Do you ever wish there were no bugs to bother you when you go outside? Not thinking it through, Queen Libertine flies into a rage when a tiny sweat bee lands on her heel, and she immediately banishes all bugs in the kingdom of Dunce.
"She didn't stop at caterpillars, moths, bees and ants -
bats, beetles and snakes did not have a chance
All of these critters play important roles
in getting food in our cups, our plates, our bowls "
After getting rid of all insects, Queen Libertine is livid when there is no more watermelon or cheese or cashews, all foods that rely on pollination.
One in every three bites of food we eat depends on pollinators, so imagine only the hamburger bun on your plate, but not the meat or the French fries. (Wheat is self-pollinated, but potatoes and alfalfa (food for the cows) need insects )
"Since reading Doug Tallamy's book, Bringing Nature Home, I love planting things that are useful to bees, butterflies, birds and other pollinators," says author Ferris Kelly Robinson "This notable book changed my philosophy on gardening, and now I judge the importance of a plant by how much wildlife it sustains. So, when I walk through a garden or the woods and see lots of tattered chewed-up leaves on plants, I tip my hat to it and think, 'Good job.'"
With illustrations that are both enchanting and hilarious and a humorous rhyming verse, The Queen Who Banished Bugs addresses both the problem and the solution to our declining pollinators.