Customer Reviews

A Hive For The Honeybee

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As the original commissioning editor in Ireland of A Hive for the Honey-Bee, I thought it would be nice to let you know how this book came to be (not intended a pun on bee!).

The author, Soinbhe Lally, is an editor's dream. I literally "discovered" Soinbhe Lally's work one day in the slush pile. She sent in an anthropromorphic tale called Song of the River about a group of farmed salmon who break free. It was so good, so beautifully written, I rang Soinbhe straight-away to tell her how much I loved the book. That was the start of our working relationship and friendship. A short time later I met Arthur Levine in Bologna. He asked me to give him a book which would make the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. I gave him Honey-Bee.

Soinbhe has such integrity as a writer, I learned to trust her instincts 100%. Despite the diverse nature of her writings, I let her write whatever she wanted to and from the start her books were shortlisted for just about every Irish award there is.

Soinbhe Lally is a lyrical, intelligent and wildly talented writer who, whether writing about fish, bees, the Irish potato famine or fairy stories, constantly astounds with her insight, poetic language and raw talent. In the world of writing, she is a thoroughbred through and through.

Soinbhe Lally ranks amongst the best writing for children and young adults today. I would like to wish her and Arthur Levine Books, her US publisher, enormous success with this beautiful book. Poolbeg Press, her Irish publishers, are thrilled she is receiving the world-wide recognition she deserves.

P.S. Soinbhe's name is pronounced "Sun-va".

I found this an incredibly sad story. It starts in summer in a time of joy and growth but ends with death.

The story of the bees is realistic but it is a cover too for a view of the human condition which sees life as an exhausting treadmill. Death is the only escape from the drudgery of living. The bees share human hopes and dreams but the dreams end in disillusionment.

I find it strange that the writer loves nature so much yet the book offers a very despairing message. I would have preferred a hopeful ending.

I just finished A Hive for the Honeybee during my lunch hour and couldn't wait to encourage both adults and teens to read it. There are rich poetic levels here - a simple story about the life of a worker bee which is a pleasure in and of itself - but this honey-sweet story masks a haunting, unflinching yet not heavy-handed look at stereotypes and society. I imagine teens who've lived through both Animal Farm and Antz will love it.
I cried a bucket over bees!
Now I have to pull myself together and get back on the reference desk!

Soinbhe has created a readable, interesting alegorical tale for young readers in A HIVE FOR THE HONEYBEE. She uses the social structure of bee society as a mirror image of our own, though it is a stretch to identify with insects that are "hardwired" to perform their alotted tasks. At any rate, the book blends fact and fiction seemlessly into a bittersweet tale that provides both fantasy and information, not an easy accomplishment. A fun read with marvelous illustrations, but WATERSHIP DOWN stands alone as the champion of animal alegorical tales and social satire.

You should read this book because the writer has a great influence on the characters, and each Character has their own personality and point of view. The drawings make the book so much more real than it is. The book tells about meaning of friendship, loss of friends, and the meaning of honeybees. When I usually look at a book and try to look for good or nice drawings or books with good describing words. When I finished this book, I told myself I should read more often.

I would recommend this book for big readers, and children around 13 or 15 years of age. It's the imagination part that actually takes you inside the story.

I thought this was a very good book. It shows you what it would be like to never have a moment to spare in your entire life, and what it might be like to never think about yourself. Just the well being of others around you.

I really enjoyed this story, although I thought it was missing the happy ending and "love" between 2 characters. All the talk between the charcaters about fulfilling there empty routine filled lifes would make you think they would do something about it and make the ending of the story happy,..but I guess that just misleads the readers. All in all this was a good book. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys learning.

A Hive for the Honey Bee is an excellent book- and will bring pleasure to all ages. Combining satire and a genuine love of life, the novel explores the life of the honey bee in fine detail- without boring us with unnecessary technicalities. The sort of novel which ought to be a treasured part of your bookshelf.

This beautiful story of a worker bee who dreams, follows our own lifes. So much of what we do is fated and we can not break out of our lives no matter what our dreams are. I loved this book: the beautiful paper used, the cover, the color of honey and stamped with the shape of the hive, the drawings of bees so like us. Lally's story is not sexist,but a tale of workers and those who benefit from the work without participating. If one sees male-bashing perhaps its because he sees himself a drone.

Read this book! Enjoy the beauty of the story and words. Lally has a great talent that all can enjoy. Her story will touch many different places in your heaart.

This is hardly a sexist story. Lally draws real life comparisons from the hard facinating real world of bees. Females run the hives,Queens rule, drones serve one purpose. The beauty in this book is the identification with misfits in a fixed society. Social structure, politics, nature,love,friendship,and poetry are delicately examined with a beautiful lesson on what we can and cannot control in an imperfect world.I loved it.Read it again.