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ljrinaldi's review against another edition
3.0
Having bees in your hair is an interesting concept for a book , that and the fact that the young Zinnia knitted, made me give this book a chance.
But other than inspire her, the poor bees just suffered the whole time. I suppose their little dialogues were supposed to be funny but they were painfully sad. We could have had no bees and had a good, fine story of a friendship and family dynamics.
My recommendation would be to skip the chapters with the bees. Then you will enjoy the book more.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review
But other than inspire her, the poor bees just suffered the whole time. I suppose their little dialogues were supposed to be funny but they were painfully sad. We could have had no bees and had a good, fine story of a friendship and family dynamics.
My recommendation would be to skip the chapters with the bees. Then you will enjoy the book more.
Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review
laurablackwell's review against another edition
4.0
This sweet and quirky story covers a lot of territory, from the natural world to the inner self, as Zinnia learns to navigate her relationships with her family, her friends, and herself. A charming read.
backonthealex's review against another edition
4.0
The last day of seventh grade couldn’t be worse for Zinnia Flossdrop. First, she must spend the day sitting in the principal's office for yarn-bombing the school mascot. At home, she discovers that, Adam, 18, her beloved brother, a talented magician and sometimes prankster-in-crime has left home, leaving no note or explanation. Her rather cold dentist/community activist mom doesn’t seem to care, replacing Adam with a sickly little dog. Seeking comfort, Zinnia buys herself a cone of her favorite ice-cream, which melts, falls out of the cone onto a table, and gets in her hair when she puts her head down for a good cry.
Little does Zinnia know that there is an industrial rental hive of escaped honeybees looking for a new home in order to live as free bees and pollinators as nature meant them to be. Yes, the bees find a new home in Zinnia’s abundant, wildly curly locks. And nothing she does gets them to move out. So, Zinnia does the only thing she can think of - puts on a sweatshirt and covers her hair with a hood.
Which naturally arouses the curiosity of visiting, plaid-wearing Birch, nephew of her next-door neighbor. Birch is a bird-watcher, the son of naturalists, and a solid, straightforward kind of kid, who sees and faces things head-on - luckily for Zinnia. He’s the only person who actually notices that there are bees living in her hair. Little by little, the two become friends, though it is a rocky road given Zinnia’s somewhat depressing situation(s), and Birch’s overly positive attitude. Together, they begin to search solutions to getting the bees out of Zinnia’s hair and into a proper hive, while also trying to find out where Adam might be and why he left so abruptly.
In between Zinnia’s unfolding tale of woe, are short chapters narrated by one of the bees. That way, the reader learns why they decided to run away (with parallels to Adam’s reasons), and the difficulty of surviving until they find a new hive. The plight of the bees is told with both humor and pathos, so be prepared to suspend your disbelief and at the same time, learn some interesting facts about bees.
Over the course of the summer, having a headful of bees and no big brother to fall back on teaches Zinnia some hard truths about herself and her feelings, and about what it means to be a sister, a daughter and a friend.
At first, I thought the yarn bombing thing was kind of silly, but as I read and got to know Zinnia better, I realized it is the perfect metaphor for her - always covering up and hiding her real feelings from everyone around her - feelings that are holding her captive, and which naturally leads to all kinds of misunderstandings.
On the other hand, the bees are looking for freedom, tired of being held captive as pollinators on demand. Their quest for freedom also leads to all kinds of misunderstanding - particularly with regard to Bee 641, who led them to Zinnia’s hair in the first place.
This is a debut middle grade novel for Danielle Davis. Though not without flaws, it is nevertheless an entertaining and well-done novel. I particularly liked the way she managed to weave in some real information about the plight of bees in today’s world through some nice use of magical realism. And I thought her characters were very interesting, and just quirky enough to work without going over the top.
Zinnia and the Bees is a coming of age novel that is sure to please young readers.
This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was an EARC received from NetGalley
Little does Zinnia know that there is an industrial rental hive of escaped honeybees looking for a new home in order to live as free bees and pollinators as nature meant them to be. Yes, the bees find a new home in Zinnia’s abundant, wildly curly locks. And nothing she does gets them to move out. So, Zinnia does the only thing she can think of - puts on a sweatshirt and covers her hair with a hood.
Which naturally arouses the curiosity of visiting, plaid-wearing Birch, nephew of her next-door neighbor. Birch is a bird-watcher, the son of naturalists, and a solid, straightforward kind of kid, who sees and faces things head-on - luckily for Zinnia. He’s the only person who actually notices that there are bees living in her hair. Little by little, the two become friends, though it is a rocky road given Zinnia’s somewhat depressing situation(s), and Birch’s overly positive attitude. Together, they begin to search solutions to getting the bees out of Zinnia’s hair and into a proper hive, while also trying to find out where Adam might be and why he left so abruptly.
In between Zinnia’s unfolding tale of woe, are short chapters narrated by one of the bees. That way, the reader learns why they decided to run away (with parallels to Adam’s reasons), and the difficulty of surviving until they find a new hive. The plight of the bees is told with both humor and pathos, so be prepared to suspend your disbelief and at the same time, learn some interesting facts about bees.
Over the course of the summer, having a headful of bees and no big brother to fall back on teaches Zinnia some hard truths about herself and her feelings, and about what it means to be a sister, a daughter and a friend.
At first, I thought the yarn bombing thing was kind of silly, but as I read and got to know Zinnia better, I realized it is the perfect metaphor for her - always covering up and hiding her real feelings from everyone around her - feelings that are holding her captive, and which naturally leads to all kinds of misunderstandings.
On the other hand, the bees are looking for freedom, tired of being held captive as pollinators on demand. Their quest for freedom also leads to all kinds of misunderstanding - particularly with regard to Bee 641, who led them to Zinnia’s hair in the first place.
This is a debut middle grade novel for Danielle Davis. Though not without flaws, it is nevertheless an entertaining and well-done novel. I particularly liked the way she managed to weave in some real information about the plight of bees in today’s world through some nice use of magical realism. And I thought her characters were very interesting, and just quirky enough to work without going over the top.
Zinnia and the Bees is a coming of age novel that is sure to please young readers.
This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was an EARC received from NetGalley
rainbowbookworm's review against another edition
5.0
A few days ago Mr. Book's #BookTalk asked what book had the most original premise I had read in a while. I just realized it is this one. While the title points to the protagonists' (both Zinnia and the bees) predicament, this book is about much more than a girl with bees in her hair. It is about love, lost, and coming to terms with the person you are growing up to be (pun not intended). I will definitely order a copy of this book for my classroom library and encourage other middle school teachers to do the same.
serenarutledge's review against another edition
3.0
*3.5 Stars*
Thank you to NetGalley and Capstone for providing me with an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review!
This story was absolutely adorable! Zinnia and Birch were amazing and I loved so many aspects of this book (knitting and bees being my favourites). I flew through this book in two days and it was a very quick and enjoyable read! Although I will say that it is rightfully targeted towards a middle grade demographic and I probably would've enjoyed it even more if I were younger!
Overall, a very enjoyable and adorable middle grade story!
Thank you to NetGalley and Capstone for providing me with an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review!
This story was absolutely adorable! Zinnia and Birch were amazing and I loved so many aspects of this book (knitting and bees being my favourites). I flew through this book in two days and it was a very quick and enjoyable read! Although I will say that it is rightfully targeted towards a middle grade demographic and I probably would've enjoyed it even more if I were younger!
Overall, a very enjoyable and adorable middle grade story!
nbwessler's review against another edition
3.0
You’re either going to buy into the concept of Zinnia and the Bees or you aren’t, and I’m afraid I must confess to the latter. This has more to do with the limits of my imagination and grown-up sensibilities than Davis’s writing, though, and I feel confident that this book will appeal to actual middle-graders. For example, I think they will probably be more accepting of Dr. Flossdrop’s parenting and more willing to suspend their disbelief re: summer time hoodie wearing in California. (And, you know, thousands of bees inhabiting a girl’s hair.) The fact that I’m pretty sure Zinnia is an unreliable narrator helps. She is immensely likable as are the rest of the relatively eccentric individuals who round out the cast. (I absolutely adore Birch and his plaidness!) Really, this book reminded me an awful lot of Natalie Lloyd’s A Snicker of Magic , and I think the charming supporting characters had a lot to do with that. I mean, yes, there’s also the magical realism, mother-daughter issues, fun/crazy aunts, friends on a “mission,” ice cream, etc, but the characters give a story its heart. And both stories have a lot of heart. Definitely recommend Zinnia to any lovers of Lloyd!
Overall, a charmingly quirk tale that I plan to recommend.
ARC provided by NetGalley.
Overall, a charmingly quirk tale that I plan to recommend.
ARC provided by NetGalley.
zbayardo's review against another edition
3.0
At first, it was hard to get into but the Bee's voice was so funny and adorable that I continued. In the end, I enjoyed the story, both of Zinnia's and the Bee's, very much.
cweichel's review
3.0
Zinnia had been looking forward to her summer, but on her return home from the last day of school, discovers that her brother, Adam, has disappeared without a trace. This is doubly hard because her emotionally absent mother, Dr. Flossdrop, seems unable to offer comfort or even care. Then to make matters worse, a hive of bees sets up home in her hair.
There is a lot I really liked about this book. First off, Zinnia, our protagonist, is a knitter! The yarn bombing bits are fun. I liked Birch, the boy who has come to visit his uncle for the summer, and befriends Zinnia. He's full of kindness and patience. I liked the quirky inserts revealing the perspective of the bees, who have settled on Zinnia's head. I liked that mostly the adults were positive characters.
My problem is that it just didn't all come together for me. Zinnia and her mother's reconciliation seemed too pat. I finished up wondering about those bees and why they were there in the first place. It's possible that I couldn't connect to this story as much as I thought I would because of how long it took me to read it, but then, maybe it took me so long because I couldn't connect.
There is a lot I really liked about this book. First off, Zinnia, our protagonist, is a knitter! The yarn bombing bits are fun. I liked Birch, the boy who has come to visit his uncle for the summer, and befriends Zinnia. He's full of kindness and patience. I liked the quirky inserts revealing the perspective of the bees, who have settled on Zinnia's head. I liked that mostly the adults were positive characters.
My problem is that it just didn't all come together for me. Zinnia and her mother's reconciliation seemed too pat. I finished up wondering about those bees and why they were there in the first place. It's possible that I couldn't connect to this story as much as I thought I would because of how long it took me to read it, but then, maybe it took me so long because I couldn't connect.