Bees on the Roof

Sam needs to find a seventh-grade science fair project and a way to save the restaurant where his father works. When he enrolls three friends in an effort to raise bees on a hotel roof in New York City, the complications multiply. Bee sting allergies, a great bee die-off, a rival team's cheating, a mysteriously reclusive science teacher, and Sam's romantic feelings for a classmate make the bee project anything but simple. This story includes lots of facts about bees and Colony Collapse Disorder.

Robbie Shell is a Philadelphia-based writer whose work has appeared in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal and The Philadelphia Inquirer. She has long admired honeybees for their teamwork, waggle dancing and ability to make a home on every continent except Antarctica. This is her first work of fiction.