Blog Tour Book Review – Bee Gone: A Political Parable by Constance Corcoran Wilson, illustrated by Gary McCluskey.

It is my pleasure to take part in this blog tour organized by Teddy Rose. The topic of Bee Gone: A Political Parable is timely, as our country considers the serious consequences of abuse of power by highest leadership. This insightful parable with revealing illustrations tells a cautionary tale about the effects of poor choices upon the general well-being of people and nations.

Book Review

The power of a parable is found in its simplicity. Parables take complex situations and cut through to the underlying principles. Parables are short, have human characters, and are designed to teach some truth, moral lesson, or abiding principle. They convey meaning indirectly by use of comparison, analogy, or metaphor. Though many parables are religious, others are political or philosophical in nature.

In Bee Gone: A Political Parable, author Wilson and illustrator McCluskey distill the essence of Donald Trump’s rise to power, becoming the 45th President of the United States in 2016. Although no character in the story is named, the flawless renditions of faces and expressions leaves no doubt about who it is. The parable’s lessons are set within the metaphor of a bee hive, something with which almost everyone is familiar. We understand the principles of a bee hive, how bees all work together and fulfill their roles to make honey and keep the hive healthy. The Queen Bee, head of the hive, is a symbol of leadership. Readers cannot fail to recognize who the Queen Bee was and that she should have continued. But, Donnie Drone was jealous and ambitious for power, so he launched an attack using unethical and illegal strategies.

Many worker bees saw that Donnie Drone was unqualified, but he joined forces with another hive—”one that was evil and had not really thrived.” Obviously alluding to Russia, readers easily recognize the foreign leader whose intentions are to manipulate Donnie once he is in power. With Donnie on the “throne” the bee hive begins to malfunction, unable to keep producing honey due to the rapid replacement of worker bees who either quit or were fired. Some worker bees were concerned enough to investigate Donnie’s actions, eventually leading to his removal from the hive. Afterwards, the worker bees rebuild the hive and seek another Queen Bee qualified for leadership; again a recognizable political personality and current Presidential candidate.

The parable concludes with a cautionary verse, reiterating that Donnie was a “very bad bee” and not very truthful. If the lesson of the parable is learned, then the bees will be very careful in choosing their next leader, or again everyone will “take a fall.”

After the parable ends, there are excerpts from the author’s books covering the 2008 election of Barak Obama, including parts of his and Joe Biden’s speeches. Similarities to the upcoming 2020 presidential election are stressed; the country deserves a qualified, inclusive, and intelligent leader. The book is geared toward progressive voters, and is a useful tool to help people recognize underlying principles and consequences of poor choices.

Enter giveaway for a chance to win your choice of book, one print or ebook copy of Bee Gone: A Political Parable. Print is open to the U.S. only and ebook is available worldwide. There will be 3 winners. This giveaway ends November 29, 2019, midnight Pacific Time.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e23ee71d1314/”