Was at the store today and noticed that there is a greater selection of audio books than ever. A few of the titles on my "read list" were available in audio, including a few titles by David McCullough (1776, Washington's Crossing, John Adams, etc.). Seems like some of them are abriged, but many are not.

I'm wondering if you have ever listened to an audio book. If so, did you like it? Did you also read the book? In your experience, are there certain types of books that lend them selves better to the audio format? Are any narrators better than others (or do some just turn you off?)?

audio books, for me, would just be wrong. i don't have the attention span for listening to a speaker, and i would end up not knowing what was going on.

i would probably utilize something like that in the future if and when i lose my eyesight, though.

as for narration, some people would definitely be better to listen to...like james earl jones or patrick stewart as apposed to the nanny, for instance. but i think that a lot of that goes by preference. as far as with hearing disorders, the lower the pitch of the voice, the easier it to decipher what it is that is said -- so male voices would be better in general than female voices.

but yeah, unless i go blind, i'll read it myself, thank you very much.

Thanks! I tend to agree with you (hence, my never trying it yet). However, I can SO hear Fran Drescher narrating Pride and Prejudice!

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

However little known the feelings or views of such a man may be on his first entering a neighbourhood, this truth is so well fixed in the minds of the surrounding families, that he is considered the rightful property of some one or other of their daughters.

Don't you just hear it?

my parents live a 6 hour drive away from me, so i've listened to books to make those 12 hours of driving go by faster. some are good....others not. i listened to Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris this last trip and really enjoyed it.

Actually my wife and I *love* audio books. It is a way to make traffic bearable here in the Northern VA region. We just went to see Barbara Rosenblatt, a well known "reader" and my wife's favorite, at our local library. She was great and talked about the art behind speaking an audio book. Having to get into the characters and keeping a level speaking voice.

The sponsor played a bit of '1776' I think...It was one of McCulloughs and it was Excellent. Some "readers" are good, some are bad...some books translate better than others....but it is worth a shot...

Tried once when I was too sick to read myself. Fell asleep.

Patrik

I like doing audio books when I can, but only unabridged versions (Recorded Books Inc, from the library, tends to dominate the unabridged market). And the reader IS all-important. The Vampire Chronicles being my favorite audio book. that reader was just fantastic, and I actually recommend and prefer those audio books over simply reading them. He became inseperably the voice of Lestat for me (and other friends who have also done them).
another great one was Dead Man Walking.
The World According to Garp was excellent as well.
the reader for A Widow for One Year, on the other hand, wasn't very good.

even with the best readers, though, I still do a lot of rewinding, as I either fall asleep or my mind starts to wander.

yeah, as was mentioned by someone else too, I think that would be my problem as well... having my mind wander. I have a bit of drive time during the day and thought maybe I'd try one, but we'll see. Thanks for the input all!

I've listened to a few.
I use headphones at night in bed so I can 'read' without the light and I find it very soothing if the book is interesting and the reader has a pleasant voice.
Like others, a big problem is falling asleep and losing my place. It's a pain to find it again in audio....harder than an accidentally closed book.
I'm currently listening to 'Keeping Watch' written by Laurie King...narrated by a man with a deep voice (can't remember his name at the moment). Good book.

I own 'Take Me Home' a 1994 autobiography by John Denver and narrated by John himself. I'm a John Denver fan and it's strange to listen to him speaking his words. (JD died in a plane crash on October 12, 1997)

I do, I have, and I would.

For several years during the late 90s I mostly listened to books on tape during my commute (about two hours every work day), until I went through everything the Port Washington library had to offer that I was really interested in. I got through most of Thomas Hardy's novels that way -- hearing them read with a mellifluous Yorkshire accent really adds to the experience IMO. For many books, I think hearing them read is better than reading them, for example Garrison Keillor's Homegrown Democrat narrated by the author. Listening to James Joyce's Ulysses (all 34 cassettes ) skillfully narrated finally made the book accessible to me after several aborted attempts to get past the first hundred pages reading it.

The past few years I've been so heavily into music that I haven't done much book listening, I should really go back to the library soon and see what they've got now on CD.

I've never listened to an audio book, but have no objection to the idea. In fact, I've thought that it might be good to download one onto my iPod for listening to during a lengthy flight. Speaking of which, I'll be doing the 18-hour non-stop LA to Singapore haul next month - that might be a good time to actually try the idea out.

Seems this thread is a great example of sharing information and opinions. When I posted it, I had no intention of ever getting an audio book. But now, after reading the good posts here, I will give it a try. I have quite a bit of drive time at work every day, so it may work. I will be interested to see how I deal with some of the "pitfalls" of the AB format like "distraction" and "keeping my place." We'll see!

John,
Well you got me goin'!!
I returned to my Laurie R King audio book, Keeping Watch. I finished it and enjoyed it very much. What I have been doing is downloading the CDs into my iPod on a playlist and listening from that....makes it easy. (I hope it's not illegal). Plus I can take my time then and not worry about having to return the set to the library.
I'm still having the problem of falling asleep, but I'm trying to make a note of which chapter/disc I have started the night with. Then back-tracking the next night is not as bad.
Barry mentioned Barbra Roenblatt. I have started 'High Country' by Nevada Barr, narrated by Barbara. She's amazing! Enjoying this novel as well.
See? You got me on a roll.
Steve, a long plane trip would be an excellent place to listen if you put it in an MP3 player.
Thanks for reminding me about the pleasure of audio books.

Me again.

Since mid-October I've listened to:

The Painted Drum ~ Louise Erdrich
Ellen Foster ~ Kaye Gibbons
Blind Descent ~ Nevada Barr
Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas ~ James Patterson

I'm about a third of the way through The Shipping News ~ E Annie Proulx (which I think I may have visually read a long time ago, but am re-enjoying. I keep visualizing Kevin Spacey, Judi Dench and Jullianna Moore. Remembering the beautiful scenes of Newfoundland in the movie and that house is very nice.)

Three more audio books are in my hard drive waiting:

Colorado Kid ~ Stephen King
Angels and Demons ~ Dan Brown
East of the Mountains ~ David Guterson

I listen to Harvey Pennick's (sp?) Little Red Book on occasion ... it's golf instruction. I also had a copy of Dennis Rodman's first book believe it or not. Total guilty pleasure ... it was a gift and all I remember about it was how totally self-involved and mastabatory it was.

Other than that, nothing. Considering how crappy radio is, you would think, but my commute is pretty light these days.

I can't listen to anything longer a short story, book-wise. I just can't handle processing that much auditory input at one time; for me it's like a long one-sided conversation. I'd rather spend the time listening to music while reading for myself.

They are a very popular item at the library. Some people like them for long commutes, but I'm afraid to think what might happen if I listened while driving. I do hear that some readers are better than others, and Books On Tape and Recorded Books both employ some very good ones.

If I could stand to listen to them, I'd want to listen to the unabridged versions, because I'd want the whole thing. The passages someone decided to cut out might just have been my favorite part of the book.

I bought Don't Know Much About History on tape over the summer (something like 15 tapes) to listen to on a series of road trips. It's a random collection of history (I'm sure you couldn't have figured that out from the title) broken up into small units. I think it's perfect for driving. I don't think I could do an audio novel--I get bored if someone else is reading...it reminds me a little too much of a horrible high school lit class. We spent a couple of weeks reading A Tale of Two Cities out-loud. Yes. You heard that right. Out loud. For several weeks. High school students reading. Ugh!! Hmm...maybe I shouldn't give Dicky C. any ideas about how to get info from prisoners...