Audio Books

[Voldemorts8thHorcrux]

I did a search and came up with only the Harry Potter Audio Books thread, so anyways, what do you think of Audio books? Do you prefer them to reading, do you read while listening to them or just for entertainment? And who's your favorite reader?

I've only ever heard the Harry Potter audio books, the ones by Jim Dale and I love them!!! I downloaded them to my ipod...but I lost it....so no more portable audiobooks for me . My friend listens to audio books quite a lot, though all her stuff is random short stories, but those are good too.

[vampiricduck]

I have some hanging around, lots of old classics belonging to my dad. Whoever read the Dickens ones was a talented individual.

But I do have the Harry Potters, which are a gift, really and truly. They're too expensive for me for the most part. But I do also have Winnie the Pooh on audiobook, and those are just lovely when I feel like tea and a nice sit down next to the fire..

[xhanax315]

You know whenever I had to sit in one of my English classes during high school and we started a new book, I hated when we had to listen to it on tape. The reader would go so slow and I'd be on the next chapter. Well, I discovered the Great Gatsby on tape, and that was so much easier than me having to read it. I think when its something completely wretched like the Great Gatsby, I enjoy it quite a lot. I loved listening to the Potter books on audio, especially when I just feel like going through one book without feeling guilty about not reading the whole series.

[Voldemorts8thHorcrux]

english class is so boring for me. our class will be on like the second chapter and i'd have finished the book . I hate reading books while listening to an audio book, but other than that, music to my ears

[vampiricduck]

I like reading a book first and then hearing it on tape. Take for example that I have pretty much five copies of the various Winnie the Pooh stories hanging around my house. A few years ago, somebody gave me the audiobook versions and I have to say, they added so much extra character, I fell in love with them all over again! The same can be said of Lian Hearn's Grass for His Pillow books- those are just gorgeous on tape. I don't think I could ever do it without reading the book first though. As in, I have the Harry Potter audiobooks, but I read the books physically before I ever listened to them.

[gipro2003]

Audio books are a life-saver to me at times. I'm visually impaired, and sometimes I really just can't read anymore. I'll get headaches or severe eyestrain, so in these cases, I most definitely like to pull out an audio book and just listen to it while I do somehting else.

I did notice that most of the audio books I have heard during English classes were somewhat monotonous, and I would just prefer to read the books. Dickens works are fabulous on audio tape though!

[freelantzer]

Originally Posted by xhanax315

something completely wretched like the Great Gatsby

Gatsby, wretched? Never!

I adore audio books. They are a complete life-saver on long car trips. Any time I have to drive long distances, I go to the library for a new audio book. I only own one because they are so darned expensive. The one I bought (because it was relatively cheap) is On the Road by Jack Kerouak and read by Matt Dillon. that gorgeous voice! I love to hear him talk to me during my entire trip. Wait, I take that back--I own some others for teaching purposes. The audio book for Whirligig is pretty fantastic.

But I've also borrowed a friend's HP audio books for a long trip and they are fantastic! I've also listened to The Theif Lord while driving and working in my classroom. Except for HP, I had not read the books before listening to them. Sometimes I find my mind wandering away from the book (to concentrate on a silly thing like traffic!) and so I just rewind a bit and listen on. I love them!

[xhanax315]

I know! I hate the fact that they're so expensive! I've been wanting to purchase the Potter books for the past however many years they've been on audio books and it just seems to keep going up. I think the least expensive one was POA and it was still a bit much much. And I really want DH not POA.

[Annielogic]

Audio books are very expensive at times. They are brilliant though, if I'm doing something else like painting or writing, I can listen to a good story at the same time. But, they do need to be read by someone who has a good voice and not boring.

[vampiricduck]

The expense is truly shocking. The Harry Potter ones are ridiculous, though I do understand why they cost more.

I just can't compute the price with the equality of a book being readily available. Bit of a disincentive when those with visual issues are stuck weighing the vast cost of the cds as against the book- and wondering why the difference had to be so huge.

[Annielogic]

Originally Posted by vampiricduck

The expense is truly shocking. The Harry Potter ones are ridiculous, though I do understand why they cost more.

The price was shocking, the later stories, GOF onwards mostly. I saved up (mostly my Birthday and Christmas money as they're quite close together) and bought them over time on CD.

Originally Posted by vampiricduck

I just can't compute the price with the equality of a book being readily available. Bit of a disincentive when those with visual issues are stuck weighing the vast cost of the cds as against the book- and wondering why the difference had to be so huge.

Yes, it's a huge shame they cost so much for people who have sight problems!

I've got a couple of audio tapes, but after a while if they're used a lot they ripple or they start jumping or something. Unless you scratch a CD, they do seem to last longer.

[Voldemorts8thHorcrux]

Originally Posted by gipro2003

Audio books are a life-saver to me at times. I'm visually impaired, and sometimes I really just can't read anymore. I'll get headaches or severe eyestrain, so in these cases, I most definitely like to pull out an audio book and just listen to it while I do somehting else.

I did notice that most of the audio books I have heard during English classes were somewhat monotonous, and I would just prefer to read the books. Dickens works are fabulous on audio tape though!

I'm visually impaired too but i can go on for hours and hours reading and after I finish i realize I have a severe headache . And when i read under my covers, I realize that my neck hurts a lot. Audiobooks are great though, no nasty aftereffects

Originally Posted by freelantzer

Gatsby, wretched? Never!

I adore audio books. They are a complete life-saver on long car trips. Any time I have to drive long distances, I go to the library for a new audio book. I only own one because they are so darned expensive. The one I bought (because it was relatively cheap) is On the Road by Jack Kerouak and read by Matt Dillon. that gorgeous voice! I love to hear him talk to me during my entire trip. Wait, I take that back--I own some others for teaching purposes. The audio book for Whirligig is pretty fantastic.

But I've also borrowed a friend's HP audio books for a long trip and they are fantastic! I've also listened to The Theif Lord while driving and working in my classroom. Except for HP, I had not read the books before listening to them. Sometimes I find my mind wandering away from the book (to concentrate on a silly thing like traffic!) and so I just rewind a bit and listen on. I love them!

I can't wait! I'm going to download my HP audiobooks onto my mom's new itouch and hope she'll let me listen to them. I own harry potter up till OoTP but for some reason they refuse to work on my cd player, so it's pretty annoying, but whatever, still works

Originally Posted by xhanax315

I know! I hate the fact that they're so expensive! I've been wanting to purchase the Potter books for the past however many years they've been on audio books and it just seems to keep going up. I think the least expensive one was POA and it was still a bit much much. And I really want DH not POA.

I really wish I had DH and HBP

Originally Posted by Annielogic

Audio books are very expensive at times. They are brilliant though, if I'm doing something else like painting or writing, I can listen to a good story at the same time. But, they do need to be read by someone who has a good voice and not boring.

I can't listen to audiobooks if i paint because then i'll start shaking from laughter . And definitely, boring monotones can make the best book sound awful.

[gipro2003]

Originally Posted by vampiricduck

The expense is truly shocking. The Harry Potter ones are ridiculous, though I do understand why they cost more.

I just can't compute the price with the equality of a book being readily available. Bit of a disincentive when those with visual issues are stuck weighing the vast cost of the cds as against the book- and wondering why the difference had to be so huge.

Honestly, speaking as a person with visual issues, sometimes the cost is too great, which is really upsetting at times. I know it is so much more convenient to be able to relax and listen to the story being told, since for a visually impaired person reading a book isn't necessarily relaxing. (Rarely so, in fact.) More often than not though, I decide against the audiotapes, due to their price, and just deal with the headaches, neck-aches, and long reading times required.

[Voldemorts8thHorcrux]

you can still go to the library though and check them out.

[gipro2003]

Yes, it's a possibility, but my little library doesn't offer a very wide selection.

[Voldemorts8thHorcrux]

awww . i hate it when libraries and bookstores are like that . i'm lucky, my library is pretty large. I just kind of wish there was a bigger reading environment where you can read at the library like you can in barnes and noble and borders and places like that. But we have tons of books and a moderate selection of audio books, whcih is something. the great thing is that the libraries are connected so you can always get books from another in the region if your local one doesn't have it, which is a plus.

[kuroi_shi]

... I like audio books for work.. I have a factory job over the summer, and it is sooo boring.. I download (legally) videos, and audiobooks to my Ipod... makes work a bit less boring ^^'' .. Until my Ipod battery dies.

[freelantzer]

Originally Posted by gipro2003

Yes, it's a possibility, but my little library doesn't offer a very wide selection.

My library has a very limited selection of audio books, too. I always cross my fingers when I go there because sometimes the audio book shelf is bare, and I'm usually about to go on a long car trip so I'm hoping to find something I'm remotely interested in. Maybe the high price of audio books also keeps libraries from stocking more of them.

At my library, we have to pay a small fee to check out an audio book. Is this the same everywhere?

[xhanax315]

I went to Barnes and Noble today and looked at Deathly Hallows.....$79.95 for the cds!! Are you kidding me?!?!?! And the lady says, oh if you're a member you'lll save ten dollars. Like that helps a whole lot.

[vampiricduck]

Originally Posted by freelantzer

At my library, we have to pay a small fee to check out an audio book. Is this the same everywhere?

Not for me. I have to say that my city library stocks both childrens and adults audiobooks and there is usually a (relatively) large selection. neither do we have to pay. Having said that, we also have a CD and DVD library here, so I guess it's pretty well stocked even as things stand. The soundtrack section is unbelievably good, I always find something there. They cater for all people, which is a really good thing for them to be able to do. And they put time into doing so, which is awesome.

Originally Posted by gipro2003

Honestly, speaking as a person with visual issues, sometimes the cost is too great, which is really upsetting at times. I know it is so much more convenient to be able to relax and listen to the story being told, since for a visually impaired person reading a book isn't necessarily relaxing. (Rarely so, in fact.) More often than not though, I decide against the audiotapes, due to their price, and just deal with the headaches, neck-aches, and long reading times required.

I can only begin to imagine the hassle that causes. Such a shame, because you have to wonder, in this day and age, why a cd (which is basically outdated with the dawn of the MP3 player) which costs less than a dollar to make, when full of music is worth much less than when full of read prose.

Music actually costs more to record than what it costs to get one person to read a book in a recording.

Shame on the companies that see fit to exploit those in your position- because it is both a disincentive to reading, and an exploitation of those such as yourself- and those who are perhaps entirely blind and unable to read at all.