThe book held high out of the water, bubbles round the shoulders.
Two people reading back to backTwo spines of books and two backs touching, heads tilted different ways.
How it works
Sixty books to draw: open and curling, stacked and leaning, old and clasped, magic and spilling, or being read in the bath. Each has a hint for the part to get right.
Read the full guide
A closed book is a box
Start with the box: a front, a spine and a thin band of pages set just inside the cover's edge. Every stack and shelf on the list is that box, turned and repeated, with a different thickness for each spine.
Open books curve
An open book never lies flat. Both pages rise from the fold and dip back into it, so the lines of print curve too. The 14 hard ones test it, from pages flipping in the wind to a sea spilling off an open book.
Draw the page edges as many fine lines, not one flat block. They are what makes it read as a book.
Leave real titles off, or invent your own. A made-up title is part of the drawing.
Questions and answers
What are some easy book drawing ideas?
A book lying face down like a tent, a rolled scroll tied with a ribbon, and a cat asleep on an open book are all a few simple shapes. Easy holds 18.
How do I draw a stack of books?
Draw each book as a flat box turned a little from the one below, as in a wobbly stack of five books at different angles. Give every spine its own thickness and colour so the stack never looks like one block.
What can I draw for a fantasy book theme?
Magic books holds 12, such as a tree growing out of an open book or birds made of pages flying out of a book. Keep the book itself real and let one thing escape from it.