Origami Zoo: An Amazing Collection of Folded Paper Animals [Paperback]

Robert J. Lang (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 1990

In Origami Zoo, two of the world's finest paper folders present an exciting collection of original origami animals. Their creatures, ranging from the exotic to the familiar, the elegant to the whimsical, will both inspire the beginner and challenge the most accomplished folder.

Choose among the dolphin, penguin, swan, owl, goose, kangaroo, praying mantis, or even the mythical Pegasus or extinct wooly mammoth. Each of these thirty-seven new projects is true origami-folded from a single piece of paper with no cutting or gluing-and is complete with clear step-by-step diagrams, instructions, and a photograph of the finished model.

Origami Zoo will challenge and delight anyone with a penchant for creating something wonderful out of (almost) nothing.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robert J. Lang, author of The Complete Book of Origami, lives in Altadena, California. Stephen Weiss is the author of Wings & Things: Origami That Flies, and is the designer of the FliteRings kit, distributed by AG Industries. He lives in Miami Beach, Florida.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; 1st edition (June 15, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312040156
• ISBN-13: 978-0312040154
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #115,185 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #52 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Papercrafts, Stamping & Stenciling > Origami

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 56 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A great book full of variety!! August 3, 2006

A Kid's Review

Format:Paperback

This is the first origami book I have bought,Origami Zoo. Before I got this book I had to print heaps of stuff off the internet, and before long I had a huge collection of stuff I put in a folder. I soon found out that all the models I had printed out were way too hard for me, even though I'm around the intermediate to advanced level!! As cool as they may sound, the Biplane always confused me, the Bee always ripped and the Alien always became too small and thick.

But then I discovered Amazon.com. Here there were millions of choices of origami books, but I chose to get "Origami Zoo, an Amazing Collection of folded paper animals." This book was at my level exactly!!

My fav models are, so far:

- The Penguin. Even though this is one of the easiest, it still looks lifelike side-on.

- The Owl. This model is also 2D, but it perches on a thin rod, and looks lifelike as well.

- The Duck. This model is a particularly cute 3D one!

- The Sea Turtle. This model is both fun to make and cool to look at!!

- The Fox. This model is rather easy, 3D, and lifelike!

None of the models in this book are very easy. Most of them are at the intermediate level, but the last 10 or so models are complex. I still haven't gotten to the real complex models yet, but when I do, I hope I have a lot of large origami paper on hand!!

This book contains info at the start, about folds, paper, designing models and so on.

I would recommend this book to people who like to make a variety of animals, not just plain four legged animals, but insects and sea creatures as well!!

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Some of the best animal models around! September 21, 2000

By Mary Jo Sminkey TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

This book deserves 5 stars just for the praying mantis...probably my favorite model I ever folded. So completely true to life, it's scary. My dad was never very impressed with my origami, but many years ago when he saw that mantis I folded sitting out on the table, he swiped it to take into work to show off. So I folded another one just for him, which he still has to this day. My only complaint is that this model does not use square paper, but a little measuring and cutting is well worth it for the finished result.

There are plenty of other good models in here, the crab, the eagle, etc. There are some intermediate models to get you started on (dolphin, penguin, swan), but this is definitely a book for an experienced folder and will take some practice and patience to get through the harder models. The mantis is not the only model with non-square paper, and I find that Lang does have a tendency to be fairly sparse on his diagramming in comparison to someone like Montroll who really doesn't skimp on helping you through the intermediate steps. This does make these models a bit more challenging than they would be if more thoroughly diagrammed, so if you are a fairly new origamist, I would recommend starting with some of John's books before moving up to this one. Even with my experience, some models like the butterfly continue to frustrate me due to some steps that I always seem to get stuck on.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Splendid, Scintillating, A must for origami fan. December 2, 1999

By Sen Peng Eu

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book contains dozens of origami animals, ranging from med to highly-complex. At first we may doubt this is just another routine four-leg animals. However, two authors give us models unexpectedly various, and most of the figurations are wonderful. We have some of the most beauitful modeling here: A crab, a eagle in full-spread wing(with the feathers!), A dog in the doghouse(single paper), A very vivid rabbit. And the folding steps are full of wonder. The only disadvantage in this book is that for a new folder the diagrams are very neat and succinct, usually Several steps combined in one diagram. But this deserves since this book contains so many models and they are arranged by level of difficulty. This is a must for any origami fan.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Advanced Folders, get your Special Paper out! December 1, 2002

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

There are three things you should be aware of when buying this book:

First, if you have less than one year of folding experience, hands off! Rather try out some of the less complex origami books out there, e.g. "Origami from Angelfish to Zen" by Peter Engel.

Second, ordinary origami paper as you can buy it in craft stores won't get you very far here. For several models in this book, standard paper is simply to small in size for the elaborate folds. Rather go for florist's paper or tissue foil (my personal favorite).

Third, this book contains SOME OF THE VERY BEST ANIMAL FOLDS out there! The Praying Mantis, of course, which is improved a lot over Lang's first Mantis that is published in the internet. But there are a lot of other great folds in here, e.g. a very realistically looking Bear, a Rabbit, several nice color-contrast explorations like the Panda and the Skunk and one of the best crabs out there.

A must-have for any serious folder!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolute excellence... Don't Miss! July 1, 2003

By Augusto Patino

Format:Paperback

Even though the final models are *extremely* complex, the book begins with very interesting texts about origami origins, evolution and approaches to creation; and the models go in progression from the very simplest ones. So actually this is an excellent "transition" book - if you have some experience with origami and have the ambition to try more complex stuff, there cannot be a better book than this one to guide you. The diagrams are crystal clear, and so are the indications. I got this book when I was 11 (I'm 24 now), and it is still every bit as amazing an enjoyable as back then!!