What are we listening to? (audiobooks)

[ApK]

Originally Posted by CRussel

I completely agree about how jarring the mispronunciations can be in a book narration. I'm listening to one (Home Run by Nathan Lowell, narrator Emily Woo Zeller) where the narrator said "esso" for 'S-O-S'. I couldn't figure out what it was supposed to be, so had to go dig out the book and check.

By what rationale could "SOS" be pronounced "esso"?
"essos" I can see if for some reason she decided "SOS" was the plural of "S-O" but "esso"?
Did she decide the last S was silent?

[CRussel]

I have NO idea, ApK.

She's not my favourite narrator, nor even in the "net positive" group of narrators. I'd rate her a weak 3 at best. But she's done this whole arc of "Smuggler's Tales" so one doesn't have a choice.

[SeaBookGuy]

I had a narrator recently pronounce the word hyperbole as... hyper-bowl - - ARGH!

A couple of years ago I ran across a narrator who pronounced the female French character, Francoise, as (male) Fran-swah, not realizing there's a difference. I actually managed to bring it up with her, receiving a defensive reply if that it was up to the producer to query it.

I'm not a fan of Emily Woo Zeller, who seems to get jobs based on her speaking Chinese.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by SeaBookGuy

HiI had a narrator recently pronounce the word hyperbole as... hyper-bowl - - ARGH!

That is a crime against humanity. How awful.

Really, I wish qc on audiobooks were better; there’s no excuse for such egregious errors. With a rapidly growing market, I think they just crank out the product; the best narrators can only read so much. I try to remember narrators who commit the outrages, but other than the very worst, there’s a middle ground where the somewhat competent can rear up and surprise me more than once.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by issybird

That is a crime against humanity. How awful.

Really, I wish qc on audiobooks were better; there’s no excuse for such egregious errors. With a rapidly growing market, I think they just crank out the product; the best narrators can only read so much. I try to remember narrators who commit the outrages, but other than the very worst, there’s a middle ground where the somewhat competent can rear up and surprise me more than once.

After reading some of the articles about how narration is done, I'm kind of surprised at how good some of the narrators are. Most of the stuff is one take, just sitting there grinding it out hour after hour and not much lead time to prepare.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

After reading some of the articles about how narration is done, I'm kind of surprised at how good some of the narrators are. Most of the stuff is one take, just sitting there grinding it out hour after hour and not much lead time to prepare.

Oh, I agree, and that’s the serious limit on quality narrations; it’s a talent and a rare one. I remember reading an interview with Simon Vance in which he said now that he’s older, he can’t read as much in a day as he used to. There’s too much of the attitude that anyone can do it, which is why there are so many dreadful author narrations.

But the grinding out aspect is why the producer is so important, but I think qc is manifestly perfunctory. There’s no excuse whatsoever for “hyper-bowl.” Not for the narrator, and not for the producer.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by issybird

Oh, I agree, and that’s the serious limit on quality narrations; it’s a talent and a rare one. I remember reading an interview with Simon Vance in which he said now that he’s older, he can’t read as much in a day as he used to. There’s too much of the attitude that anyone can do it, which is why there are so many dreadful author narrations.

But the grinding out aspect is why the producer is so important, but I think qc is manifestly perfunctory. There’s no excuse whatsoever for “hyper-bowl.” Not for the narrator, and not for the producer.

That's not how you say it?

[Tarana]

Finished The Maltese Falcon narrated by Eric Meyers. The narrator was excellent but I didn't get all that engaged in the book. Did find the fat man to be interesting. I think I'm more of a Philip Marlowe person.

Currently listening to Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher (part of my relisten before new book drops). My errand/appointment listen is V-Wars by Jonathan Maberry, editor. So far, pretty interesting. Series of novellas written by various authors - different characters and how their lives are affected prior to V-War day. Since we are going into hibernation, I'll switch to this entirely after I finish the Dresden Files book.

[ApK]

Originally Posted by CRussel

But she's done this whole arc of "Smuggler's Tales" so one doesn't have a choice.

Originally Posted by SeaBookGuy

I'm not a fan of Emily Woo Zeller, who seems to get jobs based on her speaking Chinese.

I just started "Milk Run" (Smuggler's Tale book 1) so I guess I'll get to see for myself. I'm only an hour or so in, nothing's offended me yet.


BTW, I recently listened to a Harry Bosch book narrated by Titus Welliver.
I like him as the narrator for Bosch (and as an actor, despite, oddly, not caring for his "Bosch" TV series).
This book had a appearance by Mickey Haller, Bosch's half-brother. For that character, Titus did a dead-on impression of Matthew McConaughey, who played him in the movie "The Lincoln Lawyer."
I found that it was an excellent choice and very entertaining.

[Catlady]

Since we're in the midst of a pandemic, I perversely chose to listen to a novel that featured another pandemic--the Spanish flu of 1918: Wickett's Remedy by Myla Goldberg, read by the author.

This was weirdly compelling, with a protagonist--Lydia Wickett--who ends up working at a naval facility where doctors are experimenting on prisoners to try to stop the disease. That's the main story, and quite interesting, but it's the structure of the novel that's especially fascinating--with dead people commenting and correcting various points in the story and miscellanea that tell a secondary but connected storyline about a soda company. The audiobook uses sound effects to introduce the different types of miscellanea--typewriter keys clacking for news articles, various other musical cues. It was a little bit annoying at first, but then I settled into the pattern; in the e-book, typography is used to differentiate these bits and pieces.

I do not know exactly what message the author was trying to convey, or what message I received, but I plan to read more of Myla Goldberg's books.

[pwalker8]

Finished off Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge. I think I'm going to go with Hero in the Shadows, the next David Gemmell's Drenai series. Just two left in the series after this one, White Wolf and Swords of Night and Day.

Since everything is canceled, I haven't done any driving since last Saturday and with the exception of tanking up today, likely won't again until next Saturday, so my listening is way down.

[taosaur]

Originally Posted by ApK

I just started "Milk Run" (Smuggler's Tale book 1) so I guess I'll get to see for myself. I'm only an hour or so in, nothing's offended me yet.

I didn't have any issues with her, and as with all the Solar Clipper books, enjoyed the series a lot.

I'm still trucking with Peter Clines' Threshold books - finished The Fold and Dead Moon, started on Terminus. I wouldn't say any of them quite stand up to 14 so far, but they're solid Lovecraftian pulp in their own right. The Fold almost could have been a Black Mirror episode, where Dead Moon was more an off-the-wall space-horror B-movie. Clines has a talent for bringing life to characters who, yes, are big ol' walking tropes in many respects, but somehow end up more 3-dimensional (or 5 or 6 dimensional, in some cases) than they have any right to be.

[davtay]

Originally Posted by taosaur

I'm still trucking with Peter Clines' Threshold books - finished The Fold and Dead Moon, started on Terminus. I wouldn't say any of them quite stand up to 14 so far, but they're solid Lovecraftian pulp in their own right. The Fold almost could have been a Black Mirror episode, where Dead Moon was more an off-the-wall space-horror B-movie. Clines has a talent for bringing life to characters who, yes, are big ol' walking tropes in many respects, but somehow end up more 3-dimensional (or 5 or 6 dimensional, in some cases) than they have any right to be.

I agree with you on Clines, as I love the Threshold series. I must also give huge credit to Ray Porter who is fantastic narrating these stories! I haven't started Terminus yet, but I am dying to, but I am in the middle of The Dark Tower, so it may be awhile.

[CRussel]

Currently listening to Bruno, Chief of Police by Martin Walker, and read by Robert Ian MacKenzie. This is a re-read (though my first listen) to the first book in one of my favourite series. There's a new one due out in a couple of months, and I thought it was a good time to do a re-read. The narration by MacKenzie is excellent -- quiet and not over-acted, and totally in the spirit of Bruno.

[taosaur]

Originally Posted by davtay

I agree with you on Clines, as I love the Threshold series. I must also give huge credit to Ray Porter who is fantastic narrating these stories! I haven't started Terminus yet, but I am dying to, but I am in the middle of The Dark Tower, so it may be awhile.

Porter's character voicing is rock solid, especially considering Clines' books tend to have half a dozen major and a dozen or more minor characters.