About the Book

In a remarkable show of research, reporting, and storytelling, Hannah Nordhaus tells the complex and fascinating story of honeybees in American today, tracking their place in our lives from the first American beekeeping authority, Lorenzo Lorraine Langstroth, to the thousands of dedicated individuals who continue to care about honeybees despite all the reasons not to. The Beekeeper’s Lament is an essential history of an unsung animal.

With the rise of the monocrop and increasingly efficient pesticides, there are simply not enough natural pollinators left to complete the massive task of covering millions of acres of almond groves. Farmers pay beekeepers millions of dollars to have their crops pollinated by upwards of ten thousand hives. With bees, an acre of almonds can produce two thousand pounds of nuts. Without bees, that same acre would produce no more than thirty pounds; the California almond industry is utterly dependent on the unpredictable honeybee.

However, never before has the honeybee’s future survival been so unclear. As the stresses mount on bee populations, beekeepers like John Miller have been faced with devastating hive losses. In addition to natural causes for losses, whole colonies of bees are simply flying away, abandoning their hives, an epidemic known by the media as Colony Collapse Disorder.

In The Beekeeper’s Lament, award-winning journalist, Hannah Nordhaus, tells the riveting story of Miller, one of America’s foremost migratory beekeepers; of the myriad and mysterious epidemics that threaten American honeybee populations; and of the absolutely vital role honeybees play in American agribusiness.

Critical Praise

“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 extraordinary in its breadth and depth, and most of all, it is exquisitely written….The Beekeeper’s Lament offers us a fascinating peek into the diverse, interrelated, and worrisome aspects of the beekeeper’s world....Enjoyable and enlightening.” — AlterNet

“A crackerjack story…the author struck gold….Nordhaus is a lively writer who…ably conveys the economics of the trade…and is just as able to describe the romance and miracle of honey….A smooth-as-honey tour d’horizon of the raggedy world of beekeeping.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“In this revelatory, bittersweet investigation into the state of commercial beekeeping in the 21st century, Nordhaus follows the migratory life of a commercial beekeeper, John Miller, as he trucks his bees between California and North Dakota...and, against all odds, keep[s] his bees and his business alive.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Miller is a complex and colorful man, and his story, along with the story of the bees, is an engaging read.” — Booklist

“Highly recommended as both a character study and a compelling popular science work for interested readers.” — Library Journal

“This book is a terrific read.” — American Bee Journal

“I loved The Beekeeper’s Lament. With great reporting and great writing, Hannah Nordhaus gives a new angle on an ever-evolving topic. You’ll learn a lot.” — Bernd Heinrich, author of Winter World and Mind of the Raven

“Hannah Nordhaus has written an engaging account of the men and insects who put food on our tables. The Beekeeper’s Lament is a sweet, sad story.” — Elizabeth Kolbert, author of Field Notes from a Catastrophe

“Rollicking, buzzing, and touching meditation on mortality....You’ll never think of bees, their keepers, or the fruits (and nuts) of their labors the same way again.” — Trevor Corson, author of The Secret Life of Lobsters and The Story of Sushi

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Product Details

• ISBN: 9780061873256
• ISBN 10: 006187325X
• Imprint: Harper Perennial
• On Sale: 05/24/2011
• Trimsize: 5.310 in (w) x 8.000 in (h) x 0.650 in (d)
• Pages: 288
• List Price: $16.99
• BISAC1 : NATURE / Environmental Conservation & Protection
• BISAC2 : SCIENCE / Life Sciences / Ecology
• BISAC3 : TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING / Agriculture / Animal Husbandry
• BISAC4 : TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING / Agriculture / Sustainable Agriculture
• BISAC5 : TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING / Agriculture / Beekeeping