Boingboing.net, the fabulous tech and science site, recently asked me to weigh in on the recent studies linking Colony Collapse Disorder to neonicotinoid pesticides, and after poking around a bit, I was, frankly, astonished at how poorly the subject has been covered in the media. Read more
Good news! The Beekeeper's Lament has been chosen as a Colorado Book Awards Finalist in the General Nonfiction Category. Read more
Each year the awesome literary blog The Millions asks a diverse collection of writers to weigh in on their reading lists from the previous twelve months. This year they asked me, and here's how I responded, below: Read more
Honey has always been a revelation to me--this magic elixir, made by bees!--but my travels with beekeeper John Miller have taken my affection for the stuff to a new level. On my first visit to Miller in California, he sent me home with four jars: one of California yellow star thistle, his favorite; one of black button sage, a California classic; a jar of manzanita honey and a jar of clover. Read more
Finally, an evolutionary explanation for short-shorts and half-shirts. Read more
A few weeks ago, Kevin Hartnett, who reviewed The Beekeeper's Lament for the Christian Science Monitor, asked me to do an interview for The Millions, a wonderful online literary magazine, about the process of writing the book, and the challenges of making nonfiction both true to life and compelling. I was astonished how fun it was to answer his questions. After many weeks of talking bees, it was really refreshing to talk about writing -- which is, after all, what I do every day (when I'm not talking about bees) -- and to think about what it takes to make a book-length piece of nonfiction hang together. Read more
I was working in my garden when I learned that my friend Joel had been killed in an avalanche. I had just dug a hole and was preparing to place a daylily inside of it; my children were playing with the compost next to me. My daughter was “helping” by tossing it into the hole as quickly as I could dig it out, my 18-month-old son was mixing it into a glass of orange juice and drinking it. It was a lovely morning. Read more
Here's what they said: An engrossing profile of beekeeper John Miller, who wages a one-man battle against a mysterious epidemic devastating bee populations across the globe.
As a new iPhone owner, I completely understand the argument that cell phones distract honey bees. I have, in the month since I bought my phone, done lots of stupid things, like sending emails while driving and updating my facebook page while reading stories to my children ("Good night, uh, hold on, damn, wait, sorry. Moon."). A couple of weeks ago, I even got lost walking the baby in the stroller thanks to a particularly engrossing email (good thing there's a GPS app to help me find my way home). Read more
Writing a book about bees and their humans has gotten me very interested in the subject of symbiosis on both literal and figurative levels. In The Beekeeper’s Lament, there’s lots of codependency. There are flowers and bees—bees depend on flower nectar for sustenance; flowers depend on bees to reproduce. There are bees and beekeepers—beekeepers take care of bees and give them shelter, water, and an express ride to the best flowers around; beekeepers get honey, and money. There are bee guys and almond guys—bee guys help almond trees get pollinated; almond guys’ big pollination paydays keep beekeepers in business. And yes, there are bee guys and bee writers—bee guys elicit publicity for a worthy cause; bee writers get, well, someone to write about. Read more
