Bear portraits- Book (Festive R&G to follow)

If you love collecting coffee table books, I would definitely suggest picking up the Bear Portraits by Jill Greenberg. This literal work of art is a collection of Jill's photographs of 12 featured bear models and I'm telling you, these photographs are something!

I initially thought Jill was an artist and the book held collections of beautiful bear portraits she had painted...the intimacy with the animals is so real...it's unbelievable. You feel like you're nose to snout with a grizzly when you look at some of the photographs. They're truly something else!

While working on this review, I found a video on you tube with a few behind the scenes clips from the making of the Bear Portraits....this is worth a watch.



Bear Portraits is a Little, Brown and Company publication (Hachette Book Group) and can be bought online or at your local bookstore. The suggested retail price is 26.99 US$.


Great news for one special reader:

One of you will have the opportunity to win the book Bear Portraits at the FESTIVE GIVEAWAYS GALA FINALE. (Enter the competition here.) Please note that comments on this post will NOT be considered in the drawing of winners for the giveaway.


** EBMR Disclaimer: Hachette sent us this book for review purposes only. This review has not been monetarily compensated and is based on the views and opinions of my family and/or self. Please note that the opinions reflected in this post have not been influenced by the sponsor in any way.**

Labels: A FESTIVE GIVEAWAYS GALA FINALE, Bear Portraits, Festive Giveaways, Hachette book group, Jill Greenberg, little brown and company, Reviews / Giveaways

posted by Marina@EBMR @ 8:39 AM 5 Comments

CLOSED: Chocolate: A Love Story- 65 Chocolate Recipes! (Festive R&G)

* Click here to view the name(s) of the winner(s)*

Chocolate .... I could swim in a pool of chocolate if I ever got a chance. I'm in love with anything chocolate.....sweets, cakes, puddings, milk....chocolate anything ...yum! I'm not very partial to dark chocolate...my loves are more milk dominated and sweet...mmmmmm. I know I'm not alone when I say "Chocolate Rocks!"

What would say if I told you the Little, Brown and Company publication (Hachette Book Group) has published a hard cover chocolate lover's dream with 65 delicious recipes from Max Brenner's private collection? That's right...Max Brenner, the chocolate guru with those amazing chocolate creations has a book filled with everything chocolate you'd want to gobble up in a second!....

I present to you, ye Chocoholics, with Chocolate: A Love Story.

Now this book does not have your everyday chocolate cupcake recipes or simple chocolate pudding recipes. No Siree. Here's a taste of what you will find in this Chocolicious Recipe book:

• A recipe for a therapeutic chocolate pot pie
• A recipe for guilt free fried chocolate truffles
• A recipe for a meaningless sweet spaghetti
• A recipe for a chocolate bliss Indian lassi (I've tried a variety of lassis but never in my life a chocolate one...woohoo!)

.....65 mouth watering, chocolate filled recipes to satisfy every possible chocolate craving you have ever had!!

The festive season is one season in the year when none of us watch our waistlines and pile on those calories. Enjoy making Max Brennar's chocolate explosions this season and go over time on that treadmill early January!!


Buy it:

Chocolate: A Love Story can be bought for 29.99 US$ from the Hachette site or from these retailers.


Win it:

One reader will have the opportunity to win Max Brenner's Chocolate: A Love Story


Here's how you can win it:

1. Mandatory entry (without this, all other entries will be disqualified)-

Tell me what your favorite chocolate treat is.

Additional entries:

- 2. Subscribe to my blog (remember you need to activate the subscription if you subscribe via email) or Follow my blog & leave a comment stating that you subscribe or follow.

- 3. Blog about this giveaway (leave a comment with a link to your blog post)

- 4. Follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway and add the hashtag #ebmr at the end. (You can tweet daily. Each daily tweet counts as an additional entry)

- 5. Add the link to this giveaway on a Mr Linky on a blog giveaway site, forum, carnival. (leave a comment with the link)

-6. Snag my Blog button and leave a comment with the link.

-7. Snag the Festive Giveaways button and leave a comment with the link.

This giveaway is open to US residents, 18 years and above.

1 winner will be chosen with the random.org generator on December 5 2009 at 10 pm Central time, so enter before that. The winner's name will be posted thereafter. Please note if any winner does not get back to me 48 hours after his/her name has been posted, I will pick a new winner.


** EBMR Disclaimer: I have received the Chocolate:A Love Story book for review purposes only. This review has not been monetarily compensated and is based on the views and opinions of my family and/or self. Please note that the opinions reflected in this post have not been influenced by the sponsor in any way.**

Labels: Chocolate: A Love Story, Festive Giveaways, Hachette book group, Max Brennar, Reviews / Giveaways

posted by Marina@EBMR @ 8:15 AM 103 Comments

Angels Pop Up book- Chuck Fischer (Festive R&G)

Here's a beautiful gift book by Chuck Fischer- having worked in a print facility back home I know how hard it is to make an exquisite pop up book and Angels definitely is a work of art.

My favorite pop up page is that of Daniel in the Lions Den
and also the angel Gabriel's visit to Mary to tell her of the Savior's coming. The photograph does little justice to the intricate details and the beauty of the pop up.

Personally I enjoyed the art and paid very little attention to the text....but there is a lot of history and information on the background of Biblical and secular angels and details on the hierarchy of angels.

This book is the 6th pop up book Chuck Fischer has produced. His work as an artist is well known the world over and his art has been reproduced on fabrics , wallpaper, paper products and even fine china.


Buy it:

Angels is a Little, Brown and Company publication (Hachette Book Group) and can be bought online or at your local bookstore. The suggested retail price is 30 US$.


Win it:

One reader will win Angels by Chuck Fischer


Here's how you can win it:

1. Mandatory entry (without this, all other entries will be disqualified)-

Leave a comment telling me who you'd like to win this book for.

Additional entries:

- 2. Subscribe to my blog (remember you need to activate the subscription if you subscribe via email) or Follow my blog & leave a comment stating that you subscribe or follow.

- 3. Blog about this giveaway (leave a comment with a link to your blog post)

- 4. Tweet about this giveaway and add the hashtag #ebmr at the end. (You can tweet daily. Each daily tweet counts as an additional entry)

- 5. Add the link to this giveaway on a Mr Linky on a blog giveaway site, forum, carnival. (leave a comment with the link)

-6. Snag my Blog button and leave a comment with the link.

-7. Snag the Festive Giveaways button and leave a comment with the link.

This giveaway is open to US residents, 18 years and above.

1 winner will be chosen with the random.org generator on November 14 2009 at 10 pm Central time, so enter before that. The winner's name will be posted thereafter. Please note if any winner does not get back to me 48 hours after his/her name has been posted, I will pick a new winner.


** EBMR Disclaimer: I have received the book-Angels- for review purposes only. This review has not been monetarily compensated and is based on the views and opinions of my family and/or self. Please note that the opinions reflected in this post have not been influenced by the sponsor in any way.**

Labels: Angels, Chuck Fischer, Festive Giveaways, Hachette book group, little brown and company, Reviews / Giveaways

posted by Marina@EBMR @ 9:26 AM 116 Comments

Holly Hobbie's 'Fanny & Annabelle'- Book Review and Giveaway (BTSC Bonus)

'Fanny & Annabelle' is a sweet story written by the author of the acclaimed Toot and Puddle books - Holly Hobbie. The storyline revolves around a little girl-Fanny-who decides to make the most of being indoors on a rainy day by creating her very first picture book. The star of the book had to be Fanny's favorite doll, Annabelle.

In Fanny's story Annabelle has to find a present for her Aunt, whose birthday was soon approaching. The problem arrives when she realizes the gift she wanted to buy for her Aunt required more money than she had. The story takes a small twist when Annabelle finds an envelope with money in it....now what? Annabelle's story is determined by the little adventures Fanny actually goes through as she writes the story.

I thought the story was great to teach a child about what to do when they find something on the road that someone else may have dropped. I also like the way the story ends as it teaches a child that a parent's most treasured gifts, most times, are those that are not bought in a store but made out of inspiration from a child's heart, love and a little creativity!

'Fanny & Annabelle' is a Little, Brown and Company publication (Hachette Book Group) and can be bought online or at your local bookstore. The suggested retail price is 16.99$.


Win it:

Three readers will a copy of 'Fanny & Annabelle', by Holly Hobbie.


Here's how you can win it:

1. Mandatory entry (without this, all other entries will be disqualified)-

Leave a comment telling me the best 'kid-made' gift you have received from your child/a child.

Additional BTSC entries:

- 2. Subscribe to my blog (remember you need to activate the subscription if you subscribe via email) or Follow my blog & leave a comment stating that you subscribe or follow.

- 3. Blog about this giveaway (leave a comment with a link to your blog post)

- 4. Tweet about this giveaway and add the hashtag #ebmr at the end of your tweet.

- 5. Add the link to this giveaway on a Mr Linky on a blog giveaway site, forum, carnival. (leave a comment with the link)

-6. Snag my Blog button (the cute little bunny on the right!) and leave a comment with the link

- 7. Snag the Back to School Carnival button (the cute little bunny on the left!) and leave a comment with the link


This giveaway is open to US residents, 18 years and above.

3 winners will be chosen with the random.org generator on September 19 2009 at 10 pm Central time, so enter before that. The winners names will be posted thereafter. Please note if any winner does not get back to me 48 hours after his/her name has been posted, I will pick a new winner.

Labels: Back to School Carnival, BTSC Giveaways, Fanny and Anabelle, Hachette book group, little brown and company, Reviews / Giveaways

posted by Marina@EBMR @ 3:36 PM 80 Comments

Jerry Pinkney's 'The Lion and the Mouse' - Book Review and Giveaway (BTSC Bonus)

Remember the well loved Aesop's fable 'the Lion and the Mouse'? This fable has been told to generation after generation and nothing warms the heart more than when we read about how an act of kindness is repaid when the little mouse helps rescue the lion when he is trapped in a net. (This was in repayment of the lion's kind gesture of saving the mouse's life when caught as prey in his very own hands....err...paws.)

This has been a favorite story to many a child including Jerry Pinkney, the famed children's books illustrator. It is on this fable that his book ' The Lion and the Mouse' is retold.....only this time, the fable is told minus the words.

Jerry Pinkney has been illustrating children's books for over 40 years. His art has been appreciated the world over and he has been the recipient of more than just a few awards. (Read the list to believe it!) Jerry has beautifully brought to life ' The Lion and the Mouse' story only through classic illustrations.

Bunny girl and I enjoyed going through this book and what I loved the most was hearing Bunny girl's take on each page, her own little version of this well known fable...and you know what, her version was so close to the actual! Jerry Pinkney truly accomplished what he set out to do with this book, allowing even a 3 and a half year old to relive the fable just by looking at his art.

'The Lion and the Mouse' is a Little, Brown and Company publication (Hachette Book Group) and can be bought online or at your local bookstore. The suggested retail price is 16.99$.


Win it:

Three readers will a copy of 'The Lion and the Mouse', by Jerry Pinkney.


Here's how you can win it:

1. Mandatory entry (without this, all other entries will be disqualified)-

Leave a comment letting me know you would like to win this book...that's it! :)

Additional BTSC entries:

- 2. Subscribe to my blog (remember you need to activate the subscription if you subscribe via email) or Follow my blog & leave a comment stating that you subscribe or follow.

- 3. Blog about this giveaway (leave a comment with a link to your blog post)

- 4. Tweet about this giveaway and add the hashtag #ebmr at the end of your tweet.

- 5. Add the link to this giveaway on a Mr Linky on a blog giveaway site, forum, carnival. (leave a comment with the link)

-6. Snag my Blog button (the cute little bunny on the right!) and leave a comment with the link

- 7. Snag the Back to School Carnival button (the cute little bunny on the left!) and leave a comment with the link


This giveaway is open to US residents, 18 years and above.

3 winners will be chosen with the random.org generator on September 19 2009 at 10 pm Central time, so enter before that. The winners names will be posted thereafter. Please note if any winner does not get back to me 48 hours after his/her name has been posted, I will pick a new winner.

Labels: Back to School Carnival, BTSC Giveaways, Hachette book group, little brown and company, Reviews / Giveaways

posted by Marina@EBMR @ 2:55 PM 118 Comments

CLOSED: Close Encounters of the Third Grade kind : Review and Giveaway (BTSC- Day 10)

The winners for the giveaway have been chosen by Random.org and are announced on this post.


"Mr Done, how do you spell ponna? "
"Ponna?" I said confused. "Use it in a sentence"
"You know....like 'once a ponna time'"

Teachers are memory makers. We know that stories,paintings, plaster of paris handprints that children make at school will someday become family treasures....We understand that kids are like wet canvases. We help paint the backgrounds- Phillip Done

Close Encounters of the Third-Grade kind is by far one of the most enjoyable books I have read till date. Each time I pick up the book and get comfy on the couch, Hubby will walk in a few minutes later only to find me giggling my sides apart. To redeem myself from his thoughts of wifey's 'cuckoo-ness' (If there ever were such a word!) I read out the passage that set me off in the first place and then we start the chuckles together. This book truly does that!!

I love books and find that I can entertain myself for hours on end with a single book. But ever since Bunny girl's birth, my frequency of reading books on end has minimised drastically. I've found it hard to sit down with a good book and finish it. I love Close Encounters of the Third Grade Kind as its one of those light reading books. You can pick it up, read several passages, have a good laugh, put down the book, walk away and come back hours later and start from where you stopped without feeling you missed anything important. Its that easy to get back into the flow of the book.

Phillip Done has creatively woven his experiences with a class of Third Graders in a school year with threads of humor and thought. 20 years of teaching wisdom has been concised into 336 pages of great reading. This book is a must read for every teacher (you can learn more than just a thing or two!), for every parent (you always wanted to know what your third grader was upto...with this book you will know!) and for everyone else (We all have been third graders once...going through each page with take you down memory lane to relive the fun moments you had in school.)

The Hachette Book Group always publishes great books and this book rightfully deserves its place in Hachette's treasury!

I definitely recommend this book as a must read.


Buy it:

Close Encounters of the Third Grade Kind may be bought from any of the retailers on this list. (Ordinarily priced at 22.99$)


Win it:

Thanks to the Hachette Book Group, five readers will get to own their very copy of Close Encounters of the Third Grade Kind and what's great is this book only releases in the month of September 2009, so you will literally be getting your copy 'Hot off the Press'!


Here's how you can win it:

1. Main entry :

Think of all the teachers who have taught you. Who has been your favorite and why? (Leave me a line or two...or three ;>)

Additional BTSC entries:

- 2. Subscribe to my blog (remember you need to activate the subscription if you subscribe via email) or Follow my blog & leave a comment stating that you subscribe or follow.

- 3. Blog about this giveaway (leave a comment with a link to your blog post)

- 4. Add the link to this giveaway on a Mr Linky on a blog giveaway site, forum, carnival. (leave a comment with the link)

-5. Snag my Blog button (the cute little bunny on the right!) and leave a comment with the link

- 6. Snag the Back to School Carnival button (the cute little bunny on the left!) and leave a comment with the link


This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents, 18 years and above.

5 winners will be chosen with the random.org generator on August 29 2009 at 10 pm Central time, so enter before that. The winners names will be posted thereafter. Please note if any winner does not get back to me 48 hours after his/her name has been posted, I will pick a new winner.

Labels: Back to School Carnival, BTSC Giveaways, Close Encounters of the Third Grade kind, Hachette book group, Reviews / Giveaways

posted by Marina@EBMR @ 6:32 AM 83 Comments