Military History Coloring Book - a Surprise Castle exclusive

24 hand-illustrated scenes from battlefields and bivouacs across the ages, from a Spartan phalanx to a tank crew at a desert pass.

Sound the bugle. Pick up the pencil.

A hand-drawn adult coloring book, 24 scenes that run from medieval sieges and naval landings to trench warfare and modern jungle ops. The pace is set by the slow tread of a column and the steady draw of a saber, not the next notification.

Step into Egypt where a Napoleonic officer in white uniform holds his sword before the pyramids. Walk to two soldiers facing each other before fortified castle walls. Pull up to a soldier with rifle and mounted machine gun atop a desert military jeep. Then to troops on a rocky mountain pass with barbed wire visible.

The pages keep moving. A helicopter hovering above a soldier in tropical jungle. A tank with twin-barreled turret in desert with a soldier nearby. A soldier on a wooden trench footbridge over barbed wire. An aircraft carrier deck with jet fighter and sailor.

Wander through the campaigns. A mountain valley with soldier crossing a rope bridge. A beach landing craft with soldiers and naval ships offshore. An urban ruins scene with soldier among collapsed buildings. A combat soldier before a smoking tank wreckage.

Keep going. A trench warfare scene with sandbags and barbed wire. A cavalry charge with mounted officers wielding sabers. An American Revolutionary soldier with starred flag and cannon. A Napoleonic officer on horseback beside a wheeled cannon. A soldier with rifle beside a wooden carriage cannon. A Revolutionary-era soldier with flag staff. A mounted archer on horseback. A medieval mounted king with heraldic banner. A Crusader with cross shield. A monarch on a rearing horse with lion standard. A Roman centurion with helmet and spear. And to close, a Greek Spartan with great shield and spear flanked by armored companions in a mountain pass.

There's a reason coloring sticks around. It gives a busy mind somewhere to land, and in this case that somewhere is the rivet of a tank turret or the chevron of a Crusader's shield. 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 with the entire John Keegan backlist, a friend who plays Hearts of Iron on weekends, or a veteran who's been to every D-Day anniversary in Normandy, this is for them. It's also for the person who'd quietly rather shade a tank on a Saturday than scroll.

Sound the bugle.

Inside you'll find 24 scenes: a Napoleonic officer before the pyramids, two soldiers facing each other before castle walls, a soldier with mounted machine gun atop a jeep, troops on a mountain pass with barbed wire, a helicopter hovering over a jungle soldier, a desert tank with soldier nearby, a trench footbridge over barbed wire, an aircraft carrier deck with jet, a mountain rope-bridge soldier, a beach landing craft with naval ships offshore, a soldier in urban ruins, a combat soldier before a smoking tank, a trench warfare scene with sandbags, a cavalry charge with sabers, an American Revolutionary soldier with cannon, a Napoleonic officer beside a wheeled cannon, a soldier with carriage cannon, a Revolutionary-era flag soldier, a mounted archer with curved bow, a medieval mounted king with banner, a Crusader with cross shield, a monarch on a rearing horse with lion standard, a Roman centurion before classical columns, and a Greek Spartan in a mountain pass.