Clan Apis

Life cycle of bees in graphic novel form, in turns hilarious and poignant. And scientifically accurate (except for the whole talking bees/plants/great flower stuff) to boot. Another great suggestion from our favorite librarian. ( )

What a tremendous book! Written by a biologist, insect society, behavior, and anatomy is exploded in a black and white extravaganza of irresistible science.

Uses: Science! Bees, dung beetles, sedentary flowers. Don't miss the Bee Lines section on page 147 with additional educational information. ( )

Graphic novel that starts out kind of like a creation myth (out of the primordial ooze) about the life of a bee. Some science involved but then they all talk.

I suspect Nyuki's jokes were supposed to liven up a dull story presenting bee facts. As far as I was concerned, they were basically annoyances interfering with an interesting and beautifully-presented story, which conveyed a lot of bee facts. I skimmed a few pages because I couldn't stand reading Nyuki being an idiot. That aside - it is a good story, following one bee from just before metamorphosis (with an explanation of what was happening), through adulthood, old age, and death. It was amusing how Nyuki went from bratty-little-sister to instant adult when Devorah died (and the author had to insert a new little-sister character to keep the story going). Her plan at the end is rather neat - though I agree with Bloomington, it's either very sweet or very creepy. And I did cry a little over it. I don't think I'll reread, but I'm glad I did read it - Nyuki's stupid jokes notwithstanding. There were a couple points in the appendix that I didn't see in the story, that make me curious - mostly, bees in cave paintings. So I'll go look up some more bee facts - fun! ( )