Rating: 
Summary: Only for people who can draw several hours a day for years
Review: I bought this book based on the reviews here at Amazon, and that was over 4 years ago when there were very little reviews. I wish I had looked at it in the bookstore first because this book wasn't for me. First let me say I agree with almost all the reviews here. Whether you like this book or not will depend on what you want to do. If you're like me, and only want to draw as a hobby, this book is NOT for you. The book requires exercises that must be done every day. It amounts to a couple years of drawing exercises, and that's if done every day. Who has time for that? After that, if you're still interested, I strongly suggest you take a look at the book in person. The quality of the drawings in the book are pretty bad in my opinion. They're scribbles. If I drew like that after 2 years of daily exercises, I'd cut off my drawing hand. Look closely at the cover, look at the picture on the left and right, that is what this book teaches. The drawing in the middle is misleading in my opinion because there are very few drawings like that. So now I've concluded that this book is for people who want to draw scribbles every day for 2 years. A serious art student maybe, but the average person wanting to learn to draw I don't think so.I strongly recommend "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" by Betty Edwards if you're a total beginner. If you're not a beginner, my advice is to either continue practicing or find another book. I really doubt this book is for you.
Rating: 
Summary: THE Book for Serious Drawing
Review: I bought this book in 1972 (hard cover). Glad to see it's still in print. If you have some talent, and are willing to put in the work to fulfill the lessons in this book, you can learn to draw as well as ANYONE, and drawing will never be a limiting factor in your creative process. Better stock up on cheap paper, because you will end up with a stack about 6' high. But you will never forget what you learn here. Thanks to Mr Nicolaides!! Note: I didn't have models available for all the exercises, so I just went out to a place where there were a lot of people and drew them. You can adapt the lessons to your circumstances. I completed the course, working 6 hours a day for 6 months. I still use the book when I want to sharpen up some of my skills.
Rating: 
Summary: Doesn't work for me
Review: I bought this book on the strength of the reviews it had received, and i am sorry i did. I simply have not been able to make any headway into this book and it's drawing methods at all. It is a much more structured approach than the 'right side of the brain' books, which i found immediately accessible. Perhaps this book is better suited to a structured learning environment. Either way it didn't work for me.
Rating:
Summary: Back to the Drawing Board
Review: I bought this book, as well as The New Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, as a gift for my husband in an attempt to lure him back to his art table. This book asks you to put aside everything you think you know about drawing and relearn from scratch. You aren't simply learning to draw a copy of what your eyes see, you learn to draw from your minds eye aswell. To see the shape and form and not just the object as sections. I'm not a good reviewer. I never know what I might say that will give someone a positive impression, but I do know that this book will help a beginner who honestly wants to learn and an established artist who feels they have more to learn. And don't we all have more to learn?
Rating:
Summary: Modern art junk
Review: I browsed a copy of this book at the library and I looked at paintings done by Nicolaides on the internet. As far as I can determine, it seems he was just another deluded member of the modern art movement of the early 20th century. I haven't seen any evidence that this book will make someone a good figure draftsman. Justin Sweet's drawings are terrible. I choose not to be one of the lemmings who follow this charlatan Nicolaides. If you want to be a great draftsman of the classical tradition, this book is utter rubbish. We did one minute scribbly gesture drawings in life drawing class, but only for warmup purposes.
Rating:
Summary: A demanding and extremely instructional book on drawing.
Review: I first came upon this book as a textbook in college. This is a book that should remain close at hand and used often. Whether you are a beginner or an accomplished artist, this book is full of exercises that can improve your work. From countour and gesture drawing, memory drawing and quick studies, the figure, fabric, composition, light and shade..whatever you need to work on it's in here! No matter which you are, someone looking to learn to draw or to improve your drawing skills, you will not be disappointed with your purchase of this item. It is money well spent!
Rating:
Summary: not a short cut -- for those who want to develop mastery
Review: I first used this book as a text for an intermediate college rawing class. It is a true classic. But it is also a process. My instructor, who followed it faithfully, explained that you may get "worse" before you get better. That is because this book teaches you how to draw from the inside, with a full understanding of the form and structure of the subject. So if you are used to drawing with your hand, as they say, and rendering just the surface or details, then getting used to drawing with the arm will take a bit of adjustment. But in the end, you will come to a MUCH stronger knowledge of the form, and your drawings will reflect that. A trained eye can usually tell the drawing that came from life from the one that was copied from a photograph; likewise the one that came from someone with a solid understanding of their subject matter. If you are looking for a "how to do proportion or shading", this isn't really it. But if you want to develop your skills as a serious artist, there is no short cut.
Rating:
Summary: not a short cut -- for those who want to develop mastery
Review: I first used this book as a text for an intermediate college rawing class. It is a true classic. But it is also a process. My instructor, who followed it faithfully, explained that you may get "worse" before you get better. That is because this book teaches you how to draw from the inside, with a full understanding of the form and structure of the subject. So if you are used to drawing with your hand, as they say, and rendering just the surface or details, then getting used to drawing with the arm will take a bit of adjustment. But in the end, you will come to a MUCH stronger knowledge of the form, and your drawings will reflect that. A trained eye can usually tell the drawing that came from life from the one that was copied from a photograph; likewise the one that came from someone with a solid understanding of their subject matter. If you are looking for a "how to do proportion or shading", this isn't really it. But if you want to develop your skills as a serious artist, there is no short cut.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding instruction in classical drawing
Review: I have used this book, both personally and in drawing classes, and I have to say, the author's approach is meticulous, well-thought out, and based on the best principles of learning to draw. That is, the student is led through a series of exercises designed to build a solid vocabulary of drawing techniques and observation skills. Well worth the price! I happily lost my previous copy to a wanna-be drawing friend years ago, and I happily replace it again today. An excellent companion to Betty Edwards' fine book. Please don't be dismayed by the semi-literate rantings of some reviewers. This book has been used very successfully as the core instruction manual for many drawing classes.
Rating: 
Summary: a method of learning to "feel" and move in your artwork
Review: I just finished taking a drawing course in which my instructor taught the same concepts that Nicolaides writes about: extensive gesture studies, blind contour drawing, modeling of the form with gesture-mass studies. Honestly, as I worked in class, I had very little idea of what these exercises were for (it would have been great to have had a hold of this book then). I have always been good at rendering figures in a hyper-realistic manner, but as one reviewer described student work at his school as "well rendered work, but its flat, uninspired, and repetative," my work had no life to it. What I found was that the more I practiced seeing and feeling my subject matter through these "scribble" drawings, the freer my line and hand grew, and the more presence I started to see in what I put on the paper. If you want a method to help you learn to "feel" your work and move you beyond mere rendering, I highly recommend this book. But along with that desire should come a commitment to practice the exercises with an open mind if you want to get the results. I have learned for myself that having a lot of head knowledge about art techniques hasn't made my work vital, nor his it given me the itch in my bones that I need to truly create. Even though this may sound silly, I used to consider myself a good drawer, but now I feel that the door to being an "artist" is opened to me. If you are more interested in a book to help you practice techniques with less of a time/effort commitment, I recommend Bert Dodson's Keys to Drawing. It is more of a "how-to" book for beginning students. It takes a very different teaching approach, more practical, but I like it for the many visual examples, the broad range of fun exercises, and the sections on drawing faces and proportions.
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