Book review: The Bees by Laline Paull

The fascinating talk on beekeeping and pollinators by Jacqualine Ferguson in November brought to mind a book I read a few years ago. Very much like Jacqualine’s talk, the book “The Bees” by Laline Paull takes you through a year in the life of a beehive. But this is a bee book with a difference! It is a fictional story, focusing around the character of Flora 717. She starts out life as a lowly sanitation bee and overcomes adversity and dangers to work her way up through the hive hierarchy. It has plenty of drama, including class struggles, sexual intrigue, double-crosses, battles for survival and murder, to keep you turning the page.

I wasn’t sure how realistically it portrayed life in the hive but Jacqualine’s talk helped to confirm that it is a closely observed representation of the lifecycle of a bee, the different roles within the hive, and the dangers our pollinators face thoughout the year. I sometimes found the human behaviours Paull imposed on the bees irritating and not a true reflection of the hive mind. On one hand she has written an engaging story about bees but on the other created an allegory on human prejudices.

For those who don’t enjoy stories like “Watership Down” and “Duncton Wood” which anthropomorphise the animal world, this is probably not for you. However, for anyone wanting to learn more about honeybees it offers a very accessible, informative and overall, enjoyable read.