Harmony

November 29, 2010
Published simultaneously with Prince Charles's Harmony: A New Way of Looking at Our World, this adaptation for young readers is a call to environmental action that mainly advocates the use of biomimicry (using nature as an inspiration for innovation), while touching on the value of organic farming and exercise. "I think by following Nature's lead and paying attention to natural harmony, we can find a lot of clues to developing new systems and technologies that will help preserve life in the future," Prince Charles writes, before describing adhesives that are similar to the feet of geckos or mussels, a desert beetle that inspired structures that collect water in arid parts of the globe, and other examples of biomimicry in action. The overall tone is friendly, and the author emphasizes promise and potential over environmental problems, avoiding the feel of a polemic. Throughout, photographs further demonstrate patterns and affinities in the natural world (such as the spiral present in DNA, a daisy, and a shell), and between nature and technology. An accessible primer that should give readers food for thought. Ages 5–9.