Faberge Flowers

At one time, the royal families in Europe and Russia were accustomed to having their every whim satisfied, even apparently impossible desires like freezing and preserving nature in its most perfect form. This collection of photographs and essays documents Carl Faberge's attempts to do just that for the Russian Imperial Family and other aristocrats throughout Europe. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Faberge (who's best known for his extravagant jeweled Easter eggs) created delicate replicas of pansies, lilies of the valley, violets and other flowers and berries that were most often destined for glass display cabinets in the royal palaces of London and Moscow. In somewhat dry terms that draw heavily on sales ledgers and collection inventories, Swezey, a noted authority on the Russian Imperial Family, and a handful of decorative arts experts chronicle the history of the sculptures, from their genesis to the disappearance of many during the outbreak of the Soviet revolution. The lush color photos allow readers to get closer to the pieces than they could ever hope to otherwise, so close that one can see the real fuzz used to augment an intricately crafted dandelion puff and get a sense of how the jars were fashioned in order to look like they were filled with water. Sadly, the book is short on insights into how these impressive pieces of art were made. Instead, the text concentrates on Faberge's relationship with his royal patrons. Although the text is no match for the crisp, bright illustrations and likely won't interest many outside a small group of curators and collectors, the images are an eye-pleasing introduction to Faberge's talent for reproducing, and sometimes improving upon, natural beauty. 78 illustrations, including 70 full-color plates..1001 REASONS TO LOVE CHOCOLATEBarbara Albright and Mary Tiegreen. Stewart, Tabori & Chang, $24.95 (320p) ISBN 1584793295Though nobody really needs a reason to love chocolate, this compendium of chocolate facts is bound to stir up a serious hankering for a Hershey's bar or a Parisian pain au chocolat or slice of mouse cake. Albright, former editor-in-chief of Chocolatier Magazine, and designer Tiegreen actually give 1,001 reasons to enjoy ""the world's most loved food."" Some, though fascinating, are not exactly ""reasons."" Number 279, for instance, merely tells of how Princess Maria Theresa of Spain gave cocoa beans to Louis XIV of France as an engagement present; while numbers 48, 49 and 50 explain the three main varieties of cocoa beans grown and harvested for chocolate. Other reasons are inexplicable and rather pointless, such as number 103 (""tempting""), or number 456 (""Brownies are classified as a bar cookie, and are a cross between a cake and a cookie""). A mixed bag of trivia and filler, the book's strongest point may be its mouthwatering color photos.