A skunk and a raccoon befriend one another in this no-frills coloring book.
The story in Animal Acres: Coloring Book is light, as the narrative of a coloring book probably ought to be: Sammy, a skunk who hears a strange noise one night, finds dinner on the lawn of a farm called Animal Acres. While eating, he notices a “strange new creature” with unusual stripes and invites it to share a meal with him.
The creature is a raccoon named Rocky, and the two become good friends with “more adventures to come,” the last page promises. “Adventures” might be an overstatement, as the illustrations show that they spend most of their time just walking, eating, drinking water and napping.
Positioned as a coloring book with only the barest bones of a narrative, Animal Acres should provide diverse and exciting scenes to color. Unfortunately, several scenes in the book look almost identical; indeed, there are five full-page, black-and-white illustrations of the friends walking side by side, the scale and perspective barely changing.
The illustrations also contain some inconsistencies: On the first page, Sammy peers from behind a tree in the woods, but on the next page the text says he leaves a barn and is depicted walking down a path with no trees in sight. The pages themselves are semi-gloss, which will make them difficult to color on with some materials.
In all, the coloring book lacks creativity and misses the mark on paper selection. Still, Animal Acres is a reasonably acceptable coloring book for those seeking options.
Also available in hardcover and ebook.
