Being a Bee

As the final pages of the book points out, bees ‘matter’ and they are under threat. This hardback book about the life of a honey bee makes a useful contribution to raising awareness about the incredible world of the honeybee, life in a hive and bees’ importance as pollinators as well as honey makers.

There are facts to amaze such as the queen laying 1,000 eggs a day and the incredible 10 million trips it takes to and from the nest to make one jar of honey. Interesting details are included: did you know worker bees use their wings to fan the Queen bee and keep her cool in the summer and direct other bees to sources of nectar with an intricate dance? There is information about ways to attract bees to gardens to help ‘save’ them and useful links at the back of the book to find out more.

Although there is no index, the book is organised into chapters making it easy to navigate and there is a helpful glossary at the back. The writing style is straightforward, clear and factual. The subject matter and the illustrations, colour scheme and book design, including the honeycomb end papers, make this an attractive book for a library, a classroom collection and young nature lovers.