Robbing the Bees: A Biography of Honey the Sweet Liquid Gold That Seduced the World

Holley Bishop’s rural porn Robbing the Bees is especially seductive, because it’s the sub-genre wherein the author acts out the reader’s fantasies by flinging themselves inexpertly into a rustic pursuit (chickens, sheep, oranges); in this case, bees. It’s three stories in one: a cheerful romp through the history of beekeeping, a year in the life of a Florida tupelo-honey producer—quirky, rustic, passionate—and the author’s account of becoming a beekeeper herself, making all the mistakes you would expect. The reader can easily picture themselves doing the same—tending their hives, harvesting honey—except the actual life of an apiarist that Bishop describes punctures the fantasy by being hot, hard, and occasionally show more painful work, a note of realism cutting through the Arcadian hum. show less

A gorgeous book written by a woman under the spell of her bees. In order to show all sides of beekeeping Bishop writes partially from her own experience as a domestic keeper, but predominantly through a fascinating two years shadowing Donald Smiley, a commercial beekeeper in Florida.

The book is split into sections to cover every aspect of the history of honey and beekeeping, from the design of domestic hives and the mechanics of a bee's stinger, to the uses of honey in cosmetics and medicine and the importance of other bee products such as wax and royal jelly. Through each of these chapters weaves the year in the life of Donald Smiley, as he moves his bees from place to place, harvesting and marketing each type of pure honey in a show more neverending cycle of physical labour and sweet reward. At the end of the book Bishop also includes several honey-rich recipes, from ancient (probably unpalatable) meals to modern marinades.

Scrumptious, lyrical and well worth a read. show less

My dad kept bees when I was a child, and I have nostalgic memories of summer hours spent sitting by the hive, watching the workers coming and going. This book gave me a fascinating look at the history of man's relationship with bees. It discusses bee research, beekeeping, ancient and modern uses for honey and wax, bee behavior, etc., in the framework of narrative of one year with a "typical" beekeeper in Florida.

I kept blurting out fascinating facts I had learned to my family, until my daughter finally told me I need to "get a life." But what better life than reading great books and learning?! I highly recommend this book!

I loved this book. I learned so much! For instance, beeswax- where do you think it comes from? Besides from bees, I mean. They secrete little flakes of beeswax, eight at a time, from their wax glands after a debauch on nectar and a nice long rest. The whole book was full of fun and fascinating information about bees and bee-keeping. Bishop's voice is warm and approachable but not the least bit blog-like. I enjoyed meeting the beekeepers to whom she introduced me.

The only real problem with this book is that it was impossible for me to read without eating a LOT of honey during the reading. And today I bought some bee pollen. Of course I did.

Highly recommended. 4.5 stars.

You know, when I picked up this book, I had no idea I would enjoy it so much. I am researching for down the line when I buy a house, considering some minor beekeeping in my future and this was recommended to me by my local librarian (yea librarians!). I'm not sorry I picked this up...it's written in such an unabashed loving way that one cannot help but be as exited as Bishop and Smiley about bee's and beekeeping. I was also quite pleased to find an extensive history of bees; beekeeping, honey, and wax were a part of the book. I thoroughly enjoyed the way the story was divided between following Bishop as she discovered her own love of beekeeping, her interviews and following of Smiley on his beekeeping farm in Florida (following his show more rounds and seasons was very fascinating and who know it was such hard work), and finally the sections on the history. These were woven together quite well and as a whole provide the reader with a solid foundation that is also filled with love and enthusiasm for bees and their honey. I'd recommend it to anyone interested in doing a little beekeeping of their own (not as a how to, rather as a first step in becoming more familiar with the process and history of it)...heck, if you like honey, you'll probably like this book! I'll be adding a copy to my permanent library very soon!! show less

This is not a book about raising bees, but a history of bees and beekeeping throughout history. A few years after Holley Bishop started keeping bees, she decided she wanted to write a book as a sort of tribute to bees. Because she considered herself only a hobbyist, she tried to find a professional who had more experience than she did. Of the 20 people she asked, only one was willing to have her visit and take time away from his work to explain and show her various aspects of beekeeping. That along with what must have been a massive amount of research has produced a very readable, detailed book about bees. She intersperses information about how a present day beekeeping operation works with historical information/stories.

One of the most fascinating books I have ever read, I turned back to page one and started over. I had promised my copy to a friend and (regretfully) relinquished it on Monday, I will have to finish my second reading at a later date. I knew a lot of basic information about bees: their basic social structure, the “dancing”, how they make honey… but the historical aspects were the most interesting. I kept regaling friends with “bee facts”, including that my name means honeybee… several expressed interest in learning more, but maybe they were just humoring me.

I really would have loved it if the author had included more pictures and illustrations.