Flight of the Honey Bee by Raymond Huber, illustrated by Brian Lovelock

 By now, we have all heard about how honey bees are disappearing and hives are collapsing at alarming rates and what a disaster that can be for mankind.  After all, bees are the best pollinators in the world.

So it is not surprising that a number of books for young readers have come out recently about bees.  Perhaps in the hope that if we educate young readers about the importance of bees, we, or really, they may be able to help reverse the trend and stop bee disappearance and death.

Flight of the Honey Bee is one of the new bee books to come out and it is a charming, informative look at the life of one honey bee named Scout.

Follow Scout as she flies out of the safety of the hive in search of pollen and nectar.  As Scout searches for just the right flowers to gather what she needs to bring back to the hive for the winter, we discover all kinds of interesting facts about honey bees in general.

Did you know that are hairy all over so they can sense changes in wind?  Or that a bee can travel as far as five hundred miles to find flowers?  And while we may want to avoid a bee sting, honey bees only sting when they feel threatened.

These are just some of the interesting facts that you can learn about as you fly along with Scout on her mission.  Raymond Huber has written a nonfiction book for the youngest readers that is both entertaining and informative.  And he does include ways that we can help rejuvenate bees and pollination before they die out.

Flight of the Honey Bee is delightfully yet precisely illustrated in watercolor, acrylic ink and colored pencil and gives us an up close and personal view of a honey bee's life.  Writer Raymond Huber, who is also a beekeeper, and illustrator Brian Lovelock are scientists as well, and their genuine interest and concern shine through this wonderful book.  Together these two talented New Zealanders have created a book that can be enjoyed by everyone interested in our saving our world.

I loved this book and I learned a lot about bees and how they make honey.  And the next time I stir a spoonful of honey into my tea, you can be I will remember that one jar of honey requires bees to harvest nectar from more than 2 million flowers.

This book is recommended for readers age 3+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

Nonfiction Monday Roundup is hosted this week by NC Teacher Stuff

This is book 12 of my 2013 Nonfiction Picture Book Reading Challenge hosted by Kid Lit Frenzy