A pretty vague question I know, but I’m not looking for any specific answer. I’m just curious what peoples thoughts are on audiobooks. Perhaps how you think they compare to paper books or how listening compares to reading. Any thoughts you have on the subject is welcome.
I love audiobooks and audio shows. I don’t mind reading, but I spend too much time looking at screens, so that’s a great way to rest the eyes, especially when such sick in bed. Or when not sick, I can do other things while listening, like cook.
Also lots of productions have audio effects, music etc, which can enhance the experience. Some people don’t like it, but I’ve started with audiobooks with Star Wars books, and how awesome it is to start a book with that iconic SW music?
Main disadvantage of audiobooks is difficult searching. If you remember hearing something and want to get back to it, it’s a lot more difficult. Also especially with sci-fi themes, you don’t get to know how things are spelled, making it hard to look up.
I have always been an auditory learner. I get more information and can remember details easier by audio than i ever could by reading directly. Trying to physically read a book is a fantastic way for me to never finish it and quickly fall asleep.
I prefer them. It adds a lot of extra time to my day to slide books in. The simplicity of paper/ebooks is great, but I rarely find time to only read
My wife and I have basically replaced TV with audiobooks. We get to read a book together and we can do something while listening.
I love them.
My wife and I are both devoted readers and read dozens of books every year. However, about 7 years ago I took a job that made me commute 50 miles a day.
I also love to listen to music, but the 30 minute to 1 plus hour drive each way was boring as hell. So I decided to look into audio books and the first one I listened to was “Leviathan Wakes” book 1 of “The Expanse.” I went from hating my commute every day, to actually slowing down and taking more time to consume more books.
I love audio books now and have listened to hundreds over the last several years. I still read books of course and my wife has not listened to audio books with any consistency, unless we are traveling. Audio books are excellent at keeping the kids entertained on those long trips to see family.
My wife and I often read the same books and series and we discuss them at length. I have not found any difference in my ability to understand and debate the material, whether I’ve read or listened to it. I do find it a bit easier to remember smaller details if I’ve read it, other than that there is little difference. At least for me.
I love audiobooks. I used to have a 2.5 hour commute and audiobooks saved my life. The science fiction and fantasy books I was able to listen to were top notch as was the narration.
Wow, 2.5 hour commute seems wild to me. I spend 10-15 minutes in the car to get to work and have been thinking about moving closer so I can bike. 👀
It was not sustainable and eventually they let me work from home.
I know he isn’t supposed to be likable, but whoever chose the VA for Paul Atredes needs to find a different line of work
Useless since I don’t remember what the narrator says a minute after he said something. Plus I take notes when reading so I tend to copy paste.
When I’m reading a book I can’t remember what I read a minute after I read it, so it’s much if a muchness to me, audio or reading.
I always wonder what exactly people like on them. (And I can’t empathize with the experiences they describe.)
For me they are annoying, in that I need an empty room or headphones; way too slow; non-responsive in that I need to follow their rithym. They need as much concentration as reading (maybe more, depends on the narrator), specialized equipment (the headphones), and a lot more time.
Did you like being read to as a kid? I loved it and it’s a bit like that for me. With a good narrator at least.
When I listen to audiobooks it’s usually while driving or doing chores. I have my car stereo and my earbuds anyway so there’s no additional investment on that end.
I do thing some books and some narrators are more suitable than others but for me it’s a great way to enjoy books where I normally wouldn’t.
Did you like being read to as a kid?
For as long as I can remember, not a lot. Usually because of the rithym. Maybe I’m just weird.
Everybody’s a little weird.
If this is your particular brand of weirdness its a hell of a lot better than what some people have.
Keep on trucking you magnificent weirdo!
I get that you feel this way, very occasionally I still feel that with some narrators or authors.
I had to put in conscious effort with my first audiobooks too though. All that I need now is to clearly understand the narrator and have nothing I need to actively focus on. So it’s so easy to do while cleaning, cooking, driving, working in the garden etc.
I can also just put them on when going to bed and set the timer to 15 minutes. I accept that I might have to rewind a couple of minutes. I heavily prefer it over holding a real book in my hands and ruining it in my bed.
The biggest downside for me is that I dislike some narrators, which is annoying when you know you like the author’s work.
I can also just put them on when going to bed and set the timer to 15 minutes.
Hum… I get the idea, but if I did that, I would just sleep 15 minutes later than otherwise. The “sleep doing some activity” is also something I’m unable to relate :)
But then, a lot of people do it.
I have found that I cannot concentrate on content if I am only listening to it. I think this is probably because I am not good at multi-tasking. So I listen to audiobooks of books which I have already read before, so that if I miss some point it won’t make a lot of difference. In my case listening to audiobooks is particularly helpful when I have a headache accompanied by eye strain. I just close my eyes and listen to any of my favourite books.
I don’t retain as much when I listen. My mind wanders sometimes, or I get interrupted. Sometimes I listen while falling asleep.
For all these reasons I rewind a lot and replay the same sections more than once.
I love them, they’re great for listening to while going for walks, while cleaning, or just doing things that don’t take alot of mental effort. I think audiobooks get kind of shit on for being “lazy”, but if anything, they’re a “purer” form of storytelling than books themselves. Oral storytelling is probably one of the oldest art forms out there, and audiobooks are a sort of modern adaptation of this.
Listen to Cyberpunk/science fiction novels nearly every morning on my walk. Have got through a few now.
Daemon 1 and 2
Difference engine
Snow crash
Nexus 1,2,3
Children of time
Altered Carbon
Dune
Cryotonomicon
I did read the Neuromancer novels but I do most of my “reading” audibly now.
It’s strange but I feel like with audiobooks the information is transferred directly into my mind. With reading text I have to convert the text into words in my mind so it can then be understood. This is a nearly instant process and almost imperceptible, but it does make listening to an audiobook an easier form of reading with a higher level of comprehension for me. I can get the same from a paper book, but it takes a little bit more mental work to achieve the same level of comprehension.
Perhaps some people can look at a word and have it directly understood without thinking about how the word sounds. I probably can do that just fine for individual words, but when it comes to painting a complex scene in my head it just doesn’t work without a bit more effort.
I really like audio books for long drives. I’ve gotten through a ton of classics that I never would have sat down and read. A great narration can make a book come alive, but even a mediocre one is fine to experience the story.
