20th century Coloring Book - a Surprise Castle exclusive

24 hand-illustrated scenes from a hundred years of jazz halls, factory floors, drive-ins, and rocket cabins, from a Model T assembly line to a man floating in a capsule.

One century. Cars, planes, rockets, computers — and a really good party every decade.

A hand-drawn adult coloring book, 24 scenes that run from 1920s factories and 1950s diners to 1970s discos and 1980s computer labs. The pace is set by a Wurlitzer's hum and the click of a Polaroid, not the next notification.

Step into a 1980s computer lab where five workers type at boxy CRTs, beige towers under each desk and ribbon printers ready. Walk into a 1970s outdoor music festival where a band plays under a tent canopy, a crowd dancing on grass. Pull up to a 1950s downtown street with chrome-finned cars at the curb, a hotel marquee, a shoe-store window, men in fedoras crossing the street. Then out to an early 1900s farm where a primitive tractor turns the soil, a barn and a silo behind the homestead.

The pages keep moving. A 1920s train station with a steam locomotive at the platform, passengers boarding under the iron canopy with leather suitcases. A 1980s living room with the family on a low sofa watching a wood-cabinet television. A library reading room with patrons at long tables among floor-to-ceiling shelves. A 1950s diner where a uniformed waitress sets a milkshake on the chrome counter for a couple in matching jackets.

Wander through the century. A 1950s classroom where the teacher works a math problem at the blackboard while children at wooden desks raise their hands. A 1960s rock band on a low stage with bass, drums, two guitarists, and a lead singer at the mic. A 1940s aircraft factory where women in coveralls and scarves rivet the fuselage of a fighter on the line. A 1930s movie theater marquee glowing over a crowd in evening dress lined behind velvet ropes.

Keep going. A 1920s tea party in a marble parlor, a man and woman in evening dress under a chandelier with a porcelain service between them. A suburban backyard barbecue, a man at the grill flipping burgers, lawn chairs and a picket fence framing the lawn. An astronaut floating in a capsule, the porthole open onto stars, control panels lit at his elbow. A second 1950s diner with booths and a counter, the jukebox glowing pink. A 1920s automobile factory line, Model Ts moving forward as workers fit running boards. A 1970s arcade with stand-up cabinets and two players gripping joysticks. A farmer's market street with vendors at striped awnings, customers picking through produce. A horse-drawn cable car climbing a city street, conductor at the bell. A 1970s disco under a mirrored ball, flared pants and platform shoes everywhere. A second steam locomotive arriving at a grand terminal. A 1950s family on the carpet around a wood-cabinet TV, a boy stretched out on the floor. And to close, a 1920s nightclub with a flapper dancing while a saxophonist holds a long note and a pianist works the keys.

There's a reason coloring sticks around. It gives a busy mind somewhere to land, and in this case that somewhere is the chrome on a 50s Cadillac or the keys of a 60s Telecaster. Some pages are bold and forgiving. Others will eat a whole afternoon. Works fine with colored pencils, fine-tip markers, or gel pens.

If you know someone who collects vinyl in genre order, a friend who can date a car by its tail-fins, or anyone who saw the moon landing live, this is for them. It's also for the person who'd quietly rather shade a 1950s diner on a Saturday than scroll.

Hit rewind.

Inside you'll find 24 scenes: a 1980s computer lab, a 1970s outdoor music festival, a 1950s downtown street, an early 1900s farm with tractor, a 1920s train station, a 1980s living room with television, a library reading room, a 1950s diner, a 1950s classroom, a 1960s rock band on stage, a 1940s aircraft factory with women workers, a 1930s movie theater marquee, a 1920s tea party, a suburban backyard barbecue, an astronaut in a capsule, a second 1950s diner interior, a 1920s automobile assembly line, a 1970s arcade, a farmer's market, a horse-drawn cable car, a 1970s disco, a steam locomotive at a grand terminal, a 1950s family around a TV, and a 1920s nightclub with flapper and jazz band.