Origami paper animals

Review by Booklist Review

Gr. 6-up. Joining the recent surge in origami books, these three titles offer craft ideas for the dexterous artist. Nguyen's title gives the most complete advice for beginners, with an introduction that takes them step-by-step through the basic folds. Subsequent projects, displayed in colorful, easily followed spreads, are relatively advanced, and they are not rated according to difficulty. Experienced and talented artists will appreciate Nguyen's suggestion to add painted details and create a "fantasy" environment for the pieces. Boursin, author of the adult title Advanced Origami (2000), offers some beginning information before delving into neatly outlined projects featuring airplanes or animals that are clearly labeled for difficulty. With their range of project subjects and complexities, all three titles offer plenty of material for origami enthusiasts. --Gillian Engberg

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

---

Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 5-8-Not so much biographies, these books focus on these men in relation to the work they have done. Torvalds created and manages the Linux operating system, Ellison is the mastermind behind Oracle, and Yang and Filo created Yahoo! while they were graduate students at Stanford. Fairly short and definitely accessible, the books will appeal not only to report writers, but also to recreational readers. The only disappointment is the illustrations. The black-and-white photos often have little to do with the subjects. For example, Ellison includes stock photos of Chicago, Berkeley, and Yosemite National Park. Still, because of their subjects, these biographies may find an audience.-Yapha Nussbaum Mason, Brentwood Lower School, Los Angeles (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

---

Review by Horn Book Review

Boursin gives detailed instructions, accompanied by diagrams and color photos, for twenty-eight origami animals, many of them his own design. The projects themselves are usefully labeled according to the skill level required. The ubiquitous peace crane is absent, but others include fish, rabbits, hens and chicks, giraffes, and frogs. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

---

From the Instructions "So, inanimate objects, do you have a soul?" Poetic Meditations Alphonse de Lmartine For this book, I have created 28 animals to which I have given an expression, a movement, sometimes a look, and almost a soul. Every fold is a humorous wink at life. The models are worked out meticulously, down to the smallest detail, while adhering to the spirit of creating a work of art in paper, with the minimum of folds required to achieve a beautiful effect. Have you ever seen a heron spreading out his wings before flight, a panther lazing in the sun, a mouse sniffing a good piece of cheese? It is up to you to continue these stories by imagining what follows. Paper is a material as noble as wood and stone. This book is the expression of a modern designer who sculpts paper in an ephemeral way as others capture the moment by a photograph or a poem. Folding paper is also a thought game, a logical development where someone's nimble fingers fold a simple sheet of paper to result in an absolutely personal portrayal of an animal, with the hope that it is sufficiently expressive to be recognized by others. I wanted to dress my animals in fur or feathers by using beautiful papers in dazzling colors without ever wanting to reproduce reality. I hope that these poetic folds will make people think about our environment and our planet where certain species are disappearing one by one. I hope you will derive as much pleasure as I do in producing these magnificent animals, some of which are truly small masterpieces. Excerpted from Origami Paper Animals by Didier Boursin All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

---