Bee on the Comb

For the actual title of the book, check out the following BBC website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A533800 This website also has the solution to Masquerade.

I bought this book when it was new, before the contest was over. Since I did not enter, I never found out the result. I would love to find out the winning entry (if there was one) and to exchange ideas with others. This book has haunted my mind for more than fifteen years! It is original, tantalizing, and exquisitely illustrated. The only problem is the ongoing enigma of what the actual title is!

The pictures in this book are so beautiful that they will make you want to cry.

This "Book Without a Title" actually does have a title. It is up to the reader to discover what that title is. Basing your judgment upon clues provided in the text and illustrations, it is your goal to discover the intended title. Unfortunately, the contest associated with this quest ended long ago. The contest, as defined by the author, was to first discover the title then express that title "without using the written word." The prize was the object pictured on the cover of the book: an intricately inlaid bee-box with a bejeweled queen bee ornament. My assumption is that this prize was awarded back in 1985, as the back cover copy suggests. That is not to say that this book is not worth finding. The illustrations are breathtaking in their clarity; the text is lighthearted and quirky. It bears mentioning that I first encountered this book, along with its companion MASQUERADE, during my stint as a "gifted" student many years ago. I wa! s enthralled by both books, and I believe that any bright mind would enjoy them as well. Also for the record, I have my own idea as to the title (I never heard the results of the contest), but I'm not telling.