Queen Bee. Bee in your bonnet. Busy as a bee. The bees’ knees. The birds and the bees. Like bees to a honey pot. I only recently realised how many idioms, metaphors and symbols about bees we’ve adopted into the English language. This realisation came when quite by accident in the space of a fortnight, I read two bee-themed books back-to-back: The World Without Us by Mireille Juchau and The Bees by Laline Paull.
Two bee books in two weeks: The World Without Us and The Bees
Conspicuous squirrels and portable Veblens
What do you call a book with a lovable central character, pointed commentary on capitalism, acerbic opinions on marriage and an omnipresent squirrel? You call it The Portable Veblen, and then you place it high on your ‘to read’ list.