THE BEEKEEPERS

Honey-colored light pours down upon a young narrator and her grandfather as they climb into their heavy coveralls and walk during a spring morning to the bee yard. Checking the hives amid swirls of bees carrying multi-colored pods of gathered pollen, the girl visualizes the snow-white wax inside and recalls ``the sweet smell of spun honey,'' then has a nervous moment when her grandfather spots a new swarm clustered on a bough and invites her to capture it. Despite some anxiety, the transfer to an empty hive goes smoothly, and on the way back she is promised the first honey chunk of the season. Chayka scatters roughly life-sized bees and depictions of beekeepers' tools in the generous margins around the text, but his full-page oil paintings are more about the pleasure of sharing outdoor work on a beautiful day than the specific techniques of beekeeping. An idyllic episode, as comforting as the bees' sweet product. (Picture book. 6-8)