I’m drawn to this cover right away. The bees and all the confetti bits (pollen, I assume? or maybe just an artsy decision) make me think of Barbara Juster Esbensen’s book about teaching poetry: A Celebration of Bees. That’s what this looks like!As soon as I open the book, it’s a little different. It has an introduction before I even get to the title page. It explains that this book will just cover a bee at one stage of its life: when it’s a scout.I feel a little weird about the bee having a name. Even though the name is Scout, for the stage of life she’s at, it still makes it feel a little like fiction to me when you name a wild animal. But I do like learning about bees from the example of one specific, typical honeybee scout.Each spread tells about one task/part of Scout’s day. It’s told in present tense, like it’s happening right now. And then a very short sidebar gives a related fact in italics. I like how short the sidebars are. That keeps them from overwhelming Scout’s story.I love that there are page numbers! I wish every picture book had page numbers. It makes it so much easier to talk with a friend or a class about the book!Some of the verbs bother me a little. “Scout remembers…” “She knows…” It implies to me that bees think about things the same way people do. And that makes me ask, “Do they?” I want to know. I want more information then.The language is fun: “The wind buffets her, ruffling the fine hairs on her face, but she keeps on steadily and rides out the rapids.” Yes! Alliteration, metaphor, vivid words…I love that there’s an index at the back and a few short tips on how we can save honey bees. I hate that the author and illo info is on the end paper, because my library’s jacketflap and security patch cover up most of the text.It would be great to use this book with The Hive Detectives, by Loree Griffin Burns and UnBEElievables, which is honey bee poems and paintings by Douglas Florian. This book tells the story of Scout, a scout honey bee, and her journey to find a new source of nectar for her hive. The book shows the perils of being out of the hive (birds, rain and even wasps), as well as the unique communication between bees. Although this is set up as a narrative, it does stay within what science knows about bees, so it is catalogued as nonfiction. Each page also contains facts explaining more about what is happening to Scout in the narrative. This allows the book to be read and enjoyed at multiple levels.
What do You think about Flight Of The Honey Bee (2013)?
Wow, I learned so much about honey bees from reading this book. There was a lot I didn't know.
—Jess
This was a great informational book. I loved the pairing of the story with the facts.
—Erin
Nice combination of narrative non-fiction and factual text, gorgeously illustrated.
—kyleraoul
