Focus on Film: Cave of Forgotten Dreams, December 14

Sunday, 11 December 2011 00:00

A couple of weeks ago, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced the fifteen finalists for the five Documentary Feature nominations at next year's Oscars. As usual, critics and bloggers responded with howls of anger and indignation at the Academy documentary committee's exclusion of several highly regarded films. The snubs this year included our next featured title, Werner Herzog's Cave of Forgotten Dreams.

Herzog himself is a fascinating figure, the German director of more than sixty feature films and documentaries since the early 1960s. In 2011, Herzog produced two acclaimed documentaries, neither of which made the Academy's short list. One was Into the Abyss, an examination of the death penalty and the nature of justice. The other is our featured film, Cave of Forgotten Dreams.

In 1994, a group of scientists discovered a cave in Southern France containing the earliest known human paintings. Recognizing the cultural significance of the find, the French government immediately restricted access to it, save a few archaeologists and paleontologists. For this documentary, the filmmakers were given limited access to the caves and their 32,000-year-old artwork. Herzog documents the difficulties in viewing these astonishing paintings and the technical problems he encountered in filming them. He also manages to find and interview the several interesting and eccentric people to help him illustrate the remarkable nature of the find.

Cave of Forgotten Dreams scored an impressive 96 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and an outstanding 86 on Metacritic. The film was heralded for its unique use of 3D, though you'll need a 3D television and the 3D Blu-ray to view it in this format. The documentary is now available in HD on Netflix streaming but for some reason cannot be seen on Amazon Instant at this time. The movie is 90 minutes long and is rated G.

Join us for this remarkable journey to the south of France and speak your mind beginning Wednesday, December 14!

If you're already a registered member of BookBalloon, click this link to go straight to the discussion. If you're not already a BookBalloon member (and why not? It's free!), click here to begin.

One Story at a Time: "Bullet in the Brain" by Tobias Wolff

Friday, 09 December 2011 00:00

The latest story up for discussion in One Story at a Time is "Bullet in the Brain" by Tobias Wolff. "There is something cinematic about the way the story unfolds," Katharine Weber says in her introduction to the discussion. "I also think this story exemplifies the alchemy of inevitability and surprise that drives the best fiction."

If you're already a registered member of BookBalloon, click this link to go straight to the discussion. If you're not already a BookBalloon member (and why not? It's free!), click here to begin.

Q and A with A. S. King

Monday, 03 October 2011 00:00

Everybody Sees the Ants launches today, October 3, and we are lucky to have author A. S. King here for a special event.

Join us October 3 and 4 for a discussion with Amy about her book, writing YA, ants, and everything. Bring your questions and your comments about her previous books, too: Please Ignore Vera Dietz and The Dust of 100 Dogs.

School Library Journal calls Ants, "A haunting but at times funny tale about what it means to want to take one’s life, but rising above it so that living becomes the better option." Find out more about Everybody Sees the Ants at King's website.

A. S. King will be at BookBalloon beginning Monday, October 3. Please join us in the forum  -- and bring your questions for Amy. Forum participation requires registration, which is free.

Q and A with Mark Lawrence September 20

Thursday, 08 September 2011 00:00

Prince of Thorns has been heralded as the fantasy debut of 2011. On September 20 and 21, author Mark Lawrence will be visiting the BookBalloon forum, where you'll have your chance to find out what the fuss is all about.

Prince of Thorns is the first volume in a planned trilogy about Prince Jorg, heir of the kingdom of Ancrath, and his bloody quest to unite a kingdom. Publishers Weekly called it a "morbidly gripping, gritty fantasy tale ...not for the squeamish."  Read an excerpt here, and learn more about the author at the Prince of Thorns website.

Mark Lawrence will be at BookBalloon beginning Tuesday, September 20. Please join us in the forum  -- and bring your questions for Mark. Forum participation requires registration, which is free.

One Story at a Time with Katharine Weber begins August 22

Written by Elizabeth McCullough Friday, 05 August 2011 14:46

BookBalloon is very pleased to announce a new feature in the Forum: One Story at a Time, led by Katharine Weber. If you're already a registered member of BookBalloon, click this link to go straight to the discussion. If you're not already a BookBalloon member (and why not? It's free!), click here to begin.

Here's Katharine's vision for the discussion:

I am delighted to be curating and leading the new One Story at a Time discussion here at BookBalloon. Our intention is to have a focused conversation about each story in the series over the course of approximately two weeks. We will announce each selection well in advance of the scheduled discussion, and there will be a link to each story (every selected story will be available online). One Story at a Time will offer a rare opportunity to stay focused on this one topic so we can bear down on it collectively. In this time of fractured and atomised focus, it has become rare to the point of quaint to do just one thing at a time.

There are no requirements about participation. You are welcome to be present for one story at a time, as it suits your inclination, taste, and availability.

The first story up for discussion will be Flannery O'Connor's "Everything That Rises Must Converge." Katharine calls it "a terrific narrative condensation of O'Connor's strange and intoxicating literary legacy. It's a magnificent story to analyze and appreciate, a story about which there is always more to say, and it promises a great first discussion to launch One Story at a Time."

Join us beginning Monday, August 22. If you are not already a member of the Forum, registration is free.

Katharine Weber is a short story writer, essayist, and the author of five novels. Her newest book, The Memory of All That, combines insightful memoir with a fascinating family history and reflects on many of the themes of her past work.