The Beekeeper's Lament (how One Man And Half A Billion Honey Bees Help Feed America)

By (author) Hannah Nordhaus; By (author) Nordhaus Hannah
Short description/annotation
John Miller tasks himself with the care and safe transportation of billions of bees. He is descended from N E Miller, America''s first migratory beekeeper, and trucks his hives from crop to crop, working the North Dakotan clover in summer and the Californian almonds in winter. This title tells his story and that of his bees.
Description
The honey bee is a miracle. It is the cupid of the natural world. It pollinates crops; making plants bear fruit and helping farmers make money. But in this age of vast industrial agribusiness, never before has so much been asked of such a small wonder. And never before has its survival been so unclear - and the future of our food supply so acutely challenged. In steps John Miller, or rather in he bounds. Miller tasks himself with the care and safe transportation of billions of bees. He is descended from N.E. Miller, America''s first migratory beekeeper, and trucks his hives from crop to crop, working the North Dakotan clover in summer and the Californian almonds in winter. He provides the crucial buzz to farmers who are otherwise bereft of natural pollinators, and does so for a price. But while there is steady demand for Miller''s miracle workers, especially from the multi-billion-dollar almond industry (without bees an acre of almonds produces no more than 30 lbs of nuts; with bees, 2,000 lbs), he''s faced with ever-mounting hive losses. In addition to traditional scourges like bears, wax moths, American foulbrood, tracheal mite, varroa mite, Africanized bees, overturned tractor trailers, bee thieves, PPB (piss-poor beekeeping), etc., beekeepers now lose hives in the most mysterious of ways, when whole colonies simply fly away, abandoning their combs, in an epidemic known as Colony Collapse Disorder. While bad news is in constant supply, Miller forges ahead because he can''t imagine doing anything else. He copes and moves on. He works and sometimes triumphs, all with an inspiring sense of humor. "The Beekeeper''s Lament" tells his story and that of his bees, creating a complex, moving, and unforgettable portrait of man in the new natural world.
Review quote
"A fascinating read from cover to cover." -- Associated Press "Bees are amazing. That''s the first reason to read The Beekeeper''s Lament, journalist Hannah Nordhaus''s rewarding account of migratory beekeeping and the mysterious scourge stalking the domestic bee population... It''s metaphorical and poetic, elegiac and somehow sad." -- Christian Science Monitor "The Beekeeper''s Lament is at once science lesson, sociological study, and breezy read...A book about bees could easily descend into academe, but the author settles for nothing less than literature." -- Boston Globe "Nordhaus, an award-winning journalist, weaves a dramatic tale of how and why beehives and bees themselves are threatened by everything from mites to moths to bee thieves." -- Washington Post "The book is a rich mix of head and heart." -- Minneapolis Star Tribune "Echoing Rachel Carson''s 1962 attack on the effects of pesticides, Silent Spring, Nordhaus explores this fascinating subject, providing long overdue recognition to the beekeeper and their task as stewards of a species." -- Financial Times "A fascinating peek into the precarious business of keeping the nation''s crops pollinated." -- Smithsonian "Some of the best narrative and storytelling I''ve had the pleasure of reading since Rebecca Skloot''s The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks...You must read this book." -- Maggie Koerth-Baker, Boing Boing "A remarkable book...Nordhaus uses a somber, lyrical writing style to make bees into just about the most fascinating subject you''ve ever encountered while at the same time crafting an elegiac metaphor for the contingency of modern American life." -- The Millions "A graceful, informative, and engaging book." -- Hill Rag "Her book is extra