The author, Kim Flottum has been at the helm of “Bee Culture magazine for about 25 years. He is the author of “The Backyard Beekeeper” and “The Backyard Beekeeper’s Honey Handbook”. He keeps bees, gardens, and writes for a variety of publications about both of these subjects, but mostly about bees and beekeeping. He is an experienced writer and, though this book has an American focus, its general content and information is universal to beekeepers, and extremely informative.

This book is embellished with numerous colourful photographs and detail supporting his 15 comments. It’s extremely easy to read with well set out chapters covering all the essential aspects of beekeeping, so is an invaluable aid to the novice beekeeper. However, in this book, he takes serious beekeepers past the beginning stages and past the learning curves where everyone learns by their mistakes.

He looks at beekeeping through a different perspective in today’s modern world and offers commentary on migratory beekeeping, pesticide- polluted fields, monoculture crops, and unpredictable queens; then he has suggestions about solutions and rewards for keeping bees a better way – a good read for “any beekeeper who is ready to think outside the box”.