• Buzz

  • The Nature and Necessity of Bees
  • By: Thor Hanson
  • Narrated by: Brant Pope
  • Length: 7 hrs and 5 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (141 ratings)

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Buzz  By  cover art

Buzz

By: Thor Hanson
Narrated by: Brant Pope
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Publisher's summary

From the award-winning author of The Triumph of Seeds and Feathers, a natural and cultural history of the buzzing wee beasties that make the world go round.

Bees are like oxygen: ubiquitous, essential, and, for the most part, unseen. While we might overlook them, they lie at the heart of relationships that bind the human and natural worlds. In Buzz, the beloved Thor Hanson takes us on a journey that begins 125 million years ago, when a wasp first dared to feed pollen to its young. From honeybees and bumbles to lesser-known diggers, miners, leafcutters, and masons, bees have long been central to our harvests, our mythologies, and our very existence. They've given us sweetness and light, the beauty of flowers, and as much as a third of the foodstuffs we eat. And, alarmingly, they are at risk of disappearing.

As informative and enchanting as the waggle dance of a honeybee, Buzz shows us why all bees are wonders to celebrate and protect. Listen to this book and you'll never overlook them again.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your My Library section along with the audio.

©2018 Thor Hanson (P)2018 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about Buzz

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great Listen for All

Really great book, covers interesting things about all kinds of bees. I learned a lot. Plus Brant is hands down the absolute best narrator on Audible I've heard so far. Thanks!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Charming and information rich

A wonderfully vivid account of the quiet might and growing peril of our beloved bees.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Informative

Interesting story, a lot of new information and overall well composed book, definitely learned new things

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

For anyone with a healthy curiosity about bees, agriculture, flowering plants, and food-I highly recommend this book.

Just finished listening and I am ready to read again with a little more attention to detail. Written in language
easy to understand but full of fascinating facts and stories that makes you want to learn more about these amazing creatures upon which so much of our way of life depends.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Not just honeybees!

I have really appreciated the previous two books by Thor Hanson. He has a great knack for finding the overarching story and interesting personal experiences with his topic. In this book, he takes a look at Bees and does a great job again. My previous knowledge of bees was mostly focused around honey bees. While these are covered, he also takes a look at a lot of other bees, such as the Alkaline bee, on which I had no previous knowledge. If you are interested in a narrative that switches between large overarching themes like colony loss and personal experiments like identifying huge colonies of bees by his house and capturing bees in fields, I recommend this book. It is a great blend of scientific concepts and natural history descriptions. It is also reads well and is both interesting and informative.

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7 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

One For Children, Not Adults

Audible needs to put age recommendations on their titles. This audiobook is not really for grown adults but children. The writing and the narration were infantile. Despite really making an effort to listen to what is some exceptionally forgettable writing, i gave up in the end.

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3 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

informative but average

discussing many topics surrounding bees and bumblebees in a cursory manner. slightly forgettable. all in all ok of you're into the subject matter, else skip.

narrator did ok job with the material.

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