GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE FAQ

Here is the latest information on Diana Gabaldon's novel, GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE, Book 9 in the OUTLANDER series. I hope you find it helpful! (Last updated September 25, 2023.)

1. When was BEES published?
2. Diana Gabaldon announced in late March that she had finished writing the book. Why does it take so long before it's actually published?
3. Why are there two different cover images for this book?
4. What does the title, GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE, mean?
5. Where can I order BEES?
6. What about the audio version?
7. When will a paperback edition be available in the US?
8. Is BEES the last book in the main OUTLANDER series?
9. What is the "shape" of BEES?
10. Did Diana Gabaldon do a book-tour for BEES?
    
11. When will BEES be translated into other languages?
12. Where can I go to discuss BEES?

1) When was BEES published?

GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE was published on Tuesday, November 23, 2021.

November 23 was the publication date in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Germany. I have no information about the publication dates in other countries.

2) Diana Gabaldon announced in late March of 2021 that she had finished writing the book. Why does it take so long before it's actually published?

Please take the time to read Diana's detailed explanation of the many steps in the production process that have to be completed before the book is published. All of that takes time!




3) Why are there two different cover images for this book?

The cover art for the US and Canada (pictured above, on the left) is different from the cover art used in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand (pictured above, on the right) because they have different publishers. The text of the book is the same, though.




4) What does the title, GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE, mean?

Diana Gabaldon explains it this way on her website:

"Talking to your bees is a very old Celtic custom (known in other parts of Europe, too) that made it to the Appalachians. You always tell the bees when someone is born, dies, comes or goes—because if you don’t keep them informed, they’ll fly away."

Look here for more information. And here is a very interesting article about the custom of "telling the bees" The painting above is Hans Thoma's "The Bee Friend", from 1863.

5) Where can I find BEES?

You can order BEES here, or contact your local bookstore:

Amazon
Barnes & Noble
Kobo

If you'd like an autographed copy of BEES, contact The Poisoned Pen. For those of you who don't know, the Poisoned Pen is Diana Gabaldon's local independent bookstore in Scottsdale, Arizona. They carry all of her books, and they ship all over the world.

Another option for people who live outside the US is the Book Depository. You can order BEES from their site here.

Look here for more links to sites where you can order BEES.



6) What about the audio version?

The audiobook of BEES, narrated by Davina Porter, was released on November 23, 2021, at the same time as the hardcover and e-book. If you're in the US, you can order on Amazon here.

The audiobook is 49 hours 27 minutes long. I'm delighted that Davina Porter was able to do the narration for BEES, just as she has for all of the previous books in the main OUTLANDER series. She's a marvelous narrator!

7) When will a paperback edition be available in the US?

The trade paperback (large size paperback) was published on September 13, 2022, in the US and Canada.

UPDATE 9/25/2023 9:09 am: Unfortunately, there will NOT be a mass-market (small size) paperback of BEES in the US. Look here for Diana Gabaldon's explanation.

8) Is BEES the last book in the main OUTLANDER series?

No, it's not the last book! Diana is currently writing Book 10 of the OUTLANDER series.



9) What is the "shape" of BEES?

As some of you may know, Diana Gabaldon says all of her books have a "shape" to them.

All my books have an internal geometric shape that emerges in the course of the work, and once I’ve seen it, the writing goes much faster. I may have no idea exactly what happens, what’s said, etc.--but I do know approximately what the missing pieces look like (e.g., I need a scene here that involves these three people, and it has a sense of rising tension and a conclusion that will lead into that scene over there …).

These internal shapes are normally invisible to the reader--who isn’t looking for them in the first place--but if pointed out, the reader can certainly see them.

(From THE OUTLANDISH COMPANION Volume 1 (Revised and Expanded), Copyright© 2015 by Diana Gabaldon. All rights reserved.)

Diana announced in a post on TheLitForum.com on August 22, 2019, that BEES is shaped like a snake:

"Snake" is the overall shape of the book. It glides, it coils, it slithers, it climbs (and then drops out of a tree on you), it turns back on itself at the same time it goes forward, it has occasional bulges where it's swallowed something large...and it has fangs.

Snakes are dangerous and unpredictable and sometimes deadly, and I think we'd all do well to keep that in mind.

10) Did Diana Gabaldon do a book-tour for BEES?

Diana did not do a book-tour for GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE. It just wasn't feasible, with the pandemic still ongoing.

11) When will BEES be translated into other languages?



The German edition of GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE, called DAS SCHWÄRMEN VON TAUSEND BIENEN, was published on November 23, 2021, the same day as the US and UK editions. The translator, Barbara Schnell, is a longtime friend of Diana Gabaldon and has been translating her books into German for many years.

I have no information about translations into languages other than German.

12) Where can I go to discuss BEES?

You're welcome to come and join the BEES discussions on TheLitForum.com. For those of you who don't know, TheLitForum.com (formerly the Compuserve Books and Writers Community) is Diana Gabaldon's main online hangout, and I have been Section Leader (aka moderator) of Diana's section on the forum since 2008. You have to sign up to read or post on the forum, but it's free.