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mdevlin923's review against another edition
2.0
A huge (literally) book about bees: a bee's life-cycle, hives, importance, cultural/historical information, and uses of honey.
I think a child would need to be really interested in bees to get through this whole book. The scientific illustrations were amazing, but some of the other illustrations could have been better.
I think a child would need to be really interested in bees to get through this whole book. The scientific illustrations were amazing, but some of the other illustrations could have been better.
kittymamers's review against another edition
4.0
ma arvasin, et ma olen lugenud piisavalt nii ilukirjanduslikke ("Maari suvi", "Bees") kui populaarteaduslikke ("Mesilased. Sipelgad. Termiidid") raamatuid mesilastest, et neist enamvähem kõike teada, aga oh ei, õppisin siit tohutult juurde. (miks ma pole näiteks kunagi varem selle peale mõelnud, kust mesilasvaha tuleb ja misasi on taruvaik?)
raamatu põhiautoriks on kaanel märgitud kunstnik; teksti autor (Wojciech Grajkowski) on tiitellehel väiksemas kirjas ära toodud. see tundub veider, sest teksti ei ole sugugi vähe, see on väga informatiivne ja illustratsioonid on ikkagi lihtsalt illustratsioonid, minu arust sugugi mitte selle raamatu põhiline fookus. aga ega ta nende hiigelpiltideta muidugi nii suur olla ei saaks.
raamatu põhiautoriks on kaanel märgitud kunstnik; teksti autor (Wojciech Grajkowski) on tiitellehel väiksemas kirjas ära toodud. see tundub veider, sest teksti ei ole sugugi vähe, see on väga informatiivne ja illustratsioonid on ikkagi lihtsalt illustratsioonid, minu arust sugugi mitte selle raamatu põhiline fookus. aga ega ta nende hiigelpiltideta muidugi nii suur olla ei saaks.
mariethelibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
Okay this book is gorgeous and full of facts about bees. But what really makes it is the gorgeousness and the humor in some of the illustrations!
lagobond's review against another edition
2.0
Man, I tried so hard to love this book. I was absolutely smitten with the illustrations (and the nice thick paper!) when I first came across this. But I've had it on my shelf for months, I've had to force myself to read it, and even so, I only made it to page 30. Time to admit to myself that I just don't want to keep reading.
So what's wrong with the book? Well, for one thing, it is HUGE. And unwieldy. I just can't get comfortable with this thing. No matter which way I arrange myself with the book, I always feel like the top of the page is too far to see well, or like my arms are going to fall off. I feel like children of reading age would probably just end up on the floor with this, crawling onto the book to see; but I'd have a hard time reading this out loud with little ones in my lap.
There are some inaccuracies and confusing bits that bother me. For example on page 6, the line that is supposed to point out the mandible actually points at the bee's antenna. Page 10 states that adult worker bees are about half an inch long, drones "a bit longer," and the queen bee as long as an inch. Why not include, on that page, illustrations of the three types to show their actual size? No: there are many variously-sized bees depicted on this two-page spread, but there's no size reference anywhere. And then there are the googly eyes. I actually love the googly eyes, they really make for charming pictures. It's just that a kid, reading this as the nonfiction book it is clearly intended to be, will probably come away with the assumption that bees have googly eyes.
The labeling of items in the book is inconsistent. Some things are named, like the bee's body parts (pages 6/7) or the various pollinators (pages 20/21). Even the Greek gods on pages 26/27 have labels. Others, for no apparent reason, are left unlabeled. For example on page 18/19, a variety of bee-pollinated fruits and vegetables are presented without names, and I'm sure that not all of them will be familiar to everyone.
The text at the bottom of each page feels overly brief and disjointed, hopping from one subject to the next with no apparent rhyme or reason, and often without helping readers draw connections between the pictures and the text. Some statements come across as overly flippant and/or uninformed/inconsiderate. For example, on page 28, the author notes that Alexander the Great "managed to conquer half the world known tho the ancient Greeks [...] and created one of the greatest empires in history." It goes on to say that "unfortunately," he died at 32 years old. Unfortunately for whom? Warfare and conquest are terrible things for the people involved, especially the ones whose homes are being conquered.
So in short, while I think the illustrations are charming and there's certainly lots to learn, the book just comes across as a poorly done mishmash. The nonfiction bits are hard to follow, the text isn't fun to read out loud, the whole thing just doesn't flow well for me. I don't think much of the info contained here will actually stick in readers' minds, because we're probably all just amused by the goofy images. Which, again, are awesome. It's just that a nonfiction book needs to deliver a bit more.
So what's wrong with the book? Well, for one thing, it is HUGE. And unwieldy. I just can't get comfortable with this thing. No matter which way I arrange myself with the book, I always feel like the top of the page is too far to see well, or like my arms are going to fall off. I feel like children of reading age would probably just end up on the floor with this, crawling onto the book to see; but I'd have a hard time reading this out loud with little ones in my lap.
There are some inaccuracies and confusing bits that bother me. For example on page 6, the line that is supposed to point out the mandible actually points at the bee's antenna. Page 10 states that adult worker bees are about half an inch long, drones "a bit longer," and the queen bee as long as an inch. Why not include, on that page, illustrations of the three types to show their actual size? No: there are many variously-sized bees depicted on this two-page spread, but there's no size reference anywhere. And then there are the googly eyes. I actually love the googly eyes, they really make for charming pictures. It's just that a kid, reading this as the nonfiction book it is clearly intended to be, will probably come away with the assumption that bees have googly eyes.
The labeling of items in the book is inconsistent. Some things are named, like the bee's body parts (pages 6/7) or the various pollinators (pages 20/21). Even the Greek gods on pages 26/27 have labels. Others, for no apparent reason, are left unlabeled. For example on page 18/19, a variety of bee-pollinated fruits and vegetables are presented without names, and I'm sure that not all of them will be familiar to everyone.
The text at the bottom of each page feels overly brief and disjointed, hopping from one subject to the next with no apparent rhyme or reason, and often without helping readers draw connections between the pictures and the text. Some statements come across as overly flippant and/or uninformed/inconsiderate. For example, on page 28, the author notes that Alexander the Great "managed to conquer half the world known tho the ancient Greeks [...] and created one of the greatest empires in history." It goes on to say that "unfortunately," he died at 32 years old. Unfortunately for whom? Warfare and conquest are terrible things for the people involved, especially the ones whose homes are being conquered.
So in short, while I think the illustrations are charming and there's certainly lots to learn, the book just comes across as a poorly done mishmash. The nonfiction bits are hard to follow, the text isn't fun to read out loud, the whole thing just doesn't flow well for me. I don't think much of the info contained here will actually stick in readers' minds, because we're probably all just amused by the goofy images. Which, again, are awesome. It's just that a nonfiction book needs to deliver a bit more.
the_maxtasy's review against another edition
4.0
In terms of my collection of Big "Coffee Table" books, I find the The Book of Bees is the strongest. It's super informative and goes into more detail about the various processes of these interesting insects, and as such it feels far more focused than Historium or Botanicum did. The illustration style isn't technically that realistic, but it is charming and specifically flourishes in inanimate objects (as displayed on the page with all the different types of honey). Buzz buzz this book was bien.
nairam1173's review against another edition
4.0
edit: Bumping this rating up to 4 stars as my 9yo sister--more of the target audience--LOVES the book and has spent hours studying it and now wants bees.
Original review:
Appealing oversized book on bees. I liked how it looked at history and related topics along with the typical "here is how a beehive is set up and how they make honey." It felt a bit scattered and I didn't like hunting all over the pages to find the appropriate referenced illustrations, but it is a fun and attractive book.
Original review:
Appealing oversized book on bees. I liked how it looked at history and related topics along with the typical "here is how a beehive is set up and how they make honey." It felt a bit scattered and I didn't like hunting all over the pages to find the appropriate referenced illustrations, but it is a fun and attractive book.