I first started blogging five-years ago today. To celebrate my blog's five-year anniversary, I'm giving away a $50 Amazon Gift Card (will be sent to winner via email). Giveaway ends April 30th!

 

Update:

I'm having problems with the Rafflecopter widget, so I have to pick the winner manually. 

The giveaway winner is:

Beverly P.

In THE SECRET LIFE OF WALTER MITTY, on Blu-ray and DVD on April 15th, the title character is a timid magazine photo manager who lives his live through vicariously through over-the-top daydreams. In honor of the movie’s home entertainment release, we’re taking a look at a few other notable daydreamers in film.






Cady has to make a lot of adjustments when starting high school after being home schooled in Africa her entire life. But when she begins to notice her new friends’ true animal instincts, she imagines them acting like the jungle wildlife she left behind.



Lester (Kevin Spacey) is way too old for his daughter’s friend Angela (Mena Suvari), but that doesn’t stop him from imagining a truly creepy dance sequence starring her in a cheerleading outfit during a high school basketball game.

Back in the late '70s thru to the late '90s, Choose Your Own Adventure type books were popular with middle-graders and young adults. In these stories, the character's fate is in the readers' hands, as they must decide where to go, what to do and which page to turn to.

Though these types of books are nearly extinct for young adults, there are several chapter book series for ages 7-12 being written with a "Choose Your Own Adventure" theme, like the new You Choose Stories starring those loveable Mystery Inc. Gang.

Scooby-Doo!: The Secret of the Sea Creature finds Fred Jones Jr., Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, Shaggy and Scooby-Doo arriving at the Wild-World Beach for a much needed R&R. The gang splits up upon arriving, as Fed wants to go snorkeling, Daphne wants to go kite-surfing, Daphne wants to go hunting for shells and Shaggy and Scooby-Doo just want to find something eat.

There are too many people who don't know how to cook a meal from scratch. Instead they either shove a cardboard pizza in the oven or get something at a fast-food joint. There is nothing wrong with occasionally eating pizza or grabbing a McDonald's burger, but its not healthy do this on a daily basis.

Cooking isn't rocket science. All you need is a good skillet or pan, a spatula, cooking oil of some sorts and seasonings. Then, of course, you need something to fry, like beef patties, chicken breasts, pork chops, eggs or vegetables.

If you don't already own a skillet, then you really need to get one. There are many brands on the market, some are cheap and others can be a bit pricey.

Last week, I received The Stone Earth 10-Inch Pan by Ozeri (retails at $34.95) to review. A typical frying pans use a PFOA (PerFluoroOctanoic Acid) to achieve a non-stick pan, but this chemical can cause serious healthy problems. The Stone Earth Pan uses a natural stone-derived coating from Germany called Stonehenge to achieve the non-stick perfection while being completely free of PFOA, cadmium, lead and other harmful chemicals.

The pan is meant to be durable, scratch-resistant because of the stone-derived coating, which doesn't emits any harmful fumes when heated, making it eco-friendly.

DreamWorks Dragons: Defenders Of Berk - Part 1
Voice Cast: Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T. J. Miller and David Tennant
Studio: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment
Release Date: March 25, 2014
Retail: $19.98
ASIN: B00FLAL3BO
Running Time: 220 minutes
Rating: Not Rated

Review:

Arriving on DVD this week is DreamWorks Dragons: Defenders of Perk: Part 1, featuring ten episodes from the second season. Bonus features include Dragon Tracker Part 3, Evolution Of Screaming Death, "Superfly" Dragon Mash-Up, and World of DreamWorks Animation.

The computer-animated series, which airs on the Cartoon Network, is a sequel to 2010's How To Train Your Dragon, which is based on the children's book series of the same name by Cressida Cowell. The original voice actors Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T. J. Miller and David Tennant return for the series, which bridges the gap between the first film and this summer's sequel, How To Train Your Dragon 2.

The episodes on the two-disc set are:

If you want schedule next week's post, click here to find the next prompt question. To submit a question, fill out this form.

What to do:

1. Post on your blog answering this question:

  This week's question is submitted by Jack!

 

What are some of your favorite book blogs?

2. Enter the link to your post in the linky list below (enter your Blog Name and the direct link to your post answering this week’s question. Failure to do so will result in removal of your link).


3. Visit other blogs in the list and comment on their posts. Try to spend some time on the blogs reading other posts and possible become a new follower.  The purpose of the hop is to give bloggers a chance to follow other blogs, learn about new books, befriend other bloggers, and receive new followers to your own blog.

  

My Answer: 

There are too many great book blogs, so I can't narrow them down to a favorite one.

47 Ronin
Director: Carl Rinsch
Starring: Keanu Reeves
Studio: Universal Studios Home Entertainment
Release Date: April 1, 2014
Retail: $34.98
ASIN: B00HEPDLFK
Running Time: 119 minutes
Rating: PG-13

Review:

Arriving on Blu-ray Combo Pack on April 1st is the fantasy-action film, 47 Ronin, directed by Carl Rinsch and stars Keanu Reeves (The Matrix Trilogy). Bonus features include delete scene and Re-forging the Legend. Blu-ray exclusives include Keanu & Kai, Steel Fury: The Fights of 47 Ronin and Myths, Magic & Monsters: The FX of 47 Ronin.

47 Ronin is loosely based on actually events that occurred during the 18th century, but this version has been Hollywoodized by adding a fantasy element, as well as CGI special effects to it. The film was filmed in 2011 with a release date scheduled for November 2012, but due to production delays and re-shoots, the film was rescheduled to February 2013, but was quickly shoved to a Christmas Day 2013 release. The film received negative reviews from critics. With a budget of a reported $175 million, the film bombed at the box-office.

Keanu Reeves plays a half-Japanese, half-British warrior named Ako, who is rejected by the samurais, but accepted by Lord Asano Naganori. After being put under a spell, Lord Naganori attacks a young woman, with the punishment for the crime is death. The Shogun allows him to die honorably by committing seppuku (suicide).

The Ronin samurais, led by Oishi (played by Hiroyuki Sanada), are disbanded. Oishi is imprisoned for a year, but when he is released, he gathers up the remaking Ronin, along with Ako (who is was put into slavery). The 47 Ronin plan on avenging Lord Naganori's death.