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The Beekeepers: How Humans Changed the World of Bumble Bees
Dive deep into the world of this everyday insect -- and the science behind its uncertain future.
Bumble bees are as familiar to most of us as the flowers these fuzzy insects feed upon. But did you know that the bees in your garden could be escapees from a local greenhouse, or descended from stowaways on a Viking ship?
Bumble bees are a vital part of our lives and Earth's ecosystems, so much so that we've commercialized their breeding and shipped them across states, countries, and ecosystems for our benefit. However, all of that human interference has consequences. Bumble bees are pushing out native species and altering ecosystems worldwide. Pesticide use has led to the spread of disease in local colonies. And some species may be disappearing entirely.
Bumble bees are as familiar to most of us as the flowers these fuzzy insects feed upon. But did you know that the bees in your garden could be escapees from a local greenhouse, or descended from stowaways on a Viking ship?
Bumble bees are a vital part of our lives and Earth's ecosystems, so much so that we've commercialized their breeding and shipped them across states, countries, and ecosystems for our benefit. However, all of that human interference has consequences. Bumble bees are pushing out native species and altering ecosystems worldwide. Pesticide use has led to the spread of disease in local colonies. And some species may be disappearing entirely.
320 pages, Hardcover
Published March 2, 2021
9 people are currently reading
102 people want to read
About the author
Dana L. Church
3 books5 followersI am a children’s author who loves writing about animals. I am such a nerd when it comes to animals that I have a PhD in animal cognition. I spent many years in university studying bumble bee behaviour and memory. I still love to watch bumble bees. They are amazing little creatures.
Besides animals, some of my other favourite things include a good cup of tea, getting lost in a good book, French toast, and walking my big, black friendly dog, Spirit.
Besides animals, some of my other favourite things include a good cup of tea, getting lost in a good book, French toast, and walking my big, black friendly dog, Spirit.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
April 21, 2021
As a child, I both feared and was fascinated by bumble bees. Unfortunately, the fear won and I didn’t try to find out more about these furry little creatures but fascination may have won had The Beekeepers been around!
Aimed at children aged 8-12, this is an informative read about everything bumble bees. It’s clearly a well researched book and rather than being cold and clinical, the author has managed to convey her warm and kind voice which, at times, has made me both chuckle but also tear up whilst reading some of the harsher realities.
Despite being for younger readers (much younger readers than me), I found The Beekeepers engaging and learnt so many new things with each chapter. This is certainly a tell-all-your-friends kind of book and I would recommend it to everyone. For teachers, this would be an excellent book to study with class that is certain to ignite a spark in so many children who are interested in nature.
Any book that inspires you to make a positive change is a powerful book and after reading The Beekeepers, I felt motivated to look for ways that I can make a difference. Truly, this is a wonderful book for children and grown ups too!
Aimed at children aged 8-12, this is an informative read about everything bumble bees. It’s clearly a well researched book and rather than being cold and clinical, the author has managed to convey her warm and kind voice which, at times, has made me both chuckle but also tear up whilst reading some of the harsher realities.
Despite being for younger readers (much younger readers than me), I found The Beekeepers engaging and learnt so many new things with each chapter. This is certainly a tell-all-your-friends kind of book and I would recommend it to everyone. For teachers, this would be an excellent book to study with class that is certain to ignite a spark in so many children who are interested in nature.
Any book that inspires you to make a positive change is a powerful book and after reading The Beekeepers, I felt motivated to look for ways that I can make a difference. Truly, this is a wonderful book for children and grown ups too!
August 20, 2021
Featured in grandma reads chapter book sessions.
We have a couple of junior beekeepers in our group, so this was a big hit with them. With the others, it was a little more technical than they could bear. So we compromised. We read a number of chapters out loud, skipping here and there, looked at all the pictures, and copies were purchased and sent to our beekeepers, and the rest cheered them on. So we didn't really read this book out loud to its conclusion. But our beekeepers are proud of their new books and have read them through already!
Yay, Bees!!
We have a couple of junior beekeepers in our group, so this was a big hit with them. With the others, it was a little more technical than they could bear. So we compromised. We read a number of chapters out loud, skipping here and there, looked at all the pictures, and copies were purchased and sent to our beekeepers, and the rest cheered them on. So we didn't really read this book out loud to its conclusion. But our beekeepers are proud of their new books and have read them through already!
Yay, Bees!!
February 19, 2021
@Kidlitexchange
Thank you to @scholasticinc for sharing an advance copy of The Beekeepers: How Humans Changed the World of Bumble Bees by Dana L. Church with the #Kidlitexchange network. This nonfiction text will be published in March 2021. All opinions are my own.
This book offers readers a deep dive into the world of bumble bees and the science behind their uncertain future. The book includes chapters related to how bumble bees are a vital part of our everyday lives, how they have been bred and commercialized and shipped all over the world, and the many challenges their populations are facing.
This book is incredibly well-researched. It is pretty science heavy and contains a lot facts, statistics, diagrams, and images. There is also anecdotal information and stories, but the book very much takes a traditional nonfiction, primarily informational format. I found the topic very interesting and learned that I knew very little about bumble bees. Many are aware of the decline of honey bee populations in recent years, but I had no idea that bumble bees were also in danger of disappearing. While I found this book interesting, I feel that it would be a hard sell with my 7th graders. I had an initial interest before even picking up the book and it was that interest that helped me push through some of the more scientific and less anecdotal sections. I do think this would be a great book to use in a science class, science elective, or even for a brief science unit. While I may not be able to sell my students on reading the entire book, I could see myself pulling chapters/sections to use in an informational or argumentative unit.
Thank you to @scholasticinc for sharing an advance copy of The Beekeepers: How Humans Changed the World of Bumble Bees by Dana L. Church with the #Kidlitexchange network. This nonfiction text will be published in March 2021. All opinions are my own.
This book offers readers a deep dive into the world of bumble bees and the science behind their uncertain future. The book includes chapters related to how bumble bees are a vital part of our everyday lives, how they have been bred and commercialized and shipped all over the world, and the many challenges their populations are facing.
This book is incredibly well-researched. It is pretty science heavy and contains a lot facts, statistics, diagrams, and images. There is also anecdotal information and stories, but the book very much takes a traditional nonfiction, primarily informational format. I found the topic very interesting and learned that I knew very little about bumble bees. Many are aware of the decline of honey bee populations in recent years, but I had no idea that bumble bees were also in danger of disappearing. While I found this book interesting, I feel that it would be a hard sell with my 7th graders. I had an initial interest before even picking up the book and it was that interest that helped me push through some of the more scientific and less anecdotal sections. I do think this would be a great book to use in a science class, science elective, or even for a brief science unit. While I may not be able to sell my students on reading the entire book, I could see myself pulling chapters/sections to use in an informational or argumentative unit.
April 27, 2021
This book is part of the Scholastics Focus series, which are longer narrative nonfiction titles that take an in-depth look at a subject. I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about bumble bees and the wide variety of species that exist. I also gained a much better understanding of the issues behind the bee crisis and how commercial hives shipped worldwide have impacted native species and introduced diseases that threaten them. If you have a reader who loves bees or is a nonfiction fan, I recommend this book and checking out the series. These books are upper MG or YA as they are lengthy and dense, but these are the types of books I love, and I just requested more titles from the library to read.
September 19, 2022
As an avid beekeeper, I pick up any book about bees, even a book in the Juvenile section. But I made the effort to review it, because I feel strongly that it also should be placed in the Adult section, because the research is excellent. But, all that interesting, and well described research makes this book not easy to read for most children, or even for adults not so inclined. I was already well aware of how the honeybee queen and almond crop pollination trade both function as huge vectors for disease that are decimating native pollinators. And how that causes native plants to go extinct, as they lose their dedicated pollinators. But until I read this book, I was unaware that the bumblebee trade was just as old, extensive, and worldwide as the honeybee trade.
So, this book filled my many gaps I knew I had in my knowledge. The means of why, and how the perfect storm of viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites, and pesticides has swept honeybee Colony Collapse Syndrome around the world so quickly. This book describes how it isn't just honeybees being constantly shipped around the world, but also bumblebees, and with much less supervision and regulation, bred from far fewer species,...And nesting directly into the ground! Perfect for picking up new pathogens, and also infecting solitary bees, and all other bees worldwide! It all suddenly makes perfect sense now.
The science in this book is exact, and so is the remediation proposed: worldwide standards and inspection for all queen breeding and bee introduction in new areas, to curb further infections and extinctions of local native pollinators. And, most of all: worldwide acknowledgement, standards, and enforced remediation of the sub-lethal, "last drops in the poison bucket" effects of the huge neonicotinoid pesticide industry world wide, and to stop their use especially on all bees for the most visible vector: Varroa Destructor mites. This was something I had already intuited as I saw this use not help the honeybee colony health over time at all in my area.
The Beekeepers: How Humans Changed the World of Bumble Bees by Dana L. Church is an important book, an important piece in the puzzle of the threats to our food supply, and needs to be placed in the Adult Non Fiction section too next to all the beekeepers books!
So, this book filled my many gaps I knew I had in my knowledge. The means of why, and how the perfect storm of viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites, and pesticides has swept honeybee Colony Collapse Syndrome around the world so quickly. This book describes how it isn't just honeybees being constantly shipped around the world, but also bumblebees, and with much less supervision and regulation, bred from far fewer species,...And nesting directly into the ground! Perfect for picking up new pathogens, and also infecting solitary bees, and all other bees worldwide! It all suddenly makes perfect sense now.
The science in this book is exact, and so is the remediation proposed: worldwide standards and inspection for all queen breeding and bee introduction in new areas, to curb further infections and extinctions of local native pollinators. And, most of all: worldwide acknowledgement, standards, and enforced remediation of the sub-lethal, "last drops in the poison bucket" effects of the huge neonicotinoid pesticide industry world wide, and to stop their use especially on all bees for the most visible vector: Varroa Destructor mites. This was something I had already intuited as I saw this use not help the honeybee colony health over time at all in my area.
The Beekeepers: How Humans Changed the World of Bumble Bees by Dana L. Church is an important book, an important piece in the puzzle of the threats to our food supply, and needs to be placed in the Adult Non Fiction section too next to all the beekeepers books!
August 9, 2021
With 19 pages of references, a detailed glossary, and several photographs, this thoughtful exploration of the world of bumble bees is a 3.5 for me. The author's passion for the topic is clear in every line, and she has certainly spent much of her life engaged in research surrounding bumble bees. While many readers may be drawn to the book because they think it will be all about honey bees, that isn't the case. Those bees do play a part in this account of what's been happening to several different types of bumble bees, but the focus is bumble bees, many of whom are endangered and seem to be disappearing. In many respects, this book resembles a detective show as the author assembles facts and bits of information from various researchers and includes their guesses about the bees' fate. Humans are most likely part of the problem since bees are shipped from one part of the world to another in order to pollinate crops, which is an important and necessary function to insure the food supply. But there are dangers to this since the imported bees may take over territory belonging to native species and have negative effects on the ecosystem. The use of pesticides to kill insects is most likely affecting some of these bees too as they consume some of those substances. Reading this book will most likely leave some youngsters feeling dismal about the future of bumble bees, but the author offers some ways they can help as well as highlighting important studies that may have a positive effect on how humans work with and rely on bees. Surely, these creatures are owed more respect that we've given them, considering their importance to us. There are several studies related to bees and bee-counting, and even discussion of whether they can learn and how dogs are being used to identify bee nests. The account of these marvelous creatures is accessible and fascinating. Once again, it's hard to avoid feeling some guilt for what humans have done to bees and their habitats for their own selfish purposes. My only regret is that the images are in black and white and not color so that the bees' colors could be seen more clearly.
August 3, 2025
It's quite a lot of information about the topic of bumble bees and not about the bees as much as the habitats, global movement (for better or worse), and the environmental issues related to bumble bees from disease to pesticides but it reads a little more dry than I would have liked.
It's great for research and understanding in the context of humans and bumble bees, don't get me wrong, but it's very linear in the information and less narrative nonfiction. Though, it's not necessarily supposed to be narrative nonfiction in its delivery. It's organized to move as quick as it can with titles of paragraphs within chapters to keep focused on the information, so for that I appreciated its format. And learning about the reach and understanding we all have to give to bumble bees that should be similar to how the book opened- through the eyes of an Indigenous grandmother sharing the wisdom of bumble bees with her grandchild.
It's great for research and understanding in the context of humans and bumble bees, don't get me wrong, but it's very linear in the information and less narrative nonfiction. Though, it's not necessarily supposed to be narrative nonfiction in its delivery. It's organized to move as quick as it can with titles of paragraphs within chapters to keep focused on the information, so for that I appreciated its format. And learning about the reach and understanding we all have to give to bumble bees that should be similar to how the book opened- through the eyes of an Indigenous grandmother sharing the wisdom of bumble bees with her grandchild.
February 8, 2024
While I knew that honeybees were trucked all over the country to pollinate crops such as almond trees, I had no idea that bumblebee colonies were also captive-bred and sold to farmers to pollinate crops. This has led to the introduction of certain bumblebee species where they are not native, and has contributed to the decline of some wild bumblebee species. I enjoyed the way Dana Church made all the information easy to understand and it was really interesting to learn about bumblebees in various parts of the world. Her review of bumblebee research was fascinating, and I enjoyed learning about the beginnings of citizen science contributions to our understanding of wild bumblebees. This will be a great foundation for me to learn more specifically about the bumblebees in my local area and how I can support them with my native garden.
July 24, 2024
Juv/YA non-fiction book. We hear a lot more about honey bees, so it was interesting to learn about their larger cousins. Very accessible language, I just marked it down one star because there was a lot on bee decline. Certainly that is important, but it did get repetitive for a lay reader (I bet this is the author’s area of research.). But very interesting to learn about historical bee scientists, contemporary bee research, bee cultivation, colony collapse disorder. Especially interesting to learn about civilian scientist efforts - now including conservation dogs! As much as humans have trashed the planet, it’s truly inspiring to learn all the creative ways people are trying to right those wrongs. One can only hope it’s not a case of too little too late.
May 15, 2021
Bumblebees have always been another bug in the world for me. Something that I would keep away from, but after reading this book I’ve found a new sense of respect for these fascinating creatures.
This book does an amazing job of explaining the many things about the bees in general. The writing style lets people like me, who only know just the honeybee, be able to process and understand what the text is trying to explain to me. I especially liked the little footnotes that were there because of it giving me an idea of the writer’s personality. This book is very informative on its topic and has shown me that I too, no matter small or large, can help save the bees.
This book does an amazing job of explaining the many things about the bees in general. The writing style lets people like me, who only know just the honeybee, be able to process and understand what the text is trying to explain to me. I especially liked the little footnotes that were there because of it giving me an idea of the writer’s personality. This book is very informative on its topic and has shown me that I too, no matter small or large, can help save the bees.
June 27, 2021
I knew virtually nothing about bees other than we should protect them and cherish them. This book - for module grade readers - was informative without being preachy. The author, Dana Church, completed her PhD dissertation in bumblebee memory, so she knows her bees and will forever be the bee lady for this reader. Intelligently written, suitable for all ages, and completely engaging. I’ll be cherishing my tomatoes even more now.
September 27, 2021
This book is a fun, thorough introduction to bumblebees for younger readers. It starts with the story of a bumblebee queen travelling from Iceland to Greenland, hidden in a pile of hay, and traces the history of human interactions with bumblebees throughout history, although a significant portion of the book focuses on modern agricultural practices and their impacts on bumblebees.
January 6, 2022
There is a lot of information about bees in this dense book. Probably too much to engage readers in elementary school which is the target audience. I am not sure high school readers would want quite so much either. Well researched but I think it is going to be difficult to find an audience for this one.
October 16, 2021
Well written narrative nonfiction written for young readers, ages 10-16, by a trained biologist. The book includes fascinating details of bee science covering 100s of years. Recent studies show the powerful human impact on bees, but also the optimism of future success.
June 9, 2021
Solid non-fiction about how bumblebees and humans have lived together on Earth for a long time.
The narrative style of conversational while still being informative.
The narrative style of conversational while still being informative.
January 30, 2022
Informative,insightful & helpful for any person interested in bees!
April 25, 2022
Packed with information and first-hand accounts of bee research, this book is a must-read for those interested in bees and pollinators!
November 22, 2023
There are way too many detailed descriptions of scientific studies and it makes this book very boring. The first few chapters are worth reading though!
October 4, 2025
A Scholastic freebie from my school library that was oddly fascinating. (especially for someone who is allergic to bee stings)
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews