Set in the American South in the 1960s, this heartfelt novel connects deeply to bees and beekeeping. Lily, a fourteen-year-old girl burdened by memories of her mother’s death, runs away with her beloved nanny, Rosaleen.
They find refuge in the peaceful home of three sisters who are devoted beekeepers. Against a backdrop of honeycombs and humming bees, Lily learns powerful lessons about family, love, history, and forgiveness.
Bees become a beautiful metaphor for community, healing, and female empowerment in this vivid and moving story.
This imaginative novel takes readers straight into the inner workings of a beehive—a unique society narrated entirely from a bee’s point of view. Flora 717, the protagonist, is a humble worker born into a strict caste system.
Through her journey, readers witness fascinating rituals, conflicts, and secrets that reflect our human world. Paull creates a mesmerizing society shaped by hierarchy, duty, and survival instinct.
Her book is a thought-provoking look into nature’s complex systems and the bonds that tie us all together, through bees’ eyes.
Set in Mexico during the revolutionary period, this lyrical novel introduces us to Simonopio, a mysterious child discovered abandoned and sheltered by bees. Protected by nature, he possesses special gifts and an intimate connection to bees.
Readers become swept up in Simonopio’s story as he and his winged companions protect their adoptive family during a time of turmoil and disease. The bees’ presence adds magical realism to the novel, beautifully illustrating themes of family loyalty, human resilience, and hope.
Spanning three distinct timelines, Lunde’s novel explores humanity’s profound relationship with bees.
We follow William, a 19th-century British naturalist passionate about advancing beekeeping methods; George, a contemporary American beekeeper who faces colony collapse disorder; and Tao, who lives in an imagined future without bees.
These interconnected stories demonstrate the delicate balance between human survival and bees. Richly detailed and emotional, the novel paints a powerful reminder of bees’ importance, the environmental crisis, and the lasting legacy we leave behind.
Fans of Gabaldon’s epic “Outlander” series will dive eagerly into this latest installment. Set in post-Revolutionary America, the novel continues the story of Claire and Jamie Fraser. Bees, and the old tradition of beekeeping, play a symbolic role in the narrative.
In rural communities, people once believed in speaking personally to bees about life events, or risk losing the hive. This symbolic practice of “telling the bees” weaves into the plot, adding depth to themes of family bonds, loss, and life’s shared experiences.
Meredith May turns her real-life experiences into a deeply moving narrative. After her parents separate, young Meredith discovers healing and comfort through her grandfather’s extraordinary relationship with bees.
Spending time in her grandfather’s honey bus, which serves as both sanctuary and classroom, she learns profound wisdom as she observes bees’ behavior. Bees become metaphor and miracle for her, leading Meredith to emotional strength and personal growth.
Her journey underscores just how deeply intertwined insects and human lives can become.
Packer’s informative (non-fiction) book underscores bees’ vital role in our ecosystem. With clarity and passion, he introduces readers to a wide variety of bee species beyond the familiar honeybee.
Through informative and fascinating insights, he highlights bees’ declining numbers and explains why protecting them is crucial to our future.
It’s an engaging and enlightening look into bees’ lives, biodiversity, habitat loss, and what can be done to protect them for future generations.
This mystery novel combines beekeeping passion with detective fiction, introducing readers to Mary Russell, a bright young woman who becomes Sherlock Holmes’s apprentice and friend.
Their friendship begins when retired Holmes takes quiet pleasure in tending his Sussex countryside bees. Working together on intriguing cases, Holmes and Russell draw parallels between detective work and the precise observation, patience, and skill required for beekeeping.
With wit, suspense, and attention to character, this novel uses bees to enrich its thrilling storyline.
In captivating prose, Dalton presents a world after bee extinction and its impact on humanity. Sasha Severn, daughter of the last beekeeper, grows up in a harsh world facing environmental collapse.
When a glimpse of a surviving bee ignites hope, her story intertwines personal struggle with urgent questions about our survival and responsibility to nature.
This timely novel powerfully exposes how connected we are to bees, while exploring themes of family, loss, redemption, and hope for the future.
Set amidst Alaska’s rugged beauty, this moving novel explores family relationships and the natural world. Fields tells the tale of people shaped by their environment and bees that symbolize connection and nourishment.
Through vivid descriptions of beekeeping, honey collection, and lush natural settings, the bond between characters and bees is profoundly portrayed.
The bees here stand as meaningful metaphors for healing, family communication, and forgiveness—a powerful core around which the story gracefully unfolds.
Not traditionally a novel about bees, A. A. Milne’s beloved children’s classic revolves often around a bear’s obsession with honey. Pooh’s adventures are continually disrupted by the bees guarding their delicious hives.
The playful human-animal interactions surrounding bees and honey create charmingly comic scenes. Bees thus feature prominently, becoming a source of desire, humor, and occasional mischief.
This nostalgic tale delightfully highlights the sweetness and whimsy bees bring into storytelling.
Although not centered on actual bees, Goldberg cleverly uses spelling bees as a metaphor for life ambitions, family dynamics, and spiritual growth. The novel follows Eliza Naumann as her unexpected success in spelling bees upsets the careful structure of her family.
This symbolic connection illustrates the hive-like order and fragility within family relationships.
Goldberg’s novel offers intelligent reflection on human connection, patterns of behavior, and feelings of personal achievement—using spelling bees to echo the symbolic meaning bees carry.