The Little Sanitation Worker Bee Who Could
349893
A richly imaginative story, allegorical in the way it tackled universal themes of gender/racial inequality, class struggle, the tussle between personal and group identity, the tyranny of religious orthodoxy, and the courage to reject your assigned role in order to create your own destiny in a highly-regulated society. Debut author Laline Paull managed to address all these important human issues through her main character, sanitation worker bee Flora 717 in an orchard hive in a soon-to-be sold, disused farm.

Flora 717 is thrust into the hive's society, an entirely female social order in service to the revered male drones, who eat drink and basically lord it over the sister bees, though the male power is only virtual, and ultimately shortlived when their purpose to the hive is served.

The sister bees are defined by their respective roles like the Foragers, the Teasel sisters who are primarily nurses, the priestesses (with the Sage sisters being the highest ranking) and then the Queen, the object of worship who rules with the mantra "Accept, Obey, Serve", reverberating within the hive mind, in an all-senses broadcast called the Holy Chord, chiming through the antennae of each of the bees in the colony.

This social order is threatened when Flora 717 is found to be an aberration, which is dangerous, to say the least, in an environment that believes "Deformity is evil. Deformity is not permitted". In a strange twist, Sister Sage rescues her for an "experiment", and Flora 717's life changes forever.

Paull creates a very vivid picture of the world of her bees, but while the story engages, it never quite rises to a level beyond its caricature-like nature as it tries to encompass all the themes observed above. The cleverness of the allegory is a bright spark that impresses but does not last, and the calamities that arise one after another within the claustrophobic confines of the hive becomes tedious rather than gripping. The use of a framing narrative in the prologue and epilogue is also much too brief and feels rather flimsy.
1363942
He loves to pick out what chores he is going to do for the week. And I love that some of the chores are things like "Say please and thank you" or "Keep your hands to yourself". I can remind him throughout the day that he needs to do that to get his smiley.
3082691
We had a bag hanging fro a ail on the porch for can recycling.  The bees liked the bag... a lot.  So I wanted something covered.  This does the trick but it's rather narrow profile only allows for about half the tall kitchen bag to get full.  Wish it were just a big bigger in diameter to accommodate a full bag of beer and pop cans.  But that said, it does keep the bees out!
3128575
Bee and Me, by Elle McGuinness, is a heartwarming tale of a boy's chance encounter with honey bee. When one accidentally flies into his house and the two meet, the little boy learns just how important bees are. At first he is frightened, but the bee is friendly and explains that bees not only bring no harm to humans, but describes the dreary place the world would be without bees. The boy is somewhat transformed and the bee flies off happily. In the back of the book is a little fact section with interesting bee facts.

With lovely illustrations by Heather Brown, and Animotion (the images move when you turn the page--the dog runs, the bee flies, a flower blooms, etc.), Bee and Me is a sweet story that inspires appreciation for the natural world. My four year old son wants to read it over and over.

With Colony Collapse Disorder looming, I think this is a gentle way to impress upon our younger generations the symbiotic relationship we have with bees and nature. Bee and Me makes a great read for any budding environmentalist. Highly recommended.
1000304
I wouldn't really call this a chair, more of a stool but I suppose it is a chair for a small child.  The painting of the bee is done very well and is adorable for the nursery.  I am happy with this purchase, great little conversational piece.
1127397
Except of course for the one that set up housekeeping in the cabin filter on my Prius.  I missed putting rodenticide in that spot, but where I have placed it, it is doing the job.  Wish it came in smaller quantities.  This bucket will last me for 50 years.
1426298
He already has a dingo, but Lag Seeing isn't a Letter Bee yet. The real test of his worth takes place in "Tegami Bachi, Vol. 2: Letter Bee/The Letter to Jiggy Pepper," which not only pits the preteen mailman against grudges and vengeful people, but against the difficult obstacles that a potential Letter Bee must overcome. It's an exquisitely-drawn, star-spattered little story, and all the more adorable for its bittersweetness.

Lag and Niche (and Niche's living lunch, Steak) stop off at a hotel in the miserable, dead-end town of Kyrie. A young boy named Nelli (who turns out to be a girl) offers to help them, only to steal Lag's crossing pass so he can escape Kyrie -- and deliver her dead little brother's last message to a Letter Bee named Jiggy Pepper, whom Nelli insists abandoned Kyrie, her and her brother. But Lag can't believe that a Letter Bee could be so cruel, and sets out to prove -- with the help of his amber eye -- that Jiggy did all this for his friends.

Then Lag, Niche and Steak finally arrive at the central headquarters for the Letter Bees, and discover that it's run by a very familiar figure. To become a Letter Bee, Lag is given a rough route to a neighboring town that is threatened by gaichuu -- and he's in competition with some other kids who also want to become Letter Bees.

After its quietly lovely first volume, "Tegami Bachi Volume 2" expands a little on the world of the Letter Bees -- including the people who don't live in cute little villages, and are desperate to escape their miserable villages. But Hiroyuki Asada's artwork makes it a lovely experience -- he fills out the story with starlit night skies, childlike round-faced people, and shimmering eruptions of "heart" that light up the desolate landscape.

And Asada proves that he really knows how to jerk your tears -- the terminally ill child may be a cliche, but the final letter from the dying little boy is genuinely heartrending, as is the beautiful scene in which Jiggy's true intentions are revealed. Fortunately there's still plenty of comic relief, particularly from the ever-eccentric Niche -- especially since she continues to only wear underwear when she isn't mad at Lag.

Lag himself moves fully into the spotlight with these stories -- he's sweetly naive and still shows great compassion and courage. What's more, Asada reveals much more about his mysterious amber-fueled powers. Niche's personality becomes a bit more formed, especially her stubbornness about being Lag's dingo and her odd way of thinking (taking Steak along as an emergency meal). As for Steak... well, he's a joke character, but he is an entertaining one (especially since cooking him seems to have little effect).

I hate to peddle a cliche, but "Tegami Bachi, Vol. 2: Letter Bee/The Letter to Jiggy Pepper" makes you laugh and makes you cry -- it has lovely artwork, solid writing and endearing little characters.
1188523
This is a cute toy for the little helper. When his Mommy sweeps the floor or deck he gets so upset when she takes the broom away. Of course it is so long to handle it so I decided to check this out. It will be under the tree at Christmas so I will re post then and let you know if its a true winner.
510951
I loved this book! The author uses her vivid imagination to take us inside a bee hive to learn about the lives of bees. Flora is the protagonist-bee who is born a sanitation worker-bee which is at the lowest level of the bee hierarchy. She was born different from the other sanitation workers - which is a no-no in a hive. She was bigger, darker, and smarter, plus she could talk. Our Flora soon finds out how hard it is to work her way up but she uses her intelligence and lots of hard work to overcome all the obstacles. The hive motto is:  ACCEPT  OBEY  SERVE. That should give you some idea of how hard it would be for a lowly-born sanitation worker to better herself.

This book is enjoyable, well-researched, and educational with the facts of life in a hive. I will never look at a bee or honey in the same way. 5 Stars!
4005356
Another bright and colourful addition to the Honeybee collection. This one has lots of interesting information about the many chores that different honeybees do, and introduces kids to a whole range of fairly complex vocabulary in the process.

I felt quite exhausted just reading about all the many tasks these little creatures complete, and felt dismay for the poor worker bees - who don't stop working to sleep from the day they are born until the day they die!

Interesting, attention-grabbing and educational.
2059286
I received my honey sticks in record time. They are a perfect fit for my grandson's little hands and he loves scribbling with them! They smell nice too!
Thank you.
3683433
Buzzzzzzzz... What Honeybees Do, is a delightful little book.  In it you will find information about hive life, honey production and flowers that attract honeybees.  The book also includes eye-catching, photographs and artwork that will capture the attention of the curious and visual learner. If you want to learn about honeybees or introduce honeybee life to a child, then pick up a copy of this book.<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Buzzzzzzzz-What-Honeybees-Do/dp/1451552688/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Buzzzzzzzz...: What Honeybees Do</a>
3601993
This is a nice little sticker book for a child to use. I bought a few of these for gift baskets that I donate to a local shelter.  I generally put necessities in them, but I wanted to include something fun for the little ones. A lot of times,  people are in these shelters with nothing.  Seeing a child happy with something so small is worthwhile.
4814914
No more bees. Easy to use, easy to clean. Wish it came in a larger capacity although this time of year it is adequate. Hummers like it too.
2430556
So yeah, the bottom holes are kinda low and yes, water may leak out. BUT MAN, this thing catches a ton of bugs!  I counted 7 trapped evil red wasps in a single trap the other afternoon!  They are cute killer pods of death!
926271
Our family really likes this movie. It's clean and teaches lots of good lessons. It's very well done and has a cute story-line about a little bee that is different than those around her but she is good and courageous.
4848083
Jonathan, an elementary-school boy, is not strong enough to help his father, a beekeeper, with his work, and his father is annoyed. The father seems to prefer Jonathan's preschool brother, who loves to show off his muscles. The family is struggling financially: a dry spell means less honey to sell.

One day, Jonathan helps his mother make beeswax candles by decorating them with tiny beeswax sculptures. His father is impressed, and starts to appreciate Jonathan's skill. The decorated candles sell out at the farmer's market, and Jonathan collects many more orders.  That night, Jonathan and his father enjoy some quiet time on the porch as the rain finally comes down.

This unusual picture book contains bee facts on each page. My sons were interested to learn, for example, that bees' wings beat 180 times per second.

Another thing I liked about this book is that the parents are a mixed-race couple. This is never mentioned in the story, but the watercolor pictures by Joline McFadden show a fair blond father and a brown-skinned, black-haired mother. It is rare to see a mixed-race couple presented in a picture book in a matter-of-fact way, without a lot of commentary.

I have included this book in my online Gender Equality Bookstore.