Early Book Review: OMFG, BEES!: Bees Are So Amazing and You're About to Find Out Why by Matt Kracht

OMFG, BEES!: Bees Are So Amazing and You're About to Find Out Why by Matt Kracht is currently scheduled for release on March 23 2023. Are you ready for the ultimate bee book? With lighthearted watercolor and ink drawings, humorous quips, lists, and musings, OMFG, BEES! will show you just how important these esteemed bee-list celebrities really are. (Hint: We can't live without them.) Delving into various bee topics, from distinguishing between bees and not bees (very crucial), to exploring the absolute wonder that is bee behavior (they do a coded dance directing their bee friends to food, for crying out loud!), to divulging the mind-blowing bee-magic behind honey making (within some extremely intricate and precisely constructed hexagonal honeycomb, no big deal), and more, Kracht's ode to bees paints a charming and enthusiastic picture of our favorite pollinators.

OMFG, BEES! is a well researched source of bee related information. I greatly appreciated the voice of the author and the amount of thought that went into the research and illustrations to match the text and intent of the book. I have read many books on bees, since I find the decline of insects in general, and bees specifically, to be very concerning and I simply love learning about how amazing they are. I have to say that this book included more light hearted humor and straight forward talk than any of the other books on the subject that I can remember. I enjoy that Kracht and I share the same thoughts on bees and several not bees (like that wasps are 'vicious little turds') and the writing made me smile quite a bit through out the read. I also appreciated that a complete list of references was included along with sources for further reading. 

OMFG, BEES! is a engaging and interesting read that will both educate and entertain anyone vaguely interested in bees. 

Audiobook Review: Bees and Their Keepers by Lotte Möller, Narrated by Julie Maisey

Bees and Their Keepers is a non fiction book written by Lotte Möller, and the audiobook is narrated by Julie Maisey. The study of bees has often been considered a divine occupation, as the creature’s attention to detail and purpose is so special and the honey they produce, almost magical. In this compelling cultural history that moves beautifully through the beekeeper’s year, Swedish beekeeper and writer Lotte Möller shares her understanding of bees and bee lore from antiquity to the present with deep knowledge and sharp wit. Möller gives insight into the activity in the hive and describes the bees’ natural order and habits. She explores the myths of the past and how and when they were replaced by fact. In stories from her travels, Möller encounters a host of colorful characters, from a trigger-happy California beekeeper raging against both killer bees and bee politics to the legendary Brother Adam of Buckfast Abbey, breeder of the Buckfast queen, now popular throughout Europe and beyond, as well a host of others as passionate as she about the complex world of apiculture both past and present.

Bees and Their Keepers is an interesting book. I learned a great deal, and thought  the stories and information shared where engaging. I have several books about bees, in particular their current plight with pesticides and other dangers they are facing. Getting a look at how people have interacted with bees through out history, both distant and more recently, has given me a more well-rounded appreciation for honey and the work that goes into beekeeping. I liked that moments from the author's adventures in researching the topic, personal explorations, and own beekeeping were included. All of the individual components were informative and interesting to listen to on my commutes back and forth to work. However, I have to admit that sometimes the topic changes or asides to give more information on a very specific topic or adventure caught me off guard and it took me a bit to switch gears. It just felt a little disjointed at times. Similarly, the end rather snuck up on me. That is not likely to happen to those reading a print copy, but in the audiobook version I was listening and expecting more on a topic, or another topic change, and then suddenly I was listening to the copyright information. It just felt a bit abrupt to me.  

Bees and Their Keepers is and interesting look at the history and world of beekeeping. 

Early Book Review: Bugs in Danger: Our Vanishing Bees, Butterflies, and Beetles by Mark Kurlansky, Jia Liu

Bugs in Danger: Our Vanishing Bees, Butterflies, and Beetles is a children's non fiction book written by Mark Kurlansky and illustrated by Jia Liu. It is currently scheduled for release on November 12 2019. 

By now you’ve probably heard that bees are disappearing, and they aren’t the only species at risk. Populations of fireflies, butterflies, and ladybugs have also been declining in recent years. This book explains the growth, spread, and recent declines of each of these four types of insects. It looks at the human causes, like the Baltimore electric company that collected fireflies to attempt to harness their phosphorescent lighting source, to natural occurrences, like the mysterious colony collapse disorder that plagues bee populations. This book makes an effort to show just how much bugs matter to our world.

Bugs in Danger is a well researched, organized, and written nonfiction book. It is fairly dense, to cover all the necessary information, so I would recommend it for middle grade and higher level reader- and adults. I will admit that there were a few moments in the technical explanation about the classifications of life that my eyes and mind wandered a bit. Since this is very early in the book, I worry that some less than dedicated readers might zone out, or maybe just skip ahead. While I have read quite a bit about butterflies and bees, I learned more about those insects and more about critters that I never gave much thought to. There is simply so much information here that I would recommend taking it one section at a time, and I think it would stand up well to multiple revisits. The illustrations are small, and add some visual interest to the read. I found that the text boxes that are scattered through the book also include interesting information and helped break up some of the text. The inclusion of suggestions for what readers can do are doable, I love when authors include the simple things that can help make change, not just the big action. This makes it much more likely that people will make the effort to make some change, and then maybe more as they get comfortable. I liked that the author gave readers a bibliography, that separated out some resources for younger readers and included the most useful website that they know of on the topic. 

Bugs in Danger is an extremely informative book about the insects in our world, their importance, and what factors are affecting their decline. I recommend it for readers with interest in the insect world, the environment, and science. It would be an asset to classrooms and libraries. 

Early Book Review: Something Is Bugging Samantha Hansen by Nancy Viau

Something Is Bugging Samantha Hansen by Nancy Viau is currently scheduled for release on August 28 2019. Ten-year-old Samantha Hansen loves science! In the beginning of fourth grade, she never let a moment go by without talking about rocks. Now she’s back with a new obsession: insects! Upon learning that the local apiary is for sale, she goes into action to save the honey bees. Will her someday boyfriend Todd or her best friend Kelli be part of her plan? Will That Kid Richard get in the way? Sam’s lists of insect facts and funny thoughts highlight her quest to keep the bees in the community, the challenges she faces at school, and her ongoing struggle with her temper. Join Samantha as she looks to science for answers and does her part to change the world. 

Something Is Bugging Samantha Hansen was a read with some good points, and some low points. I really enjoyed that facs about bees and other insects were part of the story. I also liked that the larger idea of friendship changing and having more than one good or best friend is possible. Most of all, I liked the encouragement to get involved with causes that are important to you, such as saving the bees. The dealing with frustration and anger, counting and channeling the energy towards better things, were fairly well done as well. The friendship battles, dealing with changing interests, new friends, and peer groups seemed very accurate to me- as a mom and someone that has worked in an elementary school. All of that was what kept me reading. I was a little annoyed with the 'boyfriend' seeking, and the leaning on the idea that a boy teases a girl because he likes her. Can we not continue with that? I would much rather boys learn to give their attention in better ways, and girls not be in the position where they have to deal with that or be tasked with changing that boy's behavior by giving him the attention they want. I think that sets a bad president for both boys and girls. I also had some trouble becoming engaged with the story as a whole- the writing style just did not click with me, but I think that is more a matter of personal preference than anything wrong with the technique. 

Something Is Bugging Samantha Hansen is an interesting early chapter book that will strike a chord with some readers. The story just did not wow me, despite some very well done aspects.

Early Book Review: Bea's Bees by Katherine Pryor, Ellie Peterson

Bea's Bees is a children's book written by Katherine Pryor, and illustrated by Ellie Peterson. It is currently scheduled for release on March 28 2019. Beatrix discovers a wild bumblebee nest on her way home from school and finds herself drawn to their busy world. When her bees mysteriously disappear, Bea hatches a plan to bring them back. Can Bea inspire her school and community to save the bees? Bees provide us with valuable resources, and some types of bees are in danger of disappearing forever. But ordinary people (and kids!) can help save them.

Bea's Bees is a nice picturebook about a young girl discovering the wonders of bees, and when they goes missing doing her own research to learn about all that they do. I like that Bea's interest in bees is organic, and that she takes steps to learn more about the bees and makes an effort to make her area more hospitable for them in hopes that they will return. My digital galley, which I received via Netgalley, was missing a couple important pages. So I do not know how Bea discovered the bees were missing. I do like that the book offers some good information on bees, the good that they do, and what people can do to help them thrive. I do not like that there are unanswered questions. Was the hive Bea watching hibernating or did they die off and a new hive come and take their place? Perhaps this was hinted at or directly addressed in the pages I was missing, but it felt like more important bee information could have been woven through the story. I liked the artwork, and thought there was a nice balance of text and art to keep the story flowing and the reader's interest focused on the tale. 

Bea's Bees is a good book and I think it would work well in a storytime setting or in a lower grade classroom when introducing certain topics. 

Book Review: Turn This Book Into a Beehive and 19 Other Experiments and Activities That Explore the Amazing World by Bees by Lynn Brunelle, Anna-Maria Jung

Turn This Book Into a Beehive and 19 Other Experiments and Activities That Explore the amazing World by Bees is a children's nonfiction book written by Lynn Brunelle and illustrated by Anna-Maria Jung. This is a kid's hands-on guide to understanding the world of bees, in a book that turns into a working beehive to house a colony of friendly, efficient—and non-stinging!—mason bees. It includes 10 science projects.

Turn This Book Into a Beehive and 19 Other Experiments and Activities That Explore the amazing World by Bees not only teaches young readers about the current decline in bee population and how we can all invite the pollinators to our yards. The different kinds of bees and wasps, how they live, how they are built and move, experiments, and more. The information is well organized and worded- making it understandable and accessible. The illustrations and experiment instructions are equally well done leaving readers with a wonderful balance of humor, information, and things to try and experiment with. I think the information here is very important, and things everyone should be aware of. Not just for the usefulness of pollinators, but for the health of the food web and our world in general. The jacket cover of the book is easily converted into a beehive with only a little tearing of the blank pages toward the end of the book, and there are more complicated plans for other. A flower chart and some hints and ideas to protect the hive once it is built and hung. There are also some resources for further research and companies that offer mason bee supplies included prior to the blank paged intended for use building your hive. 

Turn This Book Into a Beehive and 19 Other Experiments and Activities That Explore the amazing World by Bees is a well researched and organized book with a great deal of important information. I think this would be a great addition to classroom or home libraries in order to make the most of the experiments included. It would work well in a library setting as well- since it is only the jacket and some blank pages needed o build the hive advertised on the cover. 

Early Book Review: Buzz: The Nature and Necessity of Bees by Thor Hanson

Buzz: The Nature and Necessity of Bees by Thor Hanson is a natural history. Bees are like oxygen: ubiquitous, essential, and, for the most part, unseen. While we might overlook them, they lie at the heart of relationships that bind the human and natural worlds. Buzz takes us on a journey that begins 125 million years ago, when a wasp first dared to feed pollen to its young. From honeybees and bumbles to lesser-known diggers, miners, leafcutters, and masons, bees have long been central to our harvests, our mythologies, and our very existence. They've given us sweetness and light, the beauty of flowers, and as much as a third of the foodstuffs we eat. And, alarmingly, they are at risk of disappearing.

Buzz: The Nature and Necessity of Bees is a pretty perfect combination of personal narration, scientific explanation, and history. I never knew there were so many kinds of bees in the world, and how varied they are. I already knew how important they were as pollinators, and about the current bee population crisis, but Hanson's passion for the subject made even the things I already understood seem new and more important. This is a very accessible but detailed natural history that anyone interested in bees or the need we have for them in order to keep eating might want to read. The information and images are very well presented and organized with a conversational narrative tone that makes it an enjoyable and engaging read.

Buzz: The Nature and Necessity of Bees is just the book I needed. I have always been fascinated with bees, although not as interested as our author. This book gave me all the information I could want and more. 

Early Book Review: The Bee Book by Charlotte Milner

The Bee Book by Charlotte Milner is currently scheduled for release on February 6 2018. It is an introduction to the humble honeybee: nature's hardest worker, and much more than just a provider of honey! Bees are incredibly industrious, brilliant at building, super social, and--most importantly--responsible for a third of every mouthful of food you eat! Find out how bees talk to one another, what it takes to become a queen bee, what the life of a worker bee is like, and more. The contents include bee anatomy, types of bee, hives, colonies, pollination, making honey, and more. Discover just how much they matter, why they are declining, and what you can do to help!

The Bee Book is a wonderful and accessible look at bees. The illustrations were very well done, and while accurate some still had a sense of whimsy that will made the read even more interesting for younger readers. I like the way that the information was given in small doses, and well presented, in a way that is both understandable and so that it is seen as important and valuable. I knew bees were amazing, and thought I knew how many different kids of bees there were, and other important things about them. While I did know a good deal, from reading other books about bees, I still learned a few new things and got a fresh perspective on others. I found this to be an informative and engaging read, which always makes me happy in the realm of children's non fiction. 

The Bee Book is a wonderful resource and I would consider it to be an asset to a home, public, school, or classroom library. I think it is well done, as I expect any nonfiction books from DK to be.