Papertoy Monsters: Make Your Very Own Amazing Papertoys! [Paperback]

Brian Castleforte (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 29, 2010

A breakthrough paper-folding book for kids—paper airplanes meet Origami meets Pokemon. Papertoys, the Internet phenomenon that’s hot among graphic designers and illustrators around the world, now comes to kids in the coolest new book. Created and curated by Brian Castleforte, a graphic designer and papertoy pioneer who rounded up 25 of the hottest papertoy designers from around the world (Indonesia, Japan, Australia, Italy, Croatia, Chile, even Jackson, Tennessee), Papertoy Monsters offers 50 fiendishly original die-cut designs that are ready to pop out, fold, and glue. The book interleaves card stock with paper stock for a unique craft package; the graphics are colorful and hip, combining the edginess of anime with the goofy fun of Uglydolls and other collectibles. Plus each character comes with its own back-story.

And the results are delicious: meet Pharaoh Thoth Amon, who once ruled Egypt but is now a mummy who practices dark magic in his sarcophagus. Or Zumbie the Zombie, who loves nothing more than a nice plate of brains and yams. NotSoScary, a little monster so useless at frightening people that he has to wear a scary mask. Yucky Chuck, the lunchbox creature born in the deepest depths of your school bag. Plus Zeke, the monster under your bed, Nom Nom, eater of cities, and Grumpy Gramps, the hairy grandpa monster with his very own moustache collection.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Castleforte, who has designed graphics for MTV and Warner Brothers, is also the creator of nicepapertoys.com, a popular social network for “papertoy” artists around the globe, and in this colorful volume, he showcases projects submitted by 25 international masters of the “community-based art form.” Following an opening challenge (“You have 50 monsters to set free from the pages of this book”), notes discuss materials, tools, and techniques (including basic paper folds) before moving into specific directions for constructing creatures. Each section provides straightforward assembly instructions for a wildly imagined creature that is described in a short biographical paragraph, with specific details that add to the fun. Accompanying pop-out templates will pose challenges for circulation, but given the likely popularity of this title, libraries may well find creative solutions in order to make this available to a growing audience of young “papertoy” artists. Grades 4-7. --Gillian Engberg

About the Author

Brian Castleforte is an artist and graphic designer who has created cutting-edge graphics for Nike, Sony, Warner Brothers, MTV, and others. He is also the creator of nicepapertoys.com, the first and only papertoy social network. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two (real) puppies.

Product Details

• Paperback: 124 pages
• Publisher: Workman Publishing Company (December 29, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0761158820
• ISBN-13: 978-0761158820
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #14,269 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, edgy, child-friendly concepts, but difficult for little hands..., December 31, 2010

By 

Anonymous - See all my reviews

This review is from: Papertoy Monsters: Make Your Very Own Amazing Papertoys! (Paperback)

I bought this for my 9-year-old nephew for Christmas, and it was a great success--except that I spent three days making papertoy monsters for him instead of watching him do it himself! The concepts are absolutely great. The monsters are so original--they are inspired by a combination of manga, skateboard culture, and mythology and folktales. Some, like Lil Vamp, are inspired by a folktale but brought up to the modern day, but others, like Polyphemus, are identical to their original source (in this case, The Odyssey). Others still are completely original creations. The stories about each monster are really good and super fun for kids to read aloud, and my nephew was thrilled to provide me with each step of the instructions to build each monsters.

However, when he tried to pop the paper pieces out himself, he couldn't help but rip the paper with his little hands, and it was too hard for him to apply glue very accurately to very small areas, pull the paper together, and hold it long enough for it to adhere. A 9-year-old with excellent motor skills and a very long attention span might be able to do the easiest of the easy patterns. I don't have kids myself so I may not be the best judge, but this 9-year-old would have gotten very frustrated and sad if he hadn't had his auntie around to make a bunch of monsters for him.

That said, as an adult I admit I was sort of glad that I got to make the monsters because it was so fun. The pattern pieces are clearly labeled, the instructions are excellent and very clear, and it was really easy to put them together with a very good quality glue stick. There's a great glossary at the front containing some basic hints for constructing the monsters, and there's a list of contributors at the back giving the name of the designer of each monster pattern (lots of different designers contributed), a bio, and a URL for their own websites. This is a great collaborative project. I think my favorite thing about it is that the monsters are really edgy but the written and illustrated content is totally acceptable for little kids and doesn't talk down to them.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Video Review from 7yr old & his Daddy!, June 2, 2011

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BeachBrights "beachbrights blogspot" (TX) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Papertoy Monsters: Make Your Very Own Amazing Papertoys! (Paperback)

Length:: 2:26 Mins

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great papertoy resource, just a few problems..., April 11, 2011

By 

Mockingbird "mockingbird 1979" (Detroit) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Papertoy Monsters: Make Your Very Own Amazing Papertoys! (Paperback)

I love that Castleforte and others have created this book for there are but a few papertoy books out there. The idea of having each toy pre-printed was awesome (especially b/c of the toll printing papertoys can have on my printer ink). The creativity of these artists always amazes me and there are vast amounts (50) and kinds of toys for everyone (ie: don't let the name "monsters" scare away young girls - there is something in here for you too).

However, there are a few problems I had with the layout. Although the toys are pre-perforated, it is quite difficult just to punch them out - I had to use an x-acto knife (not an option for kids). I don't think kid-friendly scissors could be as exact as necessary in order to cut out some parts of the toys either, so any cutting would have to be done with parental supervision.

Also, the toys are printed on thinner paper (thinner than an average piece of cardstock). My craft glue tended to make the paper disintegrate, so I would suggest using double-sided tape or glue dots for construction. I also agree with another reviewer that this is not a book for younger kids - the toys are just too difficult for children to handle. I would suggest an age range of at least 10 years old (probably more like 12 and older). Also, remember that there is no CD-ROM included in this book, so any mistakes are permanent (no re-printing). Since the toys are double-sided, it is quite difficult to make practice copy, too.