Wild Fibonacci - A Review

WILD FIBONACCI - Nature's Secret Code Revealed

Joy N. Hulme

Illustrations: Carol Schwartz

2005 Tricycle Press (a little division of Ten Speed Press)

ISBN 1-58246-154-6

Wild Fibonacci is a beautifully illustrated book that introduces the reader to the Fibonacci sequence and how it appears in nature. For those not familiar with it, the Fibonacci sequence is 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34 and so on where the next number is found by adding the two before it (e.g. 2+3=5, 3+5=8).

Author Joy Hulme starts with a clear and simple explanation of the concepts, giving the most commonly claimed examples of where the Fibonacci numbers appear in Nature. Then, with pictures and rhyming verse aimed at the younger audience, she cleverly integrates the formula of the sequence (e.g. 2+3=5) with pictures of animals who have body parts (tusk, tooth, talon, or tail) whose curvature appears to fit a spiral.

The book is an excellent choice for parents wanting to instill a love of Mathematics in children because it shows its relevance by linking it to Nature. The rhymes stumble occasionally, but make up for it by being chock full of information for the inquisitive mind. It teaches, addition, number sequences and geometry. The major shortcoming of the book is that it tries too hard to fit animal's shapes to the curvature of the Golden Spiral, the "equiangular spiral" formed by Fibonacci squares (shown in the book). The author seems to suggest any equiangular spiral is a Golden Spiral. The sea shells shown have a spiral pattern but clearly do not grow at the same rate as the Golden Spiral, an error that will not be lost on a bright young reader. This makes it unsuitable for the high school level.

Altogether, the book is a wonderful addition to a child's library.