Bee People

Gr 5–7—Host and bee removal expert Gregg McMahan has a big personality and plenty of passion for his industrious "girls"—bees, that is. However, that's not enough to boost this unscripted introduction to the pleasures and perils of beekeeping beyond a disorganized ramble. First, there are vague warnings about Colony Collapse Disorder, highlighted by a debatable claim that the slow pace of life in Third World countries may be due to poor nutrition resulting from the growing scarcity of crop-pollinating bees. McMahan then leads viewers through a fragmentary school visit, a protracted removal of bees colonizing a Colorado barn, interviews at a local beekeepers' expo (downing shots of honey vodka along the way), and a trip to New York City for an anticlimactic second "rescue" of what turns out to be an abandoned hive. Pop quizzes sprung on random passersby and other shorter segments are interspersed. Viewers get superficial introductions to a number of beekeepers, including younger ones, but will learn little about bees themselves or the art and craft of keeping them.—John Peters, Children's Literature Consultant, New York City