The Rooftop Beekeeper: A Scrappy Guide to Keeping Urban Honeybees

In this information-rich and handsomely designed introduction to beekeeping, enlivened by Masako Kubo’s delightful illustrations, Paska draws on her years of Brooklyn beekeeping and teaching to encourage and instruct adventurous city-dwellers on keeping bees in highly populated places. She covers both science and practicalities, beginning with arguments for keeping bees—especially in the city—and the story of her own journey from childhood bee-phobe to avid gardener to intrepid rooftop apiarist. She describes bee anatomy, hive society, and plant sexuality; details essentials such as hive placement, keeping it “queenright” and heading off threats of swarm; offers culinary and cosmetic recipes for honey and beeswax; and, perhaps most importantly, advises how to find local beekeeper mentors and associates and maintain good relations with neighboring humans. Locavores and city gardeners, urbanites with urges to re-connect with nature, and young natural scientists will appreciate this accessible but comprehensive guide. Although the book focuses on urban beekeeping, suburban, rural, and small-town aspiring and novice beekeepers should find it useful as well. (Feb. 25)