Audio books… What do YOU think of them? Part 2: Part 2: Readers’ Thoughts

and a bonus Mini-review of Harry Potter 6

I wanted to hold off on writing this article until after I finished Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Since Harry is the reason I become interested in audio books, I thought it only appropriate to include a mini review of the book here in my column this month. So of course I had to “read” the book first. J Also, I got so many responses to the question of what people think of audio books that I had to break it down in to two separate columns.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J K Rowling and performed by Jim Dale: In this, the sixth installment in the immensely popular Harry Potter series, things are starting to get dangerous for the Hogwarts students and the magical society. He-Who-Must-Not- Be-Named had come into great power at the end of Book 5 and his Death Eaters are no longer hiding quite so much as they were before. Harry undertakes secret lessons with Dumbledore and at the same time learns some lessons about himself and his friends and loved ones. At the same time, Harry has been given a book previously owned by the mysterious Half Blood Prince and his attempts to discover the identity of this person get him in to trouble.

As with all the books in this series, Half Blood Prince will impress readers of all ages. This book continues in the darker vein started in Goblet of Fire and expanded on in Order of the Phoenix. Of course it always helps to have read the previous books in the series, but Ms. Rowling does a good job of bringing readers up to speed on what has happened in past books, merely by having the characters discussing them. In this reviewer’s opinion, that is a very good way to cover this facet that all authors of series have to face. As our beloved characters age and grow, so do the issues and emotions they face on a daily basis. It is interesting to see some of the relationships that evolve in this part of the saga. Each book gets better then the last and this fan doesn’t know how she will make it through the next two years… at least… until the final book is released.

Now on to the regularly scheduled program…

I received lots of responses from people about how they feel about audiobooks so the next segment of this article is all readers… or in these case, listeners. I received responses from where you find your audiobooks, to what kinds of books people like to listen to, and even a few who prefer not to do audio at all, but stick with regular reading. As it turns out though, there is quite an audience for audiobooks out there.

FYI for anyone who is interested I received the following message from Joy about the correct usage of terminology: “I read in an audiobook magazine a while back that the audiobook producers decided that the term should be audiobook (one word).”
Note: Thanks for the 411, Joy.

Susan S tells us: “At times I have the attention span of a flea so have learned that audio books are great for me - Shem Creek and Pawley’s Island by Dorothea Frank would have been two that I could not have gotten thru in print, but they are absolutely fabulous - guess my conclusion is that any book is better in audio! It allows me to 'see' the setting whereas in print I would have skimmed right over it hunting for dialogue.”

Gordon W’s whole family love their audio as he writes here: “My family has been big fans of audio books for a number of years. If we are going on a trip, it's fantastic to listen to a story as the endless miles go past. I don't feel like I'm losing any awareness of the road while driving and we never fight over what kind of music we're going to listen to. I can't imagine a road trip without a couple of really good books to listen to.”

Robyn S likes audio books to make her commute to work more interesting: “I love audio books! I drive 30 minutes to work each way and the drive goes so much faster if I listen to audio books. In fact, I've become so much of a fan that I've started to listen audio books while running errands and just driving around town. I tend to listen to mostly romance and mystery but have ventured into some horror and non-fiction. Audio books are a great way to get in some double reading time. The only complaint I have is that for some, like me who only have a CD player in their car, it is harder to find books on CD. But the stores are listening and now more and more titles are being published on CD. Try the library, you can always find books on tape/CD there and the price is right, free!”
Note: I'm with Robyn on the double reading time. I can get through my TBR book cases that much faster by using audio as well

Heather S got introduced to audio books because her husband enjoys them: I've always thought I would prefer to read the book myself; however my husband recently started listening to books and just loves it. One day he was listening to one while I was in the car with him and I found I was drawn into the story. I haven't tried to listen to one on my own yet though because I don't have a lot of driving time. He has a longer way to go to work and has definitely enjoyed having audio books.”

Erin M discovered audio through her roommate: “I love audio books! I have been a convert for about 3 years, I guess. My roommate in grad school was a huge fan of recorded books, but I never thought that I'd like them. I went home with her one weekend, and she brought along Patricia Cornwell's Post Mortem. So I was forced into it! Well, I found I was totally hooked on the book, even though I did fall asleep through some of it (I always fall asleep when I'm a passenger). After Sarah finished it, she let me borrow it. How great! At the time, I was traveling 5 hours home from school, and it would get so boring. Audio books cured that!
“I also listen to audio books while I do knitting or cross stitch. I can't concentrate on TV while I'm doing cross stitch, but I can listen to a book. And, even when I'm listening while driving, sometimes I do miss things and have to rewind, but it's no big deal.”

Alyce S is not a fan of audio books and tells us why: “I have never listened to an audio book. I can't see myself doing it in the future either. Besides being a condensed version of the book, I think my mind would wander or I get distracted and miss some things. I don't even read "books" in magazines. If I want to read the book, I want to read the entire book. Reading is a relaxing therapy for me. My mind can travel away from everyday problems. Listening to an audio book you'd be doing something else at the same time.”
Note: Have you ever tried looking for just the unabridged books? I prefer to read the entire book as well so I only do audio books that are unabridged. You’d be surprised at how many unabridged ones you can find. Some authors actually refuse to allow abridgements of their books. Stephen King is one of those as he states in a message on one of his Dark Tower audio books.

Denice L prefers paper books as well saying: “I would rather read the book. I like to lay down and read while the house is quiet and I can really get in to the book. Plus, it’s a good way to get sleepy enough for bed. You just turn the light out and go right to sleep.”

Like so many of us, Ann L was turned on to audio books by friends recommending them over and over again as she tells us here: “Just a note to let you know that I love audio books. I used to think that I wouldn't like them because I love to read. A friend of mine drives a lot and she listens to them and kept after me to try them.  Now I love them. I have a used book store and I listen to one while I work everyday and I keep one in my car. I carry them in my store just like used books. You can trade them after you listen to them. I also have found audible.com. I download the ones I want and burn the CD if I want to keep it. Which most of the time I do. I have a very large library of audios at home.  I listen to different types but I do find I will listen to some that I probably wouldn't read. I think audios are great."

Judy H uses audio books as a reward of sorts. Or maybe incentive is a better way to put it: “I have been using audio books as a way of making myself exercise (either walking on the treadmill or outdoors). I usually pick mysteries to listen to and only allow myself to listen if I'm exercising. Try being in the middle of a great ‘whodunnit’ and having to wait for your next exercise time. I walk twice a day some times. It's worked very well, and I've lost weight and kept it off. I'll admit though that I don't listen to some of my favorite authors this way as some books I just have to savor through reading the traditional way. Nevertheless, as a compulsive reader who's always been a haphazard exerciser, audio books have been terrific! I also listen to audio books in the car but my commute to work is only about 10 minutes and for that I choose nonfiction that I'm sort of interested in but know I wouldn't take the time to read.
I'll look forward to your next column on this.
Note: Hmmm, Maybe I should follow Judy’s method here if it will make me exercise more too!

Erika likes audio for the performance art it is: “I LOVE audio books. I discovered audio books while I was working full time as a data processor. I shared your original opinion, I didn't think I would like being "read" to, but it's such a performance that I found I truly enjoyed it. I also don't listen to romance books on audio because of the romantic scenes, but I find that I really enjoy listening to a good mystery or suspense book.”

Kim M says: “I wanted to respond to your audiobook questions. I am a huge fan of audiobooks and listen before bed and in the car and when I am gardening or sewing….”

Sandi says: “Like you, I love to listen to audiotapes when I drive. I've done it off and on for years, but the last year or so I've done it almost constantly. I especially enjoy it on longer trips because it makes the trip seem so much shorter! I get so antsy when I drive and listening to a book calms me down and I don't get so anxious!”

Lorri-Lynn says: “I read your article on audiobooks, and I wanted to tell you that I have been hooked on audiobooks for years. It all started a very long time ago with a Stephen King book, although I don't remember which one it was. Like you, I was hooked and started looking for more and more.

"I don't drive a lot, since work is only 20 minutes away, but I listen all the time - while working in the yard, doing housework or laundry, walking on the treadmill, anytime my hands are too busy to hold a book.”

Sherry W says: “I absolutely love books on tape, and will listen to books on CD, but prefer tapes. I can stop a tape and start it exactly at the same place in a different player if I'm going to a different room, but can't with a CD. I try to never be without an audio book, listen while I sew, cook, do laundry, drive, talk a walk, etc.
“I have a blind friend who loves them, too, and she was telling me about now getting books for her I-pod--or was it an MP3 player? (It’s a new item that I have no personal experience with). My blind friend commutes to Chicago (30 miles away) every day, by herself, and listening to audio books has opened up a new world for her. Do whatever you can to encourage more audio books!”
Note: I hope that word gets out about this method of reading to more and more people. I think it is a wonderful opportunity for many, and it is a great way for blind people to still be able to read. If I lost my sight and couldn’t read anymore I don’t know what I’d do.

For Linda M, audio books help her to relax: “I have also discovered the joy of audiobooks in the last few years. I have severe osteo arthritis in my knees and lower back, so my mobility has been severely compromised in the last 5 years.  When I was working, I listened to audiobooks only in the car on my way to and from work or when traveling on vacation.
“Since my forced retirement from full time employment, I began using audiobooks at home, initially while doing crocheting and needlework. I am not the type to sit in a silent house, so I always have music or a tape going. (There really isn't that much worth watching on TV anymore!) Then I began listening to them at bedtime. Since I am usually in some discomfort most of the time, I found listening to the books relaxed me and helped me get to sleep. (It was almost like reverting to childhood and being read to at night.) I do some part-time computer work from home now, and find that I can also multi-task by playing a tape while I am still able to work on a keyboard.

“I would highly recommend anyone whose hands may be busy, but whose ears need sound, look into audiobooks! Audiobooks don't replace the original books, I still love to read and often buy both paper and audiobook copies of the same book. They each have their place in my world.”

Sandra H says: “I am listening to a J D Robb audio as we speak. Actually it’s a CD. Tapes are easier because it doesn't return to the beginning every time I switch from car to home player. Otherwise I love them.”

Monica S tells us: “I listen to tons of audiobooks, on the drive to/from work and even all day at work, it doesn't matter. … I typically only buy the unabridged books (why buy audiobooks with parts missing?). … Needless to say, I love books on tape/CD...”

Phyllis I says: “I have been hooked on audiocassettes and CD recordings since 1995 when I first started listening to Romance. My all time favorites are Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Nobody's Baby but Mine and Dream a Little Dream which I ended up buying. I had gotten them from the library several times so I figured since I LOVED them, I needed to buy, and, I had told quite a few people about them so I had the books for my office friends to listen whenever they chose.
“I do not have time to just sit and read. I'm very easily bored so I have to be reading and watching TV or something else. The cost of books on tape is expensive, but the prices are coming down for CD recordings, especially at a super warehouse shopping club.”

Leslie says: “I've been an audio book fan for almost 10 years. I started with Tony Hillerman's books, moved on to Elizabeth Peters' books, and have been hooked ever since. I'm a stained glass artist and a voracious reader so I always listen to an audio book while I'm working. My husband often has to drive to work sites 4 to 6 hours away. I've convinced him that listening to an audio book is an easy way to make these trips pleasurable.”

Sharyn M loves that audiobooks have introduced her to such a variety of genres she’d never have read: “I also listen to audio books constantly in the car-even if I am only driving for 5 min. It has opened me to all kinds of books I may not have read. Right now I am listening to Mermaid’s Chair which I might not have read and certainly would have read to quickly and may have missed a lot of the descriptions. When my daughter is in the car we are once again listening to the Harry Potter series in preparation for the new book. Jim Dale is the best narrator I have listened to and Davina Porter who reads the Outlander series is also terrific. I also prefer to listen to the Janet Evanovich books. And like you, I prefer to read Romance titles and listen to other sorts of books, such as mysteries which I do not usually read.”

Bobbie B says: “I've always read books and still do when I have time, but I love audio books and listen in the car on short or long trips, and when I'm doing my daily walks and work-outs. And the readers can either make or break my interest in listening.”

Donna started audio books with Anne Rice and says: “I am responding to you query about audiobooks.  I love them! I started listening to Anne Rice's books after reading them myself and I was hooked. I love the characterization the narrator brings to the work. Most books were read by different actors and I found myself drawn into the stories in a different way depending on who was reading the story.  Images were more vivid and the suspense seemed more suspenseful, even if I already knew what was going to happen. I have quite the collection of them - romances, mysteries, horror, fantasy. I stopped buying them for a few years but recently I purchased a couple of Laurell K. Hamilton's books, Charlaine Harris' latest and Janet Evanovich could send her kids to college on what I've spent on her books on CDs. I love to listen to them at work when I'm working on something that's particularly boring or I like to listen to them at bedtime. I used to use them to get to sleep. The voices are soothing and now I know why children like bedtime stories. I think they're a great idea for the seeing impaired or for people who sometimes don't have a broad enough attention span for reading a lengthy novel. I'm even more excited about them now since many of the newer titles are on MP3 discs and they cost less. I am definitely an audiobooks fan.”

Stephanie B says: “Kelley, I recently discovered the joy of audiobooks. I have so many books in my to be read pile. Audiobooks give me the chance to "read" 2 books at once. I find I don't resent being in the car.”

And this wraps up the readers' opinions of audiobooks portion of our program. Be sure to read next month’s article as well where I list places to find audiobooks and readers’ favorite places to get theirs. I’ll also be talking about some of my favorite books to listen to, as will many of our readers. Several of the people quoted here will also have parts of their messages quoted next month as well. Do you have input for next month? Be sure to e-mail me so I can include your comments as well. Stay tuned! May you always have plenty of good books to curl up with and read (or listen to).