Origami Made Easy

Rating:
Summary: One of the best overall books
Review: I have about 300 origami books and have designed several hundred of my own models and Origami Made Easy is still the book I most recommend.

Kunihiko Kasahara is one of the most prolific origami writers. Origami Made Easy is one of his older books but it has been constantly in print and that is rare in origami books.

The book is nicely organized in sections by theme and the drawings are quite clear. The diagrams follow the standard Yoshizawa\Randlett style using just diagrams and almost no text to show how to fold figures.

Some of my favorite models are in this book, including my favorite peacock.

I have always felt it was best to learn origami by example with a teacher or tutor and not straight from a book (as I was forced to do), but for folders just getting into the art I would always recommend this book.

Rating:
Summary: thumbs down
Review: this book is good for giving instruction on the different forms of folds but the illistrations and diagrams are were this book lacks. the diagrams are there but there is only one or two explinations of the different steps. I find it very hard to follow instructions when all I see is a picture telling me to do something and I don't have an explination. so I say if your in need of learning how to make certain folds then by all means use this book but using it to learn how to make an item is very difficult and I don't recomend this book.

Rating:
Summary: Good for children and beginners, but very short
Review: This is a pretty short basic origami book. It has simplemodels that are fairly well illustrated. It's geared more towardschildren or for classroom use. Frankly, I felt ripped off taking this book out of the library. There are better uses of your origami dollars. I could see this, along with a pack of paper, making a nice gift for a child. I would definitely not buy it for someone past 12.

Rating:
Summary: Good basic book for beginners
Review: This was one of my first origami books. I now have several dozen origami books, but I still come back to this for a few models every now and then.

It is a very good book for learning/teaching the basics, and the models reflect the attribute I most admire in Kasahara's work - elegance. Be they simple or complicated, Mr. Kasahara's models have just the right balance of detail, to make them look full, and restraint, to avoid looking forced.

This makes an excellent introduction to origami, not only in its instruction of the techniques of paper-folding but also in the esthetics of what makes a model successful.

Rating:
Summary: Good basic book for beginners
Review: This was one of my first origami books. I now have several dozen origami books, but I still come back to this for a few models every now and then.

It is a very good book for learning/teaching the basics, and the models reflect the attribute I most admire in Kasahara's work - elegance. Be they simple or complicated, Mr. Kasahara's models have just the right balance of detail, to make them look full, and restraint, to avoid looking forced.

This makes an excellent introduction to origami, not only in its instruction of the techniques of paper-folding but also in the esthetics of what makes a model successful.