Jun 22 2008
Great audiobooks
I’ve been asked how I manage to read 100-plus books a year while I’m homeschooling four kids, and the answer is simply that I don’t. Actually “read” all 100-plus. I listen to audiobooks. I know some people who don’t consider this reading, and, frankly, I don’t care. If I can listen to a great book, it makes the time spent folding and spotting laundry, washing dishes, and cooking meals feel like less of a waste.
I have some requirements when I choose an audiobook. The reader must do a decent job. If he or she doesn’t do the voices well, or if they speak in a monotone, I quit listening and determine to read the print version. If you’re an author and read your own audiobooks, you had better be sure you’re a decent reader. If you’re not, who cares? You’re already a published author, and there are a lot of great voice-actors to choose from when making an audiobook.
There are some audiobook actors who do such an exceptional job that I seek out other books they’ve read, not so much for the book’s title, but for their reading style. Here are some of my favorites:
Carol Monda: I listened to her read Rise and Shine by Anna Quindlen, then discovered that she also read Jodi Picoult’s Nineteen Minutes, so I checked that one out next.
John McDonough: Mr. McDonough read all of Jan Karon’s Mitford series. After reading them for myself at least twice, I listened to them all on audiobook. McDonough is synonymous with Father Tim in my mind, so much so that when I discovered that he didn’t read Home to Holly Springs, the first of the Father Tim novels, I almost gave up on it. I’m glad I didn’t, though, because it was read by..
Scott Sowers: I was sure that there wasn’t another reader that could do a Mitford book justice, but I was wrong. Mr. Sowers did a perfect job, and when I was done listening to Home to Holly Springs and picked my next audiobook, I was delighted to hear on the first disc: “Blasphemy by Douglas Preston, read by Scott Sowers.”
Other great books to listen to:
Born Standing Up: A Comic’s Life by Steve Martin, read by the author
The Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autiobiography by Sidney Poitier, read by the author
Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier, read by Jill Tanner
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, read by Ilyana Kadushin
Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders by Neil Gaiman, read by the author (Gaiman is one of the few non-actor authors who should definitely read his own work.)
Rules by Cynthia Lord, read by Jessica Almasy
What the Dead Know by Laura Lippman, read by Linda Emond
The Confessions of Max Tivoli by Andrew Sean Greer, read by Brian Keeler
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, read by Sissy Spacek
So, do you listen to audiobooks? If so, are there any I shouldn’t miss?
Where can you find good audiobooks on the internet.
Thanks for a great article,
Anil
Anil - the best place is Audible.com, where you can download audiobooks directly to your MP3 player.
I enjoy audiobooks but still have too many children at home to enjoy them without interruption. My best times for audiobooks are long roadtrips. Recently I enjoyed Martha Grimes’ book, The Winds of Change, and James Patterson’s book, Step on a Crack.
Laura - My kids are all still at home, too, but at least old enough to keep themselves occupied while I do dishes or fold a load of laundry - thank goodness.
I listen to audio books while I’m at work (I sit at a computer all day). It really helps me keep my sanity!
Right now I’m listening to Inkheart and it’s read WONDERFULLY! It’s so vivid. (Good idea about searching out books read by the same people)
I also enjoyed Between, Georgia.
(You’ll have to forgive me for not knowing the readers’ names)
And I have Burning Bright at home just waiting for me to listen to it.
I actually looked for Twilight on my last trip to the library, but I don’t think they have it.
Jennifer - Doesn’t Brendan Frasier read Inkheart? He’s playing Mo in the movie version, due out in January.
No, it’s not Brendan Frasier. It’s a lady and she sounds like she has a British accent, but I don’t know if that’s part of the act or if she really is British. She does a great job doing all of the voices.
Jennifer - Oh, I must be thinking of a different book. I love listening to British voices! That’s one of the reasons I loved the audio version of Burning Bright - all the different British dialects.
Carrie, I also listen to many audio books. I am amazed at how fast I can get through a book, just using the time in the car running errands, putting dinner together, taking a walk, etc.
I listened to Kiterunner (after having read through it twice), read by Khaled Hosseini. While he really wasn’t the best reader out there, I enjoyed hearing his accent and all the Afghan names. Afghan, btw, was pronounced “Ahff-hahn”.
Lisette Lecat is another favorite reader. She did all the Mma Ramotswe books.
Last week we discovered Library2Go, in which you can download audio books (and videos) directly to your computer for a ten day checkout period. The books I’ve listened to so far have been Blackstone Audio books.
I really believe that our public library buys more audio books than they do print books. I have come across many books that wouldn’t normally make it on to my “radar” just browsing the stacks.
Great post, Carrie.
Carol - thanks! I bookmarked Library2Go after you posted about it - I just haven’t had time to browse there yet. Our library system has many, many audiobooks, and I’ve found a couple favorite authors - Tracy Chevalier, Jodi Picoult - by checking out books on audio that I might not have thought to read in print.