'This is classic modern nature-writing; a synthesis of scientific learning, observation and the author's response. If you care for the wellbeing of bees and the planet and for the state of the human heart, then this book, with its deft and beautiful prose, is for you... And like all good nature writing, it also - quietly, clearly and insistently - requires us, too, to respond' Countryfile Magazine
'An intimate exploration of the heart and home, and a tantalising glimpse into an alien culture. A brave and delicate book, rich and fascinating' Nick Hunt, author of Where the Wild Winds Are
'Subtly wrought personal journey into the art and science of beekeeping. Helen Jukes evokes both the practical minutiae
of the work, and the findings of researchers who have illuminated bee ethology over the centuries'
nature'A mesmeric, lovely, quietly powerful book. A gentle but compelling account of the redemption that comes from relationship and attention' Charles Foster, author of
Being a Beast'A profound, funny and sometimes deeply moving book that describes a year of inner city bee keeping, while dancing between the history of bees and us and what it means to be human in our modern world' Julia Blackburn, author of
Threads: The Delicate Life of John Craske'A very human story about the aliens gathering in her back garden - bees, fascinating but almost unknowable. Their wildness and her duty to them help open up a desk rat's uninspiring life to all the possibilities of love, care, connection and sheer wonder. It is a lovely, entirely personal journey into the very heart of the hive' Michael Pye
'I raced through this really terrific, down-to-earth read. The existential threat to our entire ecosystem posed by the problems facing bees can be hard to grasp, but Helen manages to make this a very personal, human story that, hopefully, might inspire others to action' Luke Turner,
The Quietus
