The Poet and the Bees

A Story of the Seasons Sylvia Plath Kept Bees

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Viking

(Penguin Random House)

(pub. 2.11.2025)

32 pages

Ages 4 - 8

Author: Amy Novesky

   Illustrator: Jessica Love

Character: Sylvia Plath

Overview:

" Sylvia Plath is remembered for her stirring poetry and the tragic legacy her work left behind. But it is lesser known that she was a beekeeper and completed her last book of poems while tending to her bees and harvesting honey.

The Poet and the Bees shines a new light on the life and work of Plath through the lens of her last seasons with her beloved bees—and how during their short and busy lives, they filled her with inspiration and hope."

Tantalizing taste:

"Love, my seasons.

Love, bees don't live long.

Alive for a bright, quick moment, then gone.

Their work done.

Little bodies given to the ground.

But honey lives forever. Words, too."

And something more: Amy Novesky shared in the About Sylvia Plath section in The Poet and the Bees: "[Her book titled] Ariel was published in 1965. But the poems were not printed in the order that Sylvia had left them; her husband had put then in an order he felt was stronger and more reflective of her narrative.

The Poet and the Bees was inspired by Sylvia's original manuscript, which, the poet noted, began with the word love and ended with her series of bee poems...The final word of the collection was spring. Love and spring. Two hopeful words reflecting a poet's love of the world and its small beauties, like books, babies, and bees."

Author Amy Novesky explains "I write poems and keep bees, too [and I've had the pleasure of savoring Amy's bees' delicious honey]. I wanted to write this story because, despite being a writer, one of the only things I knew about Sylvia Plath was how she took her life... And of course, she is so much more than her legendary death.

I want young readers to know that. Sylvia felt things deeply, didn't shy away from the tough stuff, and had a sharp sense of humor, and those qualities show in her poems, many of which are honest and intense."

Writer and poet Amy Novesky, as always with her beautiful lyrical language, found a way to share a story of poet Sylvia Plath that not only rings true, but resonates, inspires and uplifts the reader.

Review of Lighthouse Ladies

 Shining a Spotlight on Hardy Heroines

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Clarion Books

(Harper Collins)

(pub. 5.27.2025)

48 pages

Ages 4- 8

Author: Kris Coronadao

   Illustrator: Islenia Mil

Character: Four Lighthouse Ladies - Ida Lewis, Juliet Nichols, Venus Parker, and Julia Toomey

Overview:

" To man a lighthouse over a century ago in America required guts, courage, and bravery. It was a job tackled by hundreds every day, many of whom . . . were not men! This true tale chronicles the amazing feats of four fascinating women. Each real lighthouse lady featured in this book—whether she’s on a wind-walloped Hawaiian clifftop or an icy channel off the Virginia coast—shows that girl power was around long before it became a popular phrase. "

Tantalizing taste:

"In a time when women were expected to stay at home to balance chores with children, these ladies defied convention with conviction...It was a life where stairs spiraled like a conch shell. Quarters were sometimes snug, and work wasn't a breeze. (Especially considering that many wore long skirts instead of pants!)

Nevertheless, the ocean called."

And something more: Kris Coronado shares in the Author's Note: "The last United States Coast Guard lighthouse keeper was a woman. Sally Snowman kept Boston Light from 2003 to 2023... 'It is amazing to witness the calm before the storms and the storms, followed by awesome rainbows,' Snowman said of her job in 2021. 'With nature around me all the time, it clears the head and heals the soul.'"

Review of Jellyfish Scientist

Maude Delap and Her Mesmerizing Medusas

A TRUE TALE WITH

A CHERRY ON TOP

Charlesbridge

(pub. 4.22.25)

32 pages

Ages 7 - 10

Author: Michelle Cusolito

   Illustrator: Ellen Rooney

Character: Maude Delap

Overview:

"Maude scoops a jellyfish out of the water and embarks on more than a year of observation of the animal, accomplishing something countless other scientists were unable to do: trace the life cycle of a jellyfish and understand the creature’s metamorphosis from larva to adult.

Her painstaking observations of a compass jellyfish in 1899-1900 laid the foundation for research still ongoing today."

Tantalizing taste:

"Maude didn't attend school because she was expected to become a wife and mother. She's neither. Instead, she's an expert in the marine life on Valentia, her island home...

Caring for the polyps is tedious, but Maude never wavers...

Throughout the winter - in heavy gales and stormy seas - Maude battles the surf to collect food and ocean water."

And something more: The section, Maude Delap (1866-1953) Her Life and Work, explains that "Maude's scientific work was so respected, she was offered a fellowship at Plymouth Marine Biological Station in England in 1906. According to Maude's great-nephew, Maude's father said, 'No daughter of mine will leave home except as a married woman.' Maude was forty. She didn't go, but she was named an honorary associate fellow anyway."