What is a “coloring storybook”? It’s a coloring book, a storybook, and more! You can color just the pages you want, and enjoy it like any fine coloring book. Or finish them all and create a wonderful storybook, a keepsake all your own, or one to lovingly share with children and grandchildren. Imagine their excitement and delight — and yours too! — when you read to them from a book you helped illustrate yourself! It’s a gift your loved ones can treasure forever, a true family heirloom.
 
This coloring storybook from Skyhook Press, based on a lovely Russian legend, tells of a poor musician invited to play in the Sea King’s palace, where he’s offered more than riches.
 
*************Please note: This “grayscale coloring book” (or “greyscale colouring book”) has pictures already shaded in gray, calling for a different kind of coloring. But that doesn’t make it harder — in fact, it makes it easier to get stunning results! For tips, search online for “grayscale coloring.”
 
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ABOUT THE CHILDREN’S BOOK
 
This coloring book is adapted from the children’s picture book “The Sea King’s Daughter: A Russian Legend,” retold by Aaron Shepard and illustrated by Gennady Spirin. The book was published in 1997 by Atheneum Books for Young Children, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, and received numerous honors, including listing in the 1997 New York Times Ten Best Illustrated Books of the Year. It is still available, in a new edition from Skyhook Press. The legend is one of the most popular of Russia, and was made known internationally by Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera “Sadko.”
 
ABOUT THE ARTIST
 
Gennady Spirin, with a style he describes as “fairy-tale realism,” is one of the world’s most esteemed children’s illustrators. His honors include five gold medals from the Society of Illustrators, the Golden Apple from the Bratislava International Biennial, First Prize at the Bologna and Barcelona international book fairs, and four appearances on the New York Times list of Ten Best Illustrated Books of the Year. Born and trained in Russia before moving to the United States, Gennady already knew well the legend of Sadko and welcomed the chance to contribute his sumptuous art to Aaron’s retelling. 
 
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
 
Aaron Shepard is the award-winning author of many children’s books from publishers large and small. Once a professional storyteller, Aaron specializes in lively retellings of folktales and other traditional literature, which have won him honors from the American Library Association, the New York Public Library, the Bank Street College of Education, the National Council for the Social Studies, and the American Folklore Society.