Swarm of Bees

February 4, 2019
A boy shies a tomato at a hive of bees, releasing a furious swarm. Snicket’s narrator (The Bad Mood and the Stick) addresses the bees: “You are so angry! What will you do?” Alexander (A Bear Sat on My Porch Today) shows the throng as hundreds of black, gray, and yellow dots sweeping across the pages, seeking their assailant. Slice-of-life scenes spotlight characters whom the bees might sting while the text lists reasons why they shouldn’t—a sailor has “been on a ship for nine months,” a cat is attempting “to hide in the grass.” Despite the explanations, the cross-looking boy, who himself resembles a bee, hurls tomatoes at some of them. The narrator cheers from the sidelines: “Swarm of bees, are you going to sting the boy? He keeps throwing tomatoes!” In a cacophonous climax, boy, bees, and victims race around town. A beekeeper wrangles the bees; a parent calms the boy. (“It can feel good to be angry,” notes the text. “It can feel better to stop.”) The message—people don’t have to be victim to their emotions—is overshadowed by the all-out, Keystone Cops-style mayhem, exuberantly illustrated with Alexander’s clear-cut geometric figures and bright traffic-sign colors. Ages 4–8.

Starred review from February 15, 2019
An angry kid wreaks havoc until a father's restorative embrace brings love and forgiveness to child and community. Tomato in hand, spite on his face, a young boy pulls his tomato-laden wagon across the front endpapers, straight for a bees' nest. Readers will delight in the title page's payoff, as the nest sways from the tomato's impact and hostile bees pour forth. Through the town they fly with the boy, gauging possible targets: a sailor and his mother, workers, pets, apartment dwellers. All are considered by the clever narrator, who uses nursery rhyme-esque repetition. But then it's revealed: The boy stung all the targets with his tomatoes! The aggrieved neighbors and bees now chase the child across a map full of tomato-splattered evidence. Acting as a metaphor for the emotional states of the characters, the bees are soon caught and calmed by a beekeeper while the boy is soothed by his father's warm and loving embrace. The artwork, done with ink, rubber stamps, and digital collage, perfectly enhances the text, balancing its emotional depth with comedic beats. Rarely does a design so fully consider how images tell a story from cover to cover, from the swarm leading the eyes to the ingenious use of shapes, color, patterns, negative space, and framing. Mischief-makers will be captivated by its humor and promise of unconditional love and forgiveness; their caregivers will appreciate the exploration of emotions and possible responses. A witty, thought-provoking triumph. (Picture book. 4-8)

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May 1, 2019

PreS-Gr 2-Being mad is an honest emotion, and sometimes "It can feel good to be angry." In Snicket's latest picture book, a young boy with a wagon full of tomatoes is just that-angry. He incites a swarm of bees by throwing a tomato at a beehive. He and the swarm menacingly move throughout the town, "Swarm of bees! Swarm of bees! Oh no! You are so angry! What will you do?" until the swarm has spooked everyone, but has stung no one. Unsatisfied, the boy begins throwing tomatoes at everyone, reeking havoc. In a satisfying turn of events, and before too much damage is done, a beekeeper comes and calms the bees, and an adult comes and calms the boy leading to the realization, "It can feel good to be angry. It can feel better to stop." They find a better use for tomatoes with a big spaghetti feast bringing everyone together affected by the boy's ire. Snicket's dark humor permeates and pairs well with Alexander's bold color illustrations that highlight the angry, yellow, beelike antagonist, his red wagon of tomatoes, and the swarm of bees as they move through a blue and teal world done with stamp and digital collage. Readers will delight in finding hidden clues of what is to come. Overall this is a great lesson that sometimes we all have a bee in our bonnet, and it can affect others, but still comfort and redemption can be found. VERDICT A buzzworthy book that tackles an often negated feeling in a bold new way.-Danielle Jones, Multnomah County Library, OR

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2019
Preschool-G Feeling ornery, a small boy takes a wagon filled with ripe tomatoes and sets out to create havoc. He throws a tomato at a black-and-yellow striped beehive, and now an angry swarm is ready to sting everyone in sight. Though the narrator begs the bees not to sting anyone and the boy not to throw tomatoes, the swarm and the child manage to disrupt the entire neighborhood anyway. Clean laundry on the line, a tow truck, a cat, and a bricklayer are just a few of the recipients of thrown tomatoes and threatening bees. The swarm is shown as a series of black, gray, and yellow dots, with one representative fully revealed as a bee with an angry expression. Rubber stamps were used to create the illustrations, which are bold and clear, with clean lines and red circles denoting smashed tomatoes. Readers follow the boy around town as he empties his wagon and is then chased by an angry mob. The moral of the story is clear: tomatoes are better eaten than thrown.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)