The Hive Detectives

December 13, 2010November 7, 2014

Behind the Bee Book: Part 4

If you are a children’s book writer or illustrator, and especially if you live in New England, you may like this bit of bee book trivia: What New England children’s book author/illustrator took the photo on the cover of THE HIVE DETECTIVES?

Answer: Jen O’Keefe!

It turns out that in addition to writing, illustrating, photographing, mothering, and volunteering, Jen keeps bees. (She is hiveless at the moment, but I get the feeling this is temporary.) When she found out I was writing a book about honey bees, she mentioned her hobby and sent me a few photographs. I knew the moment I saw the image above that it would make an amazing cover shot. It’s creepy and mysterious and aesthetically irresistible all at the same time.

The picture is of something called burr comb. Under normal conditions, honey bees shape their honeycomb into flat sheets. Under certain unusual conditions, however, the bees get a little loosey-goosey with their protocols. They’ll build honeycomb into spaces that were never meant to hold it—between hive boxes or inside syrup feeders, for example—and the shapes they come up with can be pretty funky. Several years ago, Jen fed one of her hives some leftover chunk honey (honey containing chunks of wax) inside a box-shaped feeder tray. She went on vacation for a few days and came back to a box-shaped tray full of burr comb. The photographer in her couldn’t resist:

“It was astonishing and gorgeous and I caught it in the nick of time, because [the bees] were grooming the comb for laying. I’ve still got the feeder in my art studio filled with the burr comb. It’s like a museum piece.”

Thank you, Jen, for sharing your talents with me, and for letting that unforgettable burr comb grace the cover of THE HIVE DETECTIVES.

December 10, 2010November 7, 2014

Behind the Bee Book: Part 3

Photo courtesy of Ellen Harasimowicz

I knew early on that I would need to hire a photographer to work with me on THE HIVE DETECTIVES– this was a fresh story, and it needed fresh photographs–so I was crushed to find out that my friend Betty Jenewin, a photojournalist and one of the photographers behind the images in TRACKING TRASH, wasn’t available for the job. And I was leery when Betty told me that she knew another photographer, also a photojournalist, who might be available, not because I didn’t trust Betty’s judgment, but because I was setting out very soon for a research trip across the mid-Atlantic states. Whoever I hired would have to be game for traveling on short notice, bunking with me throughout the trip, and traipsing through commercial honey bee yards and research apiaries in search of images and stories. It seemed like a lot to ask.

And it would have been, for most people. But Ellen Harasimowicz is not most people. We met for the first time on March 25, and three weeks later we set off, the trunk of my car full-up with her camera equipment, my recording supplies, and two sparkly new bee suits. That’s how Ellen rolls. As soon as we hit Pennsylvania, the two of us taped our pant legs closed with duct tape, donned those bee suits, and marched into an apiary that was home to millions of honey bees; we visited a quarantined bee yard and sampled the honey left in its empty supers (realizing only afterward that whatever it was that scared off the bees might just be in the honey we ate!); and we volunteered to carry three boxes of honey bees from one bee lab to another … even before knowing for sure if our cargo of bees would be dead or alive (they were dead). It was a blast of a week, full of stories and insights and adventures. We returned to Massachusetts with great material for the book and, more importantly, a true friendship.

In nearly every review of THE HIVE DETECTIVES to date, special mention has been made of Ellen’s pictures. In case you missed them, here’s a sampling:

“Harasimowicz’s clear, beautifully reproduced photographs support and extend the text.” (Kirkus reviews)

“Fully illustrated with excellent color photos …” (Booklist, Starred review)

“… gloriously crisp photographs of bees and people at work out in the field and inside scientific laboratories.” (The Horn Book)

I am lucky to have found Ellen (thank you, thank you, thank you, Betty Jenewin!) and am grateful for her talent and flexibility. She and I have done some pretty amazing things since that first trek together: we’ve stung ourselves with honey bees, we’ve ridden horses to the top of a mountain in central Mexico to see colonies of monarch butterflies*; and we’ve lived on a Costa Rican butterfly farm with giant bats, garrulous howler monkeys, and poisonous snakes.** We’ve spent long hours considering photographs and book structures and new adventures. At this point we have more book ideas than we have time to make them, and I, for one, hope it is always this way.

Thank you for everything, Ellen. Here’s to all the books (and bookish adventures) ahead of us!

* Pictures from this trip will appear in our citizen science book, coming from Henry Holt in January 2011.

** And pictures from this trip are right now enticing an editor to sign the book we call SPECIAL DELIVERY. Or so we hope. Stay tuned!

December 9, 2010November 7, 2014

Behind the Bee Book: Part 2

That’s editor Erica Zappy and me at the 2007 Boston Globe-Horn Book Awards ceremony, where our first book, TRACKING TRASH, was given an Honor Book Award. It was a special night.

TRACKING TRASH was a literal first for both of us: it was the first book I ever wrote, and it was the first book Erica ever acquired on her own. There is nothing like creating a sixty-four page, ten thousand word book illustrated with seventy full-color images by more than twenty different photographers to bond a couple girls. We learned a lot, made a book we are both proud of, and established a great working relationship.

All of which made the creation of THE HIVE DETECTIVES an even more positive experience. This time we pulled together fifteen thousand words and nearly one hundred photographs, and we did it with none of the drama (no lost photographs! no crisis conversations from the top of a London double decker bus!) of our first trip round the bend.

Thank you for everything, Erica. I am looking forward to rolling up our sleeves and getting to work on book number three.

December 7, 2010November 7, 2014

Behind the Bee Book, Part 1

Photo courtesy of David Miller

I have been planning this series of blog posts since May, when THE HIVE DETECTIVES was released. Somehow, though, the actual writing and posting has been put off as first one thing and then another (and another and another) stole my attention. As the calendar year winds to a close, I’ve decided to put extra effort into finally and publicly thanking the people who helped me bring this new book into the world.

I’d like to start with my friend Linda Miller, who back in 2007, shortly after the publication of TRACKING TRASH, called to ask what I made of the honey bee crisis. To which I replied, “What honey bee crisis?”

And then, like some kind of eye-opening buzz magic, everywhere I turned were stories of honey bees and mysterious disappearances and concern for our food supply. I am not sure why the story hadn’t registered with me prior to that talk with Linda, but by the time the article she’d clipped from The Christian Science Monitor arrived in my mailbox, I was in too deep to turn back.

Within months I was registered for bee school at the annual conference of the Eastern Apiculture Society, where I met Dennis vanEngelsdorp. (He went on to star in the book.) I took more classes, joined a beekeeping club, infected photographer Ellen Harasimowicz with my honey bee mania, and began traveling the eastern seaboard to talk with bee wranglers and bee scientists involved in the CCD story. The journey from Linda’s question to a published book was a long and intense one, but I have not forgotten where it began: a conversation with a friend.

Linda still calls to ask interesting questions, and she sends handwritten notes by regular mail as well, usually tucking into the envelope a newspaper clipping or two. Not all of these lead to book projects, of course, but each and every one engages my mind. Which, come to think of it, is just the sort of thing Linda strives for: encouraging people to think.

Thank you, Linda, for asking the question that got me thinking about honey bees. Thank you for sending me notes and articles and ideas. And most of all, thank you for being my friend.

October 9, 2010April 25, 2015

Honey Bees and CCD

If you read this recent New York Times article on Colony Collapse Disorder and honey bees, please take a moment to also read this Fortune online article about important information missing from the Times report.

Very. Important. Information.

And if you are at all confused, I’d highly recommend the original PLOS One article, which details the work in question. (Warning: this is pretty technical stuff.)

The bottom line is that we simply don’t know yet what is causing Colony Collapse Disorder. But we do know a lot more than we did four years ago, when the CCD mystery began to unfold. We know for sure that “our world is a dangerous place for honey bees, and that it will take a Herculean effort on the part of all humans–people who keep bees, people who study bees, and even people who read about bees–to see them through.”

Long live the bees …

Edited to add: The NYT article is apparently only available online to subscribers.

Edited further to add: That quoted bit is from THE HIVE DETECTIVES. But you knew that, right?

October 7, 2010April 25, 2015

AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prizes for Excellence in Science Books

I was tickled to find out today that THE HIVE DETECTIVES has been named a finalist for the 2011 AAAS/Subaru Science Books & Films Prize for Excellence in Science Books. This mouthful of a prize was created six years ago in order to “encourage outstanding science writing and illustration for children.” Here’s the complete list of nominated titles in all four categories:

Children’s Science Picture Book

Bones. Steven Jenkins. (Illus.) Scholastic, 2010.

Lizards. Nic Bishop. (Illus.) Scholastic, 2010.

Magic School Bus and the Climate Challenge. Joanna Cole. (Illus. by Bruce Degen; from the Magic School Bus Series.) Scholastic, 2010.

Why Do Elephants Need the Sun? Robert E. Well. (Illus.) Albert Whitman & Company, 2010.

Middle Grades Science Book

The Hive Detectives: Chronicle of a Honey Bee Catastrophe. Loree Griffin Burns. (Photographs by Ellen Harasimowicz; from the Scientists in the Field Series.) Houghton Mifflin, 2010.

Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World’s Largest Parrot. Sy Montgomery. (Photographs by Nic Bishop; from the Scientists in the Field Series.) Houghton Mifflin, 2010.

The Secret of the Yellow Death: A True Story of Medical Sleuthing. Susan Jermain. Houghton Mifflin, 2010.

The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter’s Wonder. Mark Cassino and Jon Nelson. (Illus. by Nora Aoyagi.) Chronicle, 2009.

Young Adult Science Book

The Case for Pluto: How a Little Planet Made a Big Difference. Alan Boyle. Wiley, 2009.

The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of Elements. Sam Kean. Little Brown, 2010.

Every Bone Tells a Story: Hominin Discovery, Deductions, and Debates. Jill Rubalcaba and Peter Robertshaw. Charlesbridge, 2010.

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks. Rebecca Skloot. Random House, 2010.

Hands-On Science Book

The Book of Potentially Catastrophic Science. Sean Connolly. (Illus.) Workman, 2010.

Insect Detective. Steve Voake. (Illus. by Charlotte Voake.) Candlewick, 2010.

Nature Science Experiments. Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen. (Illus. by Edward Miller; from the MAD Science Series.) Sterling, 2010.

You Are the Earth: From Dinosaur Breath to Pizza from Dirt. David Suzuki and Kathy Vanderlinden. Greystone, 2010.

Happy dancing in the Burns house today!

June 21, 2010April 25, 2015

What I’m Up To

1. Not blogging. Clearly.

2. Preparing for a new field adventure, this time with a beetle buster. Details soon.

3. Playing beetle buster at home, in my garden*. They. Will. Not. Win.

4. Slowing life down for the duration of our summer break. This is not as easy as it sounds.

5. Smiling over this.

Hope you’re up to some good stuff, too!

* I took the photograph above in my garden. Lovely looking eggs, no? Sadly, they hatch out maniacal plant-eating potato beetle larvae, so I had no choice but to squish them to bits.

May 25, 2010April 25, 2015

Book Launch, Part Two!

Adorable honey bee by Kathy, GFL librarian

This Thursday night I’ll be launching THE HIVE DETECTIVES … again.

I know! Crazy! But here’s the thing: I only get one book launch every three years or so. I should totally make the most of the opportunity, right? Plus, I am re-launching* for a great cause: the Gale Free Library (GFL) in Holden, Massachusetts.

Soooo … if you are free this Thursday, consider joining photographer Ellen Harasimowicz and I for an evening of buzzy celebration. We’ll be sharing some stories from our days researching THE HIVE DETECTIVES, selling copies of the book, and signing them, too. All proceeds will be donated directly to the Gale Free Library. Here are the details:

THE HIVE DETECTIVES Book Launch and Library Fundraiser!
Thursday, May 27, 2010
6:30-8pm
Gale Free Library
23 Highland Street
Holden, Massachusetts

We hope you can join us! And please spread the word!

* Our first launch raised $380 in honor of the Beaman Memorial Library in West Boylston, Massachusetts. If you’re interested, you’ll find details here and here.

May 3, 2010April 25, 2015

A Book is Born!

What does the average children’s book author do on the day her new book is released? This one will be planting strawberries. (The plants arrived last Wednesday and they simply cannot sit in the crisper drawer another day. They can’t!) So, drizzle or not, out to the garden I go. But first, some buzzy delights, in honor of the day ….

These lovely photographs were sent to me by readers over the last few weeks. These readers happen to be my friends and family, but I like to think that complete strangers will soon be getting the same pleasure from holding and reading (and building Lego beehives around!) THE HIVE DETECTIVES.

Also, some happy THE HIVE DETECTIVE review tidbits:

“A fascinating book from the Scientists in the Field series.”
Booklist, Starred Review

“Readers … will be well served by this example of a scientific mystery still unsolved.”
Kirkus, Starred Review

“In yet another excellent entry in the series, Burns tells … a dramatic scientific mystery, carefully leading readers through the unfolding of the crisis and the attempts to solve it”
The Horn Book

“Ellen Harasimowicz’s photographs are vivid and revealing; and Loree Griffin Burns’ text is clear, engrossing, and easy to follow. Given the ease to which the next epidemic of Colony Collapse Disorder might so quickly plunge us all into the midst of a planetary food supply catastrophe, THE HIVE DETECTIVES is certainly the most important children’s book I have so far read this year.”
Richie Partington, Richie’s Picks

And, finally, a flashback to the release of my first book, TRACKING TRASH:

My goodness, a lot changes in three years!

More formal release festivities for THE HIVE DETECTIVES are coming soon to two marvelous central Massachusetts libraries. You can find out more about those celebrations here. I wish every single one of you could join us.

Happy Monday!

Buzz! Buzz!

Edited to add: Just look at what Jama Rattigan has done. Just look! Thank you for all of this lovely buzzy-ness, Jama. You have made my drizzly book release day a smashing success, honey. Thank you!

March 8, 2010April 25, 2015

Countdowns!

Two weeks until SPRING!

That’s a crocus image from last year, but I think this year’s crop will be poking through the snow pack in my front yard any day now …

Four weeks until the softcover edition of TRACKING TRASH is released!

I’m happy that my first literary baby will soon be available in a lower-priced, easy-to-tote-to-the-beach version. (Hey, someone might do it!) To celebrate, I’m going to link back to a series of blog posts I wrote in 2007, when the hardcover edition was first published: The Stories Behind TRACKING TRASH

Eight weeks until THE HIVE DETECTIVES is officially released!

To celebrate, the lovely and talented Kathy Erskine invited me over to her blog. You can read our interview (and see some bee guts!) here. Thank you, Kathy!