Book Review: ビバ・イル・チクリッシモ! (VIVA IL CICLISSIMO!)

Here's something you don't see everyday. Two great manga artists, Katsuhiro Otomo and Katsuya Terada, drawing something different for a change, bicycling.

This is their coverage on Giro d'Italia 2007 in manga style. Giro d'Italia, or The Giro, is a long distance bicycle race in Italy.

There are two books in this package, one hardcover and one paperback. They come with a vinyl slipcase. There's also a (fragile) carrying bag with Terada's art on it. This is a limited edition art package and it's quite pricey. I'm amazed I bought it.

The 80-page hardcover book just features art from Otomo and Terada. Fans familiar with Otomo's style can expect the same level of detail in his illustrations here. The pieces are beautifully done in pencil and watercolour. It's really refreshing to see him take on a subject that's not fantasy. Terada's art occupy the other half of the book and looks more sketchy compared to Otomo's. He uses a limited and darker palette of colours. The writeup and captions are in Japanese (unfortunately for me).

The 112-page paperback features additional artists like Hiroyuki Kitakubo, Hidekazu Ohara, Rintaro, Iou Kuroda, Kitaro Kosaka and Shinji Higuchi. There are art and lots of essays on bicycling in this volume. Interesting to see here are some weird bicycling art, like special theme helmets, concept bikes and imaginative collages.

The two art books are very cool but also very pricey, recommended more for fans of Otomo and Terada.

This book is available at:
Amazon.com | Amazon Japan | YesAsia USA

Video shows both the hardcover and paper books.

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This book is available at:
Amazon.com | Amazon Japan | YesAsia USA

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Here's the Amazon Japan buying guide for your reference.