If so you should love Librivox, its an archive of public domain audio books.
http://librivox.org/
Sometimes news gets too heavy, but I've found a good story keeps me going when I'm doing something monotonous like optimizing a PPC campaign.
I like silence. But I know someone who listens to audio books daily so I'll pass this along. Thanks, LM.
Thanks for the tip. I plan on some driving trips and these could be just the ticket to pass the time.
When I was on the road selling I used to love them. Now when we travel as a family we listen to them, but as we are worknig through Harry Potter and don't travel that much, we have a couple of years to go :)
But that is an amazing selection. Just had a look for Rudyard Kipling (The cat who walked by himself, a great short, and before I know it I see Anna of the 5 towns. (Its kinda local to me, its generally Known as Stoke on Trent now)
That is a superb library, thx Littleman. I am sure I will need it.
It all hangs on who reads it of course.....
A weekly listening must for me, and I guess this only works for the Brits as it tends to be news based is:
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/radio4/fricomedy/rss.xml
>I like silence.
yeah, I'm the same way but maybe for different reasons. My ability to focus is out of whack... I bounce between 'insanely focused' and 'can't finish a sentence', depending on how the wind's blowing.
After college, when I was really exploring the US, I stopped listening to the radio when I drove long distance. I'd drive coast to coast, the long way, and just think the whole time. Not bored, not in a trance, just rolling thoughts over and over in my head. I tried the audio books back then but found myself just daydreaming and not listening.
Love audiobooks and have listened to a few off librivox (dracula most recently). Actually have a paid subscription to Audible.
Books are my life, but spend so much time staring at a screen getting my books written that my eyes get tired and I end up not reading much, so audiobooks are a great way to relax.
>>I like silence.
>yeah, I'm the same way but maybe for different reasons. My ability to focus is out of whack... I bounce between 'insanely focused' and 'can't finish a sentence', depending on how the wind's blowing.
>After college, when I was really exploring the US, I stopped listening to the radio when I drove long distance.
I do my best work while driving long distances in complete silence. I can easily put myself in an 'insanely focused' mode during those drives and usually reserve those sessions for working on long-term planning or complex issues.
I'm not saying this to be condescending or controversial, but I'm genuinely amazed/confounded at how most people need entertainment of some sort in order to pass an hour or two or six. OTOH, liking silence has saved me a fortune over my lifetime by NOT buying radios, stereos, tape players, walkmans, mp3 players, handheld games, smart phones ...the list goes on.
The only time I like audio books is when I am in the car with the MIAD (Man I Am Dating) and he *has* to listen to something. And the choice is either 6 hours of Bob Dylan (with him singing along as nasally as possible) or an audio book.
Otherwise, I prefer silence. Or maybe some ambient music that I can ignore.
I think I like books too much to like audiobooks :) Its the same reason I can't quite get into any type of ebooks, it just isn't the same as curling up with an actual book, bottle of wine and large box of chocolates!
>I think I like books too much to like audiobooks
Yeah, I get that. Often what I'll do is listen to a book I have already read, but haven't in a while. There is no way I could pay as much attention to audio as I can to a good real paper book, but being familiar with a book as I listen to it makes it good entertainment.
Gurtie,
I love books too, but I've grown to love audiobooks. If you can get past your resistance, you might enjoy it more than you think.
I've spent pretty much my whole professional life as a historian, editor and library rat, have no television reception and didn't even have a TV for watching DVDs until a couple of years ago and probably still woudn't have one if the closest movie theater weren't 2 hours away. But in recent years I've come to take real pleasure in audiobooks.
It is a different medium, so not all books that work well in print work well on audio. There are some books that simply need to be read slowly, with reflection and pauses and leisure. These don't work as audiobooks - not much fun if you have to hit the pause button constantly.
Some books have difficult and convoluted arguments. These don't work either unless your mind is really well trained at following oral argument (a judge might be able to hand this).
If the reader is good, fiction and some nonfiction is great on audio. I honestly think I might have missed a lot of the humor in Angela's Ashes if not for Frank McCourt's reading of his own book. Perhaps not, but I think it's a decidely lighter book as read by McCourt. Since I didn't read it in print, I can't say for sure. And the best readers will bring something to the book. On the other hand, I tried to listen to Dave Egger's Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, but often felt that the reader was getting the intonation and cadence wrong. I could be wrong, but it wasn't the way I would read the book and just finally gave up (didn't find the story all that compelling either).
I got into audiobooks with a gradualist approach. My wife and I were reading the same trashy novel (christmas gift from her brother) and it was driving her nuts to not be able to talk about it, so we were on a long drive and she read aloud to catch me up.
From then on, we got into the habit of reading to each other on long drives. Then we started taking turns cleaning/reading. Rather than spend 30 minutes with both of us doing dishes, we'd take an hour and one person would read while the other did dishes. I would usually get the dishes, because I can do two things at once. When she was on dish duty, I'd invariably look up and she'd be standing there with a dish in her hand staring at me. We made it through the unabridged Les Miserables this way. The 125 pages on the Paris sewers were not, however, read in entirety.
Anyway, then we moved to a place where the roads are twistier and we couldn't read to each other without getting sick, so we started in on audiobooks and that accounts for 1/3 of the books we read on average at this point.
Part of the reading aloud and, now, listening to a book together is sharing a book with someone in a different way than when you read it solo, even if you're both reading it at the same time (we both recently read City of Thieves in the same week). Hard to explain or describe. I wouldn't say better or worse. Just different.
Reading aloud is, by the way, the original form of reading. I'm a sixteenth-century historian, and if you read books from the period, the preface often starts with "Dear reader or listener" because it was assumed that many if not most people would consume the book by listening rather than being the actual reader. Not totally sure of my facts here, but I believe the story is that Augustine of Hippo was impressed that Ambrose read silently, somewhat of a novelty at the time and many historians believe that silent reading didn't become truly common until the late Middle Ages.
Thanks, audiobooks are great for long car trips. Silence is great for thinking, but sadly my imagination goes into circular repetition after a while.
Just listened to Stephan Fry's autobiography.
Most I enjoy longer interviews, also great if you cannot sleep.
Quote from: ergophobe on January 10, 2011, 06:19:58 PM
Gurtie,
I love books too, but I've grown to love audiobooks. If you can get past your resistance, you might enjoy it more than you think.
I think I probably would enjoy the right ones - I've certainly gone and bought books because i've heard parts of them read aloud. I really should have a look for something and just give it a go !
When DAB radio first came out, one the of best stations on it was 'Oneword' - plays and books read out on air. It was just about all I listened to.
They went bust :(
I used to buy 1/2 hour old time radio programs, mostly golden age science fiction and mystery stories, they are cheap, short and might get one used to listening to stories out loud. They are similar to an audio book in many aspects. Fictionwise.com has them. I would load them on a iPod and listen to them while cycling.
Gurtie,
Don't know your tastes, but here are some that I've really enjoyed lately
Lian Hearn's Tales of the Otori, the original three (Across the Nightingale Floor, Grass for his Pillow, Harsh Cry of the Heron) - thanks to Robert Charlton for this suggestion BTW
Harry Potter series - I love the last book of the series and all of them are well read by Jim Dale
The Help, by Kathryn Stockett. Good story, well read by an ensemble cast.
Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri, also very well read and excellent collection of stories.
I'm not sure if any of those books are up your alley, but if so, they all work quite well as audio. To be honest, Tales of the Otori is a bit difficult if you get hung up on the names (unless your sense of Japanese names is better than mine), but if you just let it flow it's a really engaging story.
If you're a Stephen King fan, the book Duma Key has a great reader. Unfortunately, I hated the story - thought it was great in the middle before it went dime store occult, but had trouble finishing and felt cheated when I did, but maybe that's just because I'm not a Stephen King reader. If you are, it might be a nice intro to audio.
still haven't tried it - but I will! Thanks for the tips LM.
If anyone buys audiobooks there's a UK Nationwide offer on Groupon today with a £20 voucher plus free Life or Pi for £5. Since its delivered by email and you can pay by paypal I guess anyone could actually sign up, provided you don't mind daily teeth whitening offers in your mailbox ;D