Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #323796 in Books
• Published on: 2007-07-10
• Released on: 2007-07-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 320 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Food writer and Sunday Telegraph columnist Bee Wilson, who says she acquired her name long before her fascination with the insect Apis mellifera, takes an entertaining look at the extraordinary notions humans have had through the ages about honeybees. She shows how people, lacking until recently any scientific knowledge of how bees live, communicate and produce honey, have projected onto the bee human values and morals. The organization of the hive, for example, is seen as a model of the perfect society; worker bees symbolize selfless industry and the joy of productivity. The bee has been a symbol of virtue, chastity, Christianity, the human soul, good and bad politics, and sex—even though, with the exception of the queen and a few drones, most bees have no sex life at all. After discussing these and other strange ideas, tempering the myths with the facts of modern science, Wilson delves into the evolution of bee-keeping and the history of honey's uses in medicines, beauty products and food, and she even includes a few recipes. There's too much information in too few pages, but Wilson treats her subject lucidly and humorously, and her book is fascinating. 60 b&w photos. (June 5)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal
Adult/High School–In this thorough study that is divided into such chapters as work, sex, and politics, Wilson traces the fascination with and misunderstanding of bees throughout history. Early cultures revered the insects for both their social structure and the sweet rewards of their labors. The geometric form of the hive is evidenced in the architectural designs of Gaudí and Le Corbusier. The wax provided light both literally and spiritually in the medieval Christian church. The hive has long been a symbol of social unity, and the happy worker bee is a model for labor. Honey is celebrated for its flavor, aroma, and medicinal qualities. It was even used as an embalming fluid by the ancient Babylonians and later by the Greeks. The birds and the bees, honey I'm home, and honeyed words are all referenced here. Black-and-white historical illustrations appear throughout, and a few recipes are included. Although this may be too much honey for some teen readers, it supplies solid information for popular-science enthusiasts.–Brigeen Radoicich, Fresno County Office of Education, CA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
In this engaging tribute, Wilson points out that without honeybees our ancestors would not have had artificial light from wax, alcohol from mead, and energy from honey--a medicine as well as a food whose sweetness in a culture without sugar must have seemed wondrous. Bee colonies supplied humans not just with some of life's luxuries but also with food for the imagination. Our ancestors decided that bees--despite their stings--were the "most mysterious and therefore magical creatures, a little society in miniature." Wilson's book is about the human relationship with honeybees--human attempts to master them, and human attempts to understand and copy them. Wilson offers chapters on politics in the beehive and life and death as it relates to honey. She also discusses food and drinks made from honey and the history of beekeeping. With 60 black-and-white photographs and drawings, this book will change our view of these remarkable insects. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

Buzz on!
I picked this book up completely randomly but have loved every moment of it. I am a huge fan of honey, cooking and the convoluted histories of the foods we love. Always a big fan of honey (and bees!) it wasn't until I read this book that I realize how pervasive and longlasting our human fascination (obsession?) with bees has been. It's an easy read - very detailed with lots of great honey and bee trivia throughout the ages. The writer is a Brit and mentions the history of bees and honey in the U.S. only in passing, so people looking for something specific to North America might have to go elsewhere. This is definitely more of a Western European view.

A fun story.
THE HIVE: THE STORY OF THE HONEYBEE AND US joins others which have appeared earlier this year covering the bee - but goes further than most, drawing connections between the hive mentality of the bee and human affairs. Bees appear as symbols of many things and their honey product is widely used in cooking: their story blends myth with science and mankind has long been enamored of the bee. THE HIVE traces mankind's different beliefs about the bee over the decades, gathering history from around the world from science, religion, politics and beyond. Lovely black and white drawings throughout enhance a fun story.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

The Hive and Mankind
This book is not just about bees and the history of beekeeping. This also deals with how bees have been linked to sex, death, food and drink. The book deals with mead, the Church and bees, the Romans and bees, the Renaissance and bees. How bees, and their hives, shaped our ideas of nature, science, government and God. They became the symbols of power, of Kings and Popes, of socialism and order.
There are also lists of recipes for food made from honey and potions made with honey. This is a must for any fan of bees or any beekeeper.
Bee Wilson is a big fan of bees and the honey they produce, going so far as to visit an apiary and, yes, she has been stung. You can feel her wonder and joy at writing her first book on the subject. And it is a joy to read.
But one warning. Mormons are not shown in a good light as the other reviews show.