LEGO Christmas Ornaments Book
No Starch Press’ latest LEGO book is adorable. The LEGO Christmas Ornaments Book by Chris McVeigh contains 15 Christmas themed models in two groups. The design of the geometric hanging ornaments is really inspired. The second half has instructions for several micro-objects, like an old-school arcade machine, an tiny desktop PC, and a SLR style camera. Adorable.
Like most of the things No Starch Press does, I love this book. The photos are gorgeous and the book itself is a nice square hardback. The instructions are very clear and easy to follow. My five year old son and I easily built the gingerbread house together (pictured above, with a few color swaps). I’d say a typically eight year old could do most of the models with only minor assistance.
My only complaint, and really this goes for most of the LEGO books, is the challenge of getting the right pieces. Most models in the book require at least a couple of specialty pieces, in most cases multiples and in specific colors. The average child simply won’t have enough of these pieces to build a model. Even I (an adult with decades of LEGOS) had to substitute a few pieces for ones I didn’t have.
In short, few people have the exact pieces to build these models without specifically ordering them for the project from a website like BrickLink and BrickOwl, or the rare times that a LEGO Store’s Pick a Brick wall has what you need.
Available on Amazon now.