Books about Bumblebees from Amazon.com

Mark Bittman, award-winning author of such fundamental books as Fish and Leafy Greens and food columnist for the New York Times ("The Minimalist"), has turned in what has to be the weightiest tome of the year. There are more than 900 pages in this sucker--over 1,500 recipes! This isn't just the big top of cookbooks: it's the entire three-ring circus. This isn't just how to cook everything: it's how to cook everything you have ever wanted to have in your mouth. And then some.

Bittman starts with Roasted Buttered Nuts and Real Buttered Popcorn, and moves right along, section by section, from the likes of Black Bean Soup (eight different ways), to Beet and Fennel Salad, to Mussels (Portuguese-style over Pasta), to Cream Scones--and he hasn't even reached seafood, poultry, meat, or vegetables yet, let alone desserts. There are 23 sections in this cookbook (!) that reflect directly on the how-to of cooking, be that equipment, technique, or recipe.

Every inch of the way the reader finds Bittman's calm, helpful, encouraging voice. "Anyone can cook," he says at the beginning, "and most everyone should." More than a few college kids are going to head off to their first apartments with Bittman's book under arm. More than a few marriages will benefit with this book on the shelf. And anyone who loves cooking and the sound of a great food voice is going to enjoy letting this book fall open where it may. No matter what the page, it's bound to be a tasty and rewarding experience. --Schuyler Ingle.
Price: $12.95 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Penzler Pick, July 2001: Working in a mystery tradition that will cause genre aficionados to think of such classic sleuths as Melville Davisson Post's Uncle Abner or Robert van Gulik's Judge Dee, Alexander McCall Smith creates an African detective, Precious Ramotswe, who's their full-fledged heir.

It's the detective as folk hero, solving crimes through an innate, self-possessed wisdom that, combined with an understanding of human nature, invariably penetrates into the heart of a puzzle. If Miss Marple were fat and jolly and lived in Botswana--and decided to go against any conventional notion of what an unmarried woman should do, spending the money she got from selling her late father's cattle to set up a Ladies' Detective Agency--then you have an idea of how Precious sets herself up as her country's first female detective. Once the clients start showing up on her doorstep, Precious enjoys a pleasingly successful series of cases.

But the edge of the Kalahari is not St. Mary Mead, and the sign Precious orders, painted in brilliant colors, is anything but discreet. Pointing in the direction of the small building she had purchased to house her new business, it reads "THE NO. 1 LADIES DETECTIVE AGENCY. FOR ALL CONFIDENTIAL MATTERS AND ENQUIRIES. SATISFACTION GUARANTEED FOR ALL PARTIES. UNDER PERSONAL MANAGEMENT."

The solutions she comes up with, whether in the case of the clinic doctor with two quite different personalities (depending on the day of the week), or the man who had joined a Christian sect and seemingly vanished, or the kidnapped boy whose bones may or may not be those in a witch doctor's magic kit, are all sensible, logical, and satisfying. Smith's gently ironic tone is full of good humor towards his lively, intelligent heroine and towards her fellow Africans, who live their lives with dignity and with cautious acceptance of the confusions to which the world submits them. Precious Ramotswe is a remarkable creation, and The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency well deserves the praise it received from London's Times Literary Supplement. I look forward with great eagerness to the upcoming books featuring the memorable Miss Ramotswe, Tears of the Giraffe and Morality for Beautiful Girls, soon to be available in the U.S. --Otto Penzler.
Price: $0.59 [Notify me when price goes down.]

My name is Skippito Friskito.
I fear not a single bandito
My manners are mellow,
I'm sweet like the Jell-O,
I get the job done, yes indeed-o.
Skippyjon Jones is no ordinary kitten. Oh, no. . . .He's actually El Skippito, a great sword-fighter ready to battle banditos the world over! With a little imagination and a whole lot of fun, this frisky cat dons a mask and cape and takes on a bad bumble-beeto to save the day. And along the way, he'll be sure to steal young reader's hearts, yes indeed-o!.
Price: $2.25 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Sitting in a beautiful garden, high atop a flower, the impressionable Buzzy reads in the book, Learn to Fly, the very true fact that, "Bumblebees weren't made to fly." He reads again, "Bumblebees weren't made to fly."

Stranded on top of a flower/ Buzzy longed to fly away.
His heart still knew how/ But his head had forgotten the way.

The adventure that ensues challenges Buzzy to overcome obstacles without his wings that he had never before thought possible. He travels over the stream and through the high grass, back home where his parents with love and support tell him,

"You're doubting yourself./ Fear is in the way.
Listen to your heart Buzzy/ Not what others say.
Ignore labels and limits Buzzy./ They seldom do good.
You start to think, 'I Can't,'/ when you should be thinking, 'I Could.'"

Its vibrant illustrations and clear, thoughtful message make Buzzy the Bumblebee a motivating and heartwarming story for all ages.

He stopped doubting himself/ And didn't need to know, "Why."
He believed once again/ And was able to FLY.

Illustrations by Michael G. Monroe..
Price: $3.24 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Named a National Book of the Year Award finalist!

Recommended by Children's Book Watch, The Reading Tub, The Dove Foundation and many other professional reviewers.

Our adorable "can-do" bee is back in another delightful tale.

Told through lilting verse, the story is a gentle introduction to the life lesson that there is always way, if we believe there is and look for it. Through Ruby Lee's example, young readers are encouraged to think not of the limitations but of possibilities..
Price: $11.38 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Sixteen-year-old Barney can't remember life before the Complex, an experimental clinlc. He knows he's different--he's the control subject. Then he uncovers a terrible secret about himself, a secret that drives him to fulfill his and his fellow subjects' ultimate dream. The Bumblebee must fly!.
Price: $1.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

Winner of 2 Benjamin Franklin Awards, the International Gallery Award and name "Most outstanding Children's book" at the Mom's Choice Awards!

Recommended by the Dove Foundation, Children's Book Watch and many other professional reviewers.

Ashley wants to give up in the face of a challenge, but with Ruby Lee's encouragement she learns to face her fears and she grows as a result.

This critially acclaimed, international award winning, best seller encourages children to face life's challenges with courage and faith..
Price: $11.32 [Notify me when price goes down.]

In their classic, unparalled work, The Natural History of Bumblebees, biologists Carol A. Kearns and James D. Thomson give amateurs and professionals alike the basic knowledge to pursue the joys of observing and investigating these attractive and amenable subjects.

Packed with information on bumblebee colonies, bee honeypots, bee development, foraging behavior, as well as instructions for maintaining bumblebees in captivity, this lively and colorful book also includes an easy-to-use photographic field guide to aid in the identification of over fifty species of North American bumblebee-virtually every known species on this continent. Until now, even the basic identification of North American bumblebees has been through the use of highly technical regional keys. The Natural History of Bumblebees fills a gap in the literature and provides amateur enthusiasts, educators, and scholars the information to develop their own projects in bumblebee biology.

Kearns and Thomson also provide detailed instructions for constructing simple equipment that facilitates bee wrangling: the handling, tagging, studying, and raising of bumblebees. They present suggestions for research projects and identify areas of incomplete knowledge requiring further research. This book is an invaluable reference for students and scholars of native pollinators and an indispensable resource for naturalists, gardeners, and anyone who has ever been fascinated by the flight of the bumblebee..
Price: $13.00 [Notify me when price goes down.]

"In his new preface Bernd Heinrich ranges from Maine to Alaska and north to the Arctic as he summarizes findings from continuing investigations over the past twenty-five years--by him and others--into the wondrous ""energy economy"" of bumblebees.".
Price: $18.90 [Notify me when price goes down.]