Killer Bees

Children's Literature - Susan Borges

This fascinating nonfiction book contains interesting and detailed information about the Africanized honeybee, or killer bee. Readers learn that before 1956 there were no killer bees, but when scientists mated honey bees in Brazil with bees from Africa, a new kind of bee capable of deadly attacks was created. There is a curious fascination surrounding this unusual insect and readers will be intrigued and mesmerized by the detailed close-up photographs and carefully-worded captions and labels. Important subject-specific vocabulary words such as stinger and hive are highlighted in the text and explained in the glossary. This attractive book about bees, which is one in a series of ten science books subtitled "No Backbone! The World of Vertebrates," has age-appropriate nonfiction text features that make this book very user friendly and accessible for young readers. The table of contents page clearly outlines the specific sections that are included, and each page is rich with detailed and unique information about killer bees. In or out of the elementary classroom, young readers with an interest in science, animal life, and insects will find this text interesting and informative. Reviewer: Susan Borges