Book Review: Tiny LEGO Wonders
It’s that time again: No Starch Press kicks off a new series of LEGO themed books and the very first in the series is Tiny LEGO Wonders.
You may recognise the name of the author—Mattia Zamboni—from a previous No Starch title we reviewed: The LEGO Build-It Book (volumes 1 and 2, which we reviewed in HispaBrick Magazine 017 and 018 respectively). In that case, Mattia was responsible for the step-by-step instruction of the models designed by Nathanael Kuipers. The instructions were a very clear and easy to follow ad that was in part due to the rendering work done by Mattia. His work has generated quite some interest in the AFOL community and as a result he will be giving a presentation on his rendering techniques at the upcoming Skaerbeak Fan Weekend.
Tiny LEGO Wonders is a collection of instructions for 40 mini models plus ideas for variations. These models are divided into 10 different categories. The first 7 sections all contribute to various aspects of a complete fleet of vehicles for a miniature city, from transport and construction to different kinds of cars and (one of my favourites) a bucket truck for the fire department. The next three chapters concentrate on military aeronautics and space exploration.
Each model is set up in the same way, starting with a render of the complete model together with a bill of materials (BOM) and an indication of difficulty on one page and one or more high quality images of the brick-built model on the other page. This provides not only a beautiful presentation of the model, but also an opportunity to start reverse engineering the model, to see if you can figure out how to build the model just from the BOM plus finished model.
The next pages provide clear and easy to follow building instructions for the main model and, in many cases, ideas for alternatives that involve minor changes in colour and parts.
Another important feature of the book is that each section is introduced with an overview image that places the models of that section in context, providing additional ideas and inspiration.
While some of the models were designed by the author himself, another 10 AFOLs have contributed models to the book, making this a truly international effort.
Finally a little anecdote from the official press release. No Starch Press Founder Bill Pollock mentions: "I've ben fascinated by miniscale buildings since I followed a friend into a LEGO store and he walked out with a cupful of bricks and told me was going to build an airport. You don't need a huge collection to bring your ideas to life". Sounds like his friend has an advance review copy of Tiny LEGO Wonders! :)
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