Customer Reviews

Bee Man of Orn

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Frank R. Stockton first wrote "The Bee-Man of Orn", a strange blend of folktale and original fairy story back in 1964, with illustrations by Maurice Sendak. Although good, Sendak's illustrations were bright and kooky, high-lighting the comic aspects of the story, rather than the deeper more thoughtful elements. On the whole, I prefer this new edition, with new illustrations by P. J. Lynch that create a more realistic and folktale-like setting.

The Bee-Man lives in a small hut in the countryside that has been so covered over by the honeycomb of his friends the bees that it resembles more of a hive. He's happy there, but is instantly alarmed by the arrival of a young Sorcerer, who informs him that his strange way of living has come about due to the fact that he's been *transformed*. Transformed from what? The Sorcerer doesn't know, but now the Bee-Man is determined to find out. Gathering a small hive of bees that he wears on his back, he begins his journey to find out what he once was, eventually coming to the mountains that hold the caves of dragons...

Meeting up with a Languid Youth who wants to be more energetic, the two enter the caves and find something there that will solve *both* their problems. The story ends on not one but two notes of the laughable actions of Fate and inevitabilty, leaving the story with a satisfying ending and a topic open for more discussion. How many children's books do you know that do *that*?

The story is charming and P. J. Lynch's illustrations are fantastic. His watercolours brilliantly convey the glorious green world of Orn and the expressive lined faces of the people within it. The pages of the book are large and glossy - giving his work their best chance to shine, and do so to their full effect in the scenes of open country and lofty caverns. If anyone has seen his illustrations in "Catkin", they'll know how good he is at underground scenes, and here they're even better: misty depths, fiery walls and rocky textures all seen real enough to touch.

Although the Languid Youth looks a bit too droopy to me, the Bee-Man is perfect in both his incarnations, and on the whole, Lynch's work better matches the text. Together, the story and the illustrations have an almost Tolkien flavour to them: the story could easily belong to "Tales from the Perilous Realm" or one of Middle-Earth's folktales, and I always recommend people to P. J. Lynch if they like the art of Alan Lee and John Howe. A big, beautiful book that has pictures that match the text perfectly - what more could you want?

Stockton outdid himself with this amazing story of the Bee Man - my all-time favorite picture book character.

Exquisitely illustrated by P.J. Lynch, the story comes to life to tell of the Bee Man, aptly named for the swarms of bees he keeps as company. A sorcerer comes to reveal a life-changing secret to him, so he sets out on a journey to confirm its truth, and therefore his own origin.

The living watercolor illustrations are positively luminous and as visually enchanting as any I've had the pleasure of witnessing. Impressive work by Lynch once again...he's truly one of the best in the business. The big bonus is the accompanying DVD highlighting Lynch's work in progress on this project. If you want to be awed, check it out.

I agree with the above reviews completely! As an aspiring children's book writer and illustrator I can not praise JP Lynch's masterful ability to weave his illustrated visions with verse. I was so deeply taken by the detail of the illustrations of the book, that I was even more spellbound when I watched him share his process in the DVD. His journey into the illustrations is a wonderful accompaniment to the story, and not only that but the music that (he?) chose for the background make the adventure into his 'medievil world' all the more breath taking. I felt like I was there in the world of the story all the more as I watched the DVD & artwork unfold. I highly reccomend both the book and the DVD for aspiring artists and story lovers! As for children, or the child within any adult, it is a precious story of being true to who you already are!

Beautiful tale, and the illustrations are wonderful. The CD showing the creation is a great way to have your child see and value the work that went into the book.

Absolutely stunning.

This book will move from the 5 yr old's shelf to mine when he turns 12, and then he'll beg me for it when he has a five year old. And that begging will be futile :)

I ordered 5 of copies of the this book. We used it in a mother-daughter book club this summer. We visited a bee keeper, tasted many types of raw honey and honey comb. We learned many new things about the health benefits of honey.
Some discussions that this book sparked:
Are bees our friends too?
Living things that are transformed in nature
What animals transform food they eat into foods for people
What is the difference between being magically transformed and being transformed through growth?

The illustrations are beautiful. The Disc that comes with shows the artistic process. My children and myself found that very interesting.

This book was simply wonderful. I, as an artist, am always looking for references and inspiration and let me tell you, this book did wonders for me. The story is beautiful and the illustrations are vivid and imaginative. The free dvd is also a treasure. Behind the scenes with PJ Lynch takes you to a world that will blow you away. You won't regret buying this book :)

I remember liking this story and the Maurice Sendak illustrations from childhood and just kind of assumed that the story was written around the time of the release of the Sendak illustrated edition. It wasn't as it turns out.

With so many struggling to get their work published, it really makes you wonder how word vomit like this was ever printed. The illustrations are absolutely beautiful and immediately attracted me to the book. Without time to read through it, I bought it for my daughter's Christmas present. Looking forward to reading such a beautiful book, we sat down to read it, and I was astonished at how poorly written it is. The reader has no context for half of what goes on in the story, word choices are dreadful and the book is missing a really good editing process. Overly worded and reads with no rhythm whatsoever. My daughter, who loves stories and has no shortage of attention span, couldn't make it through this awful reading despite how great the pictures were. What a letdown.