Author: Chris Alexander
Hardcover: 272 pages
Publisher: Workman Publishing Company
ISBN-10: 0761169431
ISBN-13: 978-0761169437
Synopsis:
Kids love origami—and what could be cooler than transforming a piece of paper into Boba Fett, Princess Leia, Yoda, or R2-D2? And not just any paper, but custom-designed paper illustrated with art from the movies. Star Wars® Origami marries the fun of paper folding with the obsession of Star Wars. Like The Joy of Origami and Origami on the Go, this book puts an original spin on an ancient art. And like Star Wars® Scanimation® and Star Wars® Fandex®, it’s a fresh take on Star Wars mania.
Chris Alexander is a master folder and founder of the popular website StarWarsOrigami.com, and here are 36 models, clearly explained, that range in difficulty from Youngling (easy) to Padawan (medium), Jedi Knight (difficult), and Jedi Master (tricky!). A front section introduces origami definitions and basic folds. Bound in the back is the book’s unique folding paper, two sheets for each figure. Illustrated with original art, it makes each creation—the essential lightsabers, the Death Star, and much more—true to the movies.
Star Wars Origami includes a foreword by Tom Angleberger, author of the New York Times bestsellers The Strange Case of Origami Yoda and Darth Paper Strikes Back.
I have never attempted origami in any form until Star Wars Origami. My basic take on origami is that it can’t possibly be that hard. It’s just following directions and folding paper but I decided rather than jump in and attempt a Millennium Falcon right out of the gate, I would give the instruction a glance.
The book gives you the basic definitions of Mountain Fold, Valley Fold, Reverse Fold, Pivot Fold, etc. and a table of contents. Do not, I repeat do not use this table of contents as your guide to deciding what you will do first, especially if you are a beginner. Nay, you must hunt down the list of projects by level of difficulty (Youngling, Padawan, Jedi Knight, Jedi Master). This list is about 2/3s of the way into the book at page 258. It is the break between the instructions and the origami paper.
Yes. This book even comes with perforated origami paper that is printed to perfectly match the project you’re working on. They aren’t numbered in any way, but they are in order so I didn’t have too much trouble finding the project I wanted to work on, and each project comes with two sheets.
Even after reading the instructions I was still a little blasé about their difficulty and I decided that I would most assuredly be fine with a Padawan stage project. My first attempt was the Darth Vader helmet and the paper is still lying relatively flat as I type this. It was a complete bust. I was Mountain Folding when I should have been Valley Folding and vice versa. My inability to follow the directions combined with the dark paper combined with the dim lighting of my house combined with my less-than-existent origami skill amounted to a whole lot of failure.
But I didn’t give up. I tried Leia next and the audible jubilation that I exclaimed when I rocked my first reverse fold caused my whole family to crowd around. When she was complete, I had to do more.
High on the raw power of success I attempted the Imperial Star Destroyer, FAILED. Millennium Falcon, FAILED.
Rats.
It was at this point that I decided to heed the levels of training and kick myself back to the Youngling stage. Han Solo in Carbonite, SUCCESS. Sandcrawler, SUCCESS. They weren’t super impressive, but it was starting to give me a handle on the terminology and the diagrams. Baby steps.
This is a great book for a kid probably over the age of 9 and with a degree of patience (I would even say younger if their patience is well intact) or any adult with a fondness for Star Wars and perfectionism. Patience is key. I can’t say that enough. That and following the directions. You can’t just fold all willy nilly, it’s a precise thing.
You might think that I would deduct a star because my current Star Wars Origami failures outnumber my successes but you would be wrong. I will continue to try and hone my origami skills and someday I hope to conquer the Jabba.
I give Star Wars Origami Five Out of Five Stars. And as of the date of this post we are giving away two copies to our readers. Click here for more info on the giveaway.
Star Wars Origami is available from Amazon! Here’s a link!
[AMAZONPRODUCT=0761169431]
