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 use audiobooks to fill in time when I can’t read, like driving and what not.
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.
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.
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
Here’s the thing about paper books; they’re like vinyl. I love everything about them. I love the feel, I love the smell, I love the sensation of running your finger down a page. Just like I love vinyl; the way you have to handle each disk with care, blowing off the dust and gently setting the needle in the groove. The pop and hiss as it turns.
But I can’t bring a record player in my car, any more than I can read a book while driving.
Life is busy, and complicated, and paper books are slow and simple.
For me, switching to audiobooks meant that I read more in weeks than I had in years before. That’s really all that matters. The words are the same, the box just isn’t as pretty. I love the pretty box, but I’ll give it up to get the words.
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.
