Topical Coloring Books

For those of us raised on Sesame Street and Precious Moments coloring books, the concept of organizing coloring books by topic is bound to seem foreign and even useless. Oscar the Grouch doesn't need his own section, many are likely to point out. We couldn't agree more—which is why we don't carry those sorts of coloring books in the first place.

The ones we do carry are the coolest you're likely to see. The pictures are detailed (many can only be properly completed using colored pencils or paint), the topics covered are diverse, and (best of all, for many) they're highly educational, most of them even including text to explain the pictures and their historical or factual significance.

One thing to be aware of: these aren't for really little kids. We typically think of coloring books as appealing to toddlers or 1st graders, but these are probably best enjoyed beginning in 2nd grade at least. High school students and adults have been known to spend hours hunched over a Dover or Spizzirri Press coloring book, and when you see the pictures they're filled with you'll know why.

Obviously, basic art instruction is still the best use for coloring books. You don't want to base your study of ancient Rome around a coloring book, but at the same time it doesn't hurt to supplement. Kids like to color, you want your kids to learn, and if coloring historically accurate images of men in togas and sandals helps cement important information in their heads, why not take advantage of that?

None of these are particularly long (except a few that include several shorter volumes), making them easy to transport, color in, and keep in a desk drawer. There are books in these categories to fit into just about any area of study or interest. Peruse our selection at your own risk—it's easy to spend more time than you intended looking over the surprisingly diverse titles.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

 

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43 Items found Print
Active Filters: Used Books & Materials
159 Celtic Designs
by Amy Lusebrink
from Dover Publications
for 5th-Adult
in Abstract & Mosaic Coloring Books (Location: COL-ABS)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Airplanes of the Second World War - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Carlo Demand
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Transportation Coloring Books (Location: COL-TRANS)
$5.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Bach Book
by Victoria Tierney & Crystal Landucci
from Oregon Coast Music Association
for 2nd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Billy Yank - Coloring Book
by Alan Archambault
from Bellerophon Books
Coloring Book for 4th-8th grade
in American Civil War (1860-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$4.95 $3.50 (2 in stock)
Byzantine Fashions - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Tom Tierney
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Costume & Fashion Coloring Books (Location: COL-FAS)
$4.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Castles Stained Glass - Coloring Book
by A. G. Smith
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Fine Art Coloring Books (Location: COL-ART)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Cathedral Stained Glass - Coloring Book
by Ed Sibbett Jr.
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Fine Art Coloring Books (Location: COL-ART)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Color and Learn: Native America
Color & Learn
by Elizabeth Adams
from Educators Press
for Preschool-1st grade
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Color Yourself Smart: Human Anatomy
by Wendy L. Leonard, illustrations by Philip Ferguson Jones
from Thunder Bay Press
for 6th-12th grade
in Anatomy Coloring Books (Location: SCI-ANACOL)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Coloring Book of American Indians
from Bellerophon Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Native American Coloring Books (Location: COL-NAM)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Coloring Book of Ancient Egypt
by Bellerophon Books
from Bellerophon Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Ancient Egypt (Location: HISW-ANEG)
$3.50 (2 in stock)
Coloring Book of Early Composers
by Eric Tomb & Nancy Conkle
from Bellerophon Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$4.95 $3.50 (1 in stock)
Coloring Book of Great Composers Book 2
by David Brownell & Nancy Conkle
from Bellerophon Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Coloring Book of Great Composers Book 3
by David Brownell & Nancy Conkle
from Bellerophon Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Music History (Location: ELE-MUSHIS)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Columbus Discovers America - Coloring Book
by Peter F. Copeland
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in History of America Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISA)
$4.99 $3.00 (2 in stock)
Creative Haven Abstract Designs - Coloring Book
Creative Haven
by Brian Johnson
Csm from Dover Publications
for 7th-Adult
in Adult Coloring Books (Location: COL-ADULT)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Exploring the Solar System - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Bruce LaFontaine
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Space Coloring Books (Location: COL-SPACE)
$5.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
French Baroque and Rococo Fashions - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Tom Tierney
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Costume & Fashion Coloring Books (Location: COL-FAS)
$4.99 $3.00 (1 in stock)
Historic Sailing Ships - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Tre Tryckare Company
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Transportation Coloring Books (Location: COL-TRANS)
$4.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
History of Flight - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by A. G. Smith
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Transportation Coloring Books (Location: COL-TRANS)
$4.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Impressionist Art Masterpieces to Color
by Marty Noble
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-4th grade
in Fine Art Coloring Books (Location: COL-ART)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Johnny Reb - Coloring Book
by Alan Archambault
from Bellerophon Books
Coloring Book for 4th-8th grade
in American Civil War (1860-1865) (Location: HISA-19CW)
$3.50 (2 in stock)
Knights & Heraldry Coloring Book
by Bellerophon Herald (gathered by)
from Bellerophon Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Middle Ages (Location: HISW-MID)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Let's Look Inside a Tepee
by Betsy Warren
from RanchGate
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Life in Celtic Times - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by A. G. Smith & William Kaufman
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in History of the World Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISW)
$4.99 $3.00 (1 in stock)
Life in Old Japan - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by John Green
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in History of the World Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISW)
$4.99 $3.00 (1 in stock)
Marine Biology - Coloring Book
by Thomas M. Niesen
from Harper Perennial
for 4th-6th grade
in Sharks & Fishes (Location: SCI-FISH)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
My First Book About Weather Coloring Book
by Donald M. Silver & Patricia J. Wynne
from Dover Publications
for 1st-4th grade
in Nature / Geography Coloring Books (Location: COL-NAT)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Northeast Indians - Coloring Book
by Peter M. Spizzirri
from Spizzirri Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Native American Coloring Books (Location: COL-NAM)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Ojibway Indians - Coloring Book
by Chet Kozlak
from Minnesota Historical Society Press
for 3rd-9th grade
in Native American Coloring Books (Location: COL-NAM)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Old Ship Figureheads - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by John Batchelor
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in History of the World Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISW)
$3.95 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Peterson Field Guide Coloring Book: Forests
Peterson Field Guide Coloring Books
by John C. Kricher, Sara Bennett
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Forests & Mountains (Location: SCI-FOREST)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Peterson Field Guide: Reptiles and Amphibians - Coloring Book
by Sarah Anne Hughes, consulting editors Robert Stebbins and Roger Conant
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-7th grade
in Reptiles & Amphibians (Location: SCI-REPT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Pinocchio - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Simon Galkin
from Dover Publications
Coloring Book for 2nd-6th grade
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Plains Indians - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by David Rickman
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Native American Coloring Books (Location: COL-NAM)
$4.99 $2.50 (3 in stock)
Queen Elizabeth I - Paper Dolls to Color
from Bellerophon Books
in Miscellaneous Coloring Books (Location: COL-MISC)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Rip Van Winkle - Coloring Book
by A. Rackham, P. Stewart, W. Irving
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-4th grade
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$4.99 $3.00 (1 in stock)
Satellites - Coloring Book
Educational Read & Color Books
by Peter & Linda Spizzirri
from Spizzirri Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Space Coloring Books (Location: COL-SPACE)
$3.95 $2.00 (1 in stock)
Shakespeare Coloring Book
from Bellerophon Books
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Shipwrecks and Sunken Treasures - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by Peter F. Copeland
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in History of the World Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISW)
$4.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
South Pacific Seafarers - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by A. G. Smith
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in History of the World Coloring Books (Location: COL-HISW)
$3.95 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Start Exploring the American West
by Emmanuel M. Kramer, illustrated by Helen I. Driggs
from Running Press
for 1st-5th grade
in Western Expansion (1800-1898) (Location: HISA-19WES)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Zoology Coloring Book
by Lawrence M. Elson
1st edition from HarperCollins
for 9th-Adult
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$24.99 $14.00 (1 in stock)