Saturday, December 14, 2013

The LEGO Adventure Book, Vol. 2 Spaceships, Pirates, Dragons & More! by Rothrock: Book Review

The LEGO Adventure Book, Vol. 2: Spaceships, Pirates, Dragons & More!The LEGO Adventure Book, Vol. 2: Spaceships, Pirates, Dragons & More! by Megan H. Rothrock
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a book of inspiration. What they have done is to have a group of Master Builders show what they can do. But it is more than a book of pretty pictures of Lego models, it is a masterclass in Lego as a medium for art.

The Adventure Book takes a story line as a framework to present examples of models of various types. But it is not just a set of models. With each set of models, it is not just that the master builder is trying to make something, but, like artists in training, these models are created within a set of limitations, and as artists, they have learned to work creatively within the limitations.

What I like the most about this book, even in comparison to other Lego model books, is that it goes beyond the example and talks about the creative thinking that led to the model. What were the constraints that the artists gave themselves. And then not just what the master builder came up with, but examples of other things that they could have come up with. As such, this is not just an example of good designs, but inspiration for other designs. I especially appreciated the sections where they presented some of the techniques used for making some of the non-standard constructions. This is a good book for the one who wants to go beyond the standard techniques and models found in the typical set.

Note: I received a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher as part of the OReilly Blogger Program.
I review for the O'Reilly Reader Review Program
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