I think the diary format of this book is cute. It certainly provides a friendly and positive look at bees, which.l children may be scared of. The book does talk about death in a few different ways so probably best for parents to read before their children to deem if it is appropriate. Definitely educational, just may not be for very young or sensitive children.

This book is a cute and informative take on the life of a bee. It doesn't shy away from some of the sadder aspects of being a drone bee or the dangers of what can happen when a bee leaves to forage, but it still maintains and overall upbeat and hopeful tone, showing the hive continues to thrive.

This book is just precious! From start to finish, it was absolutely adorable. I wish when I taught preschool I had this for my classroom. My four kids and I have adored it!

Diary of a Bee is a perfect example of what I love about children's nonfiction. The illustrations are lively and beautiful, and do a great job to support the storytelling and information that they accompany. I was really impressed by Sekaninova's approach to explaining some of the parts of the bee's lifecycle that might seem sadder to little ones, and I think her matter-of-fact yet gentle way of explaining bees dying, disappearing, or leaving the hive is really well done.

My only gripe is that the description of the book is a touch misleading, as I felt that the book fell short in terms of putting into context the importance of bees in the ecosystem. This would have been fine if it had not been advertised as one of the book's features, but this is maybe just me being picky. Overall, I enjoyed this book and would be likely to put in a purchase request for this title for the collection at the library I work for.

Diary of a Bee is an illustrated diary of the entire life cycle of Matilda the bee. I learned a lot about each stage of a bee's life, and Matilda was a fun narrator! I think this is a great way to teach kiddos about bees, and the illustrations were absolutely adorable!

Thanks to NetGalley, Štěpánka Sekaninová, and Publisher Spotlight for the chance to read and review! My opinions are my own!

Overall, the book was well written and I did really enjoy it. Thank you for this advance reading copy!

Diary of a Bee is an in-depth explanation of the life cycle of a bee. I was not expecting this level of knowledge from this book but, this would be helpful to a grade 3-5 student studying the life of a bee. The illustrations are well done. I first questioned if photographs would have been better but the more I read the more I reasoned that these picture would probably be difficult if not impossible to obtain.

Thank you Net Galley, Stepanka Sekaninova and Spotlight Publishing for the opportunity to preview this title. The opinions shared are my own.
This book is expected to be released April 15, 2025 and would be a great addition to public and school libraries alike.