The Honeybee
Kirsten Hall
Illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Ages 4 to 8
Bernie Goedhart
A school librarian friend told me about a recent episode in which a stray bee in her library caused a minor uproar among kids who feared getting stung. If they’d read The Honeybee, by Kirsten Hall, perhaps they would have been more intrigued than panic-stricken.
With a lilting, rhyming text, the author introduces young readers (and listeners) to the comings and goings of honeybees – their travels to plants and flowers where they collect nectar and pollen, and their work in the hive, turning that nectar to honey. Aimed at ages four to eight, the text makes for a good read-aloud and the illustrations by Montreal’s Isabelle Arsenault will captivate even those too young to decode the text for themselves.
The book opens with a two-page spread of a golden field and the hand-lettered words: “A field. /A tree. /Climb it and see …”
Turn the page, and Hall notes that “For miles, all around you, /grow wild and free /FLOW-ERS” – while Arsenault zeros in on a close-up of various plants and blooms. “But then … /Shh! /What’s that?” Sharp-eyed children will perk up when they see the thin line of dashes looping its way among the flowers, leading the reader to the edge of the page and prompting a turn to yet another spread, this one an even closer view of the plants and the meandering path of … a bee! Arsenault’s depiction of the wide-eyed, smiling insects has a touch of the cartoonish about it, sure to appeal to young children.
And the energetic use of onomatopoeic words like “buzz” and “zoom” in Hall’s text, often in boldface caps, will assist in a lively reading as this non-fiction picture book describes the life of the honeybee. In the end, even the adult sharing this book with a child may come away with a new appreciation of the work bees do.
Now that winter has finally beat a retreat, why not follow up a reading with a trip to your garden or to a park in your neighbourhood to see if you can find any bees in action? Mind you, that might not be as easy as it sounds: News reports tell us bees are declining in numbers and that this will have far-reaching effects on agriculture globally, since their work as pollinators is crucial to numerous food crops. Hall addresses the issue in a letter to readers at the end of her book, focusing on the honeybee and what we can do to ensure its survival.
If you’re thinking of getting the book as a gift for the youngster in your life – or, if you’re a teacher, sharing it with the class – why not combine it with some seed packets for wild flowers, and a booklet of bee stamps recently issued by Canada Post? While you’re at it, check out the website beefriendly.ca and watch the video of British Columbia beekeeper Ric Erikson talk about the plight of bees. Granted, he focuses on the bumblebee – and, at one point, quips that the honeybee looks lazy by comparison – but it’s all about learning how to save these crucial, hardworking insects.
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