In the last time period,
which takes place in China, bees and other pollinators are extinct. Their
absence which leaves a void in the world further alienates family members.
Without bees, everyone is undernourished and forced to work long hours hand
painting pollen onto flowers.
In this horrific time,
parents can only see their children one day a week. Children are forced to
leave school and work as pollinators at younger and younger ages. Tao and Kuan
can barely speak to each other, especially after their son disappears. Tao leaves
her husband and goes off into unsafe areas of Beijing in search of her child,
Wei-Wen.
Tied into all three
stories is The History of the Bees, a book written by Thomas Savage who is
distantly related to the Victorian bee keeper. Tao read the book and insists
that the leader of the Committee, Li Xiara, read it as well.
The army and Chinese
government finds a new colony of bees near the site where Wei-Wen goes missing.
Knowing and acknowledging the past, however, is necessary before they can move
forward. Tao’s boy becomes a symbol of hope.
What is fascinating is
the way Lunde compares the disappearance of bees, also known as colony collapse
disorder, with the disintegration of family and natural bonds. This is a
chilling speculative novel about what may happen if red flags about pollinators
and the climate are ignored.