Laline Paull author of The Bees

Laline Paull’s ambitious and bold first novel, “The Bees,” follows Flora 717, a sanitation worker doomed by her birth to the lowest caste of her community. She is large and ugly and — oh, yes — a bee. What could feel gimmicky or cute never does; Flora 717 is a brave and spirited soul, and it is a pleasure to follow her through the hive and the air. The brief prologue and epilogue are the only sections of the book with humans, aside from a single scene halfway through in which a man harvesting honey comes off something like Godzilla. Truly, who needs people when bees provide this much pathos? - New York TimesThe Avid Reader Show is sponsored by Wellington Square Bookshop in Chester County, PA. The show airs every Monday at 5PM EST on WCHE AM 1520. Please visit our store at www.wellingtonsquarebooks.com