The Bees of Notre-Dame

Emphasizing resilience, this tale effectively captures a fascinating episode in recent history.

Gr 1-3--An overhead view of Notre-Dame before the blaze of April 2019 sets the scene; the book opens on spring in Paris, as Sibyle the beekeeper tends to the hives that are situated on a high terrace of the cathedral's Sacristy, near the famous rose windows. The bees, dormant over winter, find their ways to the blossoms of a French spring while their queen lays eggs in the centuries-old wax of the honeycomb. Then fire breaks out, and the fire-fighting is swift as heartbreaking events unfold; there is never a thought but that all will be rebuilt. A second overhead view, post-fire, shows readers the extent of the damage and what was saved or salvaged. The facts are presented poetically, with license, so that text about the bees dancing directions for other bees as to the location of pollen is shown next to a scene of the queen laying eggs. The melding of two compelling stories--beekeeping at the cathedral and the fire--acts to weaken both, and the last sentence only underscores this: "When the tall black cloud of smoke and ash finally clears, the sun rises to say, 'Come! Rebuild. Work with each other. You are stronger together. Just like the bees.'" Back matter includes more about the story in an author's note, along with diagrams of Notre Dame and recommended reading. VERDICT A messy hybrid of two promising stories results in a lovingly created book that will find an audience but reads like a lost opportunity.--Kimberly Olson Fakih

Graceful prose by Browne (Dorothy the Brave) pays homage to Paris's venerable Notre-Dame cathedral, and to the bees that lived atop it before its 2019 fire. Highlighted in soft brown lines, multimedia spreads by Goodale (The Moon Remembers) trace a young queen's mating flight above the city before she returns to a cathedral-top hive to lay eggs "in thousands of perfect hexagons." Above Paris, the hives are tended by a brown-skinned beekeeper just visible on the cathedral roof, and clad in a white bee suit and veil. But then, sudden catastrophe: fire consumes the edifice, and firefighters work "to quench the flames, to save the cathedral./ To save the hives." Goodale draws the cathedral's beekeeper working in front of the scaffolding erected to repair the building. "Rebuild," Browne writes, "Work with each other... just like the bees." The story highlights the contemporary, as city-dwellers of many skin tones patronize bookstalls and drink coffee in spring; the ancient ("This cathedral has outlived kings and queens"); and the way each species contributes, together, to flourishing community. Back matter includes photographs and details about the fire and the rebuilding. Ages 4-8. Author's agent: Alyssa Eisner Henkin, Trident Literary Group. Illustrator's agent: Lori Kilkelly, LK Literary Agency. (Oct.)