Buzz

Winner of the 2019 Pacific Northwest Book Award

"Vividly zinging...[Hanson] zips and waggles through fascinating journeys to meet fellow bee obsessives, reminding us that...we have brought trouble upon ourselves: 40 percent of the bee species are in decline threatened with extinction."

"Hanson is an insightful observer of evolution, at his most elegant when digging deep into the science...[His] senses are, indeed, sharp when observing the natural world."

"Buzz shines the most brightly...when Hanson's own adoration of bees comes through: he wanders around the landscape observing them and musing about their natural history in ways that light up the page...A rewarding choice for readers keen on science and nature."

"According to Thor Hanson's Buzz, the relationship between bees and the human lineage goes back three million years...Both our world and our brains, it seems, have been profoundly shaped by bees."

"Charming...Hanson is an upbeat and often humorous guide...If you have time to read one book on what is happening with modern bees, you couldn't do better than Buzz."

"A loving, infectiously enthusiastic natural history."

"Popular science at its intelligent best."

"In Buzz, Thor Hanson reminds us that the apian community is incredibly diverse...[He] expertly explores the history and ecology of bees around the world."

"Timely...The core message of this charming book [is to] be fascinated, and hopefully that will lead us to take action to protect these marvelous and critically important insects."

"Engaging."

"Fun, fascinating and full of engaging pen portraits of the scientists and bee enthusiasts [Hanson] meets in the course of his research...By the final section of this book Hanson's sense of wonder has rubbed off on us."

"For this natural history of the bee, biologist Thor Hanson wings far beyond the hive to explore bee species from 'bumbles' to wool carders... Apiology, Hanson reminds us, is not just about the scientific buzz: bee behaviour has shed light on human issues from addiction to collective decision-making."

"Engagingly written, well researched, widely informative...Hanson is a conservation biologist with an infectious curiosity."

"Celebrates the wide diversity of bee anatomy and behavior...The storyline here is a sadly familiar denouement to many modern natural histories, a tale of pathogens, habitat destruction, pesticides...[But] if there are a few sour notes in its closing bars, the prevailing buzz in Hanson's book is sweet, sweet music."

"[A] lively look at bees. From exploring the insect's evolutionary beginnings to profiling celebrity beekeepers, Hanson reminds us that we should appreciate these complex creatures, which are vital to our way of life."

"This book is an accessible and engaging read; particularly enjoyable are Hanson's descriptions of his own forays into the world of bees."

"Delightful...Bringing to mind Bill Bryson's complicated, but engaging ability to intertwine nature, science, art, history and culture, Hanson weaves a similar spell about the world's 20,000 species of bees."

"If you think the sting of declining bee populations won't affect you, think again...Hanson take[s] himself and readers on a journey of exploration."

"Enjoyable...Hanson's enthusiasm in infectious."

"Buzz provokes thought and promotes action."

"[Hanson] is a charmingly enthusiastic bee fanatic and his book is a pleasure to read."

"Entertaining...The author's point is plain: we need to adopt an approach to insects and to their central role in the maintenance of all life."

"Hanson...is surprisingly optimistic that we can reform and protect our bees, citing recent research and improved agricultural practices. In Buzz, he states his case while entertainingly recounting human-and-bee history and his own experiences with many bee species."

"Lively and entertaining, Hanson's work introduces the world of bees--all bees, not just honeybees...Of interest to farmers, gardeners, ecologists, and anyone concerned about bees and their impact on our food supply."

"This beautifully written natural history book, brought to us by a graceful and talented author, packs surprise after surprise with every turn of the page. Who knew bees were just evolved wasps? Or that ancient Egyptians ferried bees up and down the Nile to pollinate their crops? Don't pass this one up."

"Thor Hanson is a magician at making entomology and taxonomy exciting, highlighting the fascinating world of bees. Buzz hums with science and history, exposing how bees have shaped our world. A delightful, buzzworthy must-read!"

"As he did for feathers and seeds, Thor Hanson has written a wonderfully engaging work of natural history that will delight readers with its elegant prose, surprising stories, and deep humanity. Bees, so important to life on earth, are fortunate to have someone as passionate and knowledgeable as Hanson tell the tale of their evolutionary past, turbulent present, and precarious future. After reading Buzz, you will look at bees with a profound mixture of awe and gratitude."

"This book hums with the unique mixture of science, adventure, intelligence, wonder, linguistic virtuosity, and great storytelling we have come to expect from Thor Hanson's work. But it offers something new and rare as well. Here we are drawn into a surprising and enchanted world that is hidden in plain sight. All who read Buzz will eat dinner, walk in the neighborhood, search the flowers, and yes-listen to the drone of bees-with changed minds and hearts, ones that are freshly attuned to our beautiful and essential interconnection with the six-legged beings who share and co-create our history, our mythology, our sustenance, our planet, and our future."

"This book is a joy. In it, Thor Hanson reminds us that the story of bees is the story of the origin of societies, of sweetness and collapse, of flowers and their sex, and if the humans who study all of these things. It is a story of evolution and biodiversity, a story that bears on much of the food we eat but also so very much else. Buy it. Read it. Read it again. And when you do, you will look out at the buzzing world anew."

"Thor Hanson is a gifted story teller and naturalist. In Buzz, he takes us along on a wondrous, action-packed journey to discover the secret lives of bees, flowers, and the unconventional men and women who study them. This book really is the buzz about bees, and it's destined to become a natural history classic."