Enjoyed my first Audio Book

abbynormal52 · 06-26-2025, 10:05 AM

I'm now having a very, hard time finding another book with similar qualities with both narrator, and the calming nature of The Secret Garden.

This story, and narrator (no unwanted sounds with their voice) were both wonderful to get my mind on the story, and off of my insomnia/race-brain.

I tried 3 or 4 different stories I thought would be good, but the narrators on every one I tried sounded like a sort of squeak every time they had to use an "S" in their words. This was on my Android so I first tried "equalizer" that's on the phone (thought more base might do it) and when that didn't work I downloaded one to try on Google Play Store, same issue.

Anyone else experience this and how did you solve it? I so want to continue with these books to finally get to sleep, and sometimes when I wake at odd hours, I can flip it back on (I have it set to go off after 90 minutes)and fall back to sleep again with no awful race brain. I do struggle with an illness that causes my symptoms, and this is the first thing that helps me fall asleep.

Thanks for any pointers in advance on finding good quality narrated audios, denise PS I do use Librivox and Libby, lean towards using Libby the most. I too miss Overdrive, but I'm adjusting

I also wanted to add I'm interested in reading the Anne of Green Gables books, tried one of those last night, same issue with squeeky sounding "S's".

issybird · 06-26-2025, 12:56 PM

I’m going for the low-hanging fruit here.

Did you do a search on the narrator you liked? Frequently narrators specialize in types of book.

What about Burnett’s other books? And Anne of Green Gables is a good thought; how about going a little earlier, to Louisa May Alcott for example?

Do any of your libraries have Hoopla? Hoopla’s got a lot of excellent Victorian classics that might suit your needs.

As an aside, I like the idea of Librivox, but I’ve struggled to find narrators I like there.

abbynormal52 · 06-26-2025, 02:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

I’m going for the low-hanging fruit here.

Did you do a search on the narrator you liked? Frequently narrators specialize in types of book.

What about Burnett’s other books? And Anne of Green Gables is a good thought; how about going a little earlier, to Louisa May Alcott for example?

Do any of your libraries have Hoopla? Hoopla’s got a lot of excellent Victorian classics that might suit your needs.

As an aside, I like the idea of Librivox, but I’ve struggled to find narrators I like there.

Yes, and she doesn't have many I like so wanted to check on others.

I can check out Barnett's other books

Maybe on Louisa May

I haven't heard of Hoopla but I'll check on the Victorian's. I read one that was kind of boring for me, can't think of the author now but they were not for me.

Schellenberg, Kara, is the narrator I really liked, but only the one book, Secret Garden was I into

Thanks for your recommends, I will research all

JSWolf · 06-26-2025, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

I’m going for the low-hanging fruit here.

Did you do a search on the narrator you liked? Frequently narrators specialize in types of book.

What about Burnett’s other books? And Anne of Green Gables is a good thought; how about going a little earlier, to Louisa May Alcott for example?

Do any of your libraries have Hoopla? Hoopla’s got a lot of excellent Victorian classics that might suit your needs.

As an aside, I like the idea of Librivox, but I’ve struggled to find narrators I like there.

Some libraries with Hoopla don't allow audiobooks from Hoopla.

JSWolf · 06-26-2025, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by abbynormal52

I'm now having a very, hard time finding another book with similar qualities with both narrator, and the calming nature of The Secret Garden.

This story, and narrator (no unwanted sounds with their voice) were both wonderful to get my mind on the story, and off of my insomnia/race-brain.

Who is the narrator?

abbynormal52 · 06-27-2025, 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

I’m going for the low-hanging fruit here.

Did you do a search on the narrator you liked? Frequently narrators specialize in types of book.

What about Burnett’s other books? And Anne of Green Gables is a good thought; how about going a little earlier, to Louisa May Alcott for example?

Do any of your libraries have Hoopla? Hoopla’s got a lot of excellent Victorian classics that might suit your needs.

As an aside, I like the idea of Librivox, but I’ve struggled to find narrators I like there.

Good Morning @issybird, I can't thank you enough for suggesting I look at other books by Burnett!! I went to sleep last night listening to Little Lord Fauntelroy

This may sound idiotic to some out there, but what works for me evidently, at 72 years old, is children's books

I'd never read this book before, and never a movie (if there is one) but I am utterly enjoying the story

Thank you again for taking the time to help me, denise PS the narrator on Librivox (that's where I found the book as it wasn't in my Libby) did not have that extreme "S" or "ch" sound either!! That was such a relief. I'll go ahead and mention the Narrator in case anyone is looking for another good one

Hope it's ok to name name's

narrated by Mary Anderson

Deskisamess · 06-27-2025, 08:43 AM

I look for Elizabeth Klett on LibriVox. I'm not a fan of most audiobooks, because of the voice issue. I could not stand Sissy Spacek reading To Kill a Mockingbird.

I listed to a dramatic reading of Ann of Green Gables and the woman reading Diana Berry's dialog was up in years, and it pulled me out of the story every time she spoke. Hearing a 14-15 year old girl sounding like my grandmother was just jarring.

abbynormal52 · 06-27-2025, 09:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deskisamess

I look for Elizabeth Klett on LibriVox. I'm not a fan of most audiobooks, because of the voice issue. I could not stand Sissy Spacek reading To Kill a Mockingbird.

I listed to a dramatic reading of Ann of Green Gables and the woman reading Diana Berry's dialog was up in years, and it pulled me out of the story every time she spoke. Hearing a 14-15 year old girl sounding like my grandmother was just jarring.

I feel your pain, I've found the one I love, for the time being, but I know I'll zoom through her narration on Burnett's books. So hoping the next books I find will have her narration, or someone as good

Time's change that's for sure, not always for the good, that's for sure.

issybird · 06-27-2025, 10:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by abbynormal52

Maybe on Louisa May

Give Alcott's Eight Cousins a try, if you can find an audiobook of it. It has the feel of the Burnett books, at least to me.

abbynormal52 · 06-27-2025, 10:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

Give Alcott's Eight Cousins a try, if you can find an audiobook of it. It has the feel of the Burnett books, at least to me.

I'll make a note of it, she is another author I never read before

Thank you again for this recommend. I do read books on my kindle through my libraries. The only audios I read at night

I'll let you know how it is as an audio if I find, or if I just read it myself, denise

Wow, found it right away on librivox!! I'll try it out for sure issybird, denise

abbynormal52 · 06-27-2025, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Who is the narrator?

I found her Jon, but she doesn't have any books that I really wanted. I found another though, Mary Anderson, and believe it or not, I am hooked on books basically written for children, works for me at 72

Oh, the one narrator I liked was Kara Schellenberg, not sure 100% on the spelling

abbynormal52 · 06-27-2025, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Some libraries with Hoopla don't allow audiobooks from Hoopla.

I haven't checked out Hoopla yet, but I'm doing good with Libby and especially good luck with Librivox, so far

issybird · 06-27-2025, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deskisamess

I listed to a dramatic reading of Ann of Green Gables and the woman reading Diana Berry's dialog was up in years, and it pulled me out of the story every time she spoke. Hearing a 14-15 year old girl sounding like my grandmother was just jarring.

I remember when I wanted a comfort listen while recovering from eye surgery and got The Prisoner of Zenda narrated by Bernard Mayes. That crotchety old man voice couldn't have been wronger for the dashing Rudolf Rassendyll! Back it went to Audible. I ended up with the Librivox version which was fine.

There was an article in the Guardian today about The Simpsons which observed how many of the voices have gotten too old for the characters.

abbynormal52 · 06-27-2025, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

I remember when I wanted a comfort listen while recovering from eye surgery and got The Prisoner of Zenda narrated by Bernard Mayes. That crotchety old man voice couldn't have been wronger for the dashing Rudolf Rassendyll! Back it went to Audible. I ended up with the Librivox version which was fine.

There was an article in the Guardian today about The Simpsons which observed how many of the voices have gotten too old for the characters.

I'll be experiencing this as I get into more audiobooks. I was trying out one the other night for The Swiss Family Robinson. The voice was good on it but realized a few minutes into chapter one that it was a female narrating when it was a man telling the story. It just ruined it for me, it didn't make sense to me at all

Debi · 06-29-2025, 11:28 AM

I've used audiobooks to help me sleep for years.

My first suggestion is to listen to something that you've already read/heard so you're not tempted to try to stay awake to find out what happens next.

I'm also not a fan of the "dramatized" versions that seem so prominent now. Just the words please.

I have a very large playlist of favorites that play on a loop so there's no silence when I wake up during the night. If I wake up I listen to whatever story is playing and drift back to sleep.

One of my all time favorite voices is Davina Porter.

I hope there's a nugget in my comments that might help.

06-26-2025, 10:05 AM	#1
abbynormal52 Groupie Posts: 183 Karma: 191418 Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Oregon Device: Fire Tablet 7"	Enjoyed my first Audio Book I'm now having a very, hard time finding another book with similar qualities with both narrator, and the calming nature of The Secret Garden. This story, and narrator (no unwanted sounds with their voice) were both wonderful to get my mind on the story, and off of my insomnia/race-brain. I tried 3 or 4 different stories I thought would be good, but the narrators on every one I tried sounded like a sort of squeak every time they had to use an "S" in their words. This was on my Android so I first tried "equalizer" that's on the phone (thought more base might do it) and when that didn't work I downloaded one to try on Google Play Store, same issue. Anyone else experience this and how did you solve it? I so want to continue with these books to finally get to sleep, and sometimes when I wake at odd hours, I can flip it back on (I have it set to go off after 90 minutes)and fall back to sleep again with no awful race brain. I do struggle with an illness that causes my symptoms, and this is the first thing that helps me fall asleep. Thanks for any pointers in advance on finding good quality narrated audios, denise PS I do use Librivox and Libby, lean towards using Libby the most. I too miss Overdrive, but I'm adjusting I also wanted to add I'm interested in reading the Anne of Green Gables books, tried one of those last night, same issue with squeeky sounding "S's". Last edited by abbynormal52; 06-26-2025 at 10:14 AM.

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06-26-2025, 12:56 PM	#2
issybird o saeclum infacetum Posts: 21,514 Karma: 236076651 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: New England Device: Mini, H2O, Glo HD, Aura One, PW4, PW5	I’m going for the low-hanging fruit here. Did you do a search on the narrator you liked? Frequently narrators specialize in types of book. What about Burnett’s other books? And *Anne of Green Gables* is a good thought; how about going a little earlier, to Louisa May Alcott for example? Do any of your libraries have Hoopla? Hoopla’s got a lot of excellent Victorian classics that might suit your needs. As an aside, I like the idea of Librivox, but I’ve struggled to find narrators I like there.

06-27-2025, 08:43 AM	#7
Deskisamess Wizard Posts: 2,775 Karma: 45827761 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Ohio Device: iPhone 13 Pro, iPad mini, iPad Pro 12.9",Paperwhite 6.8", Scribe 2022	I look for Elizabeth Klett on LibriVox. I'm not a fan of most audiobooks, because of the voice issue. I could not stand Sissy Spacek reading To Kill a Mockingbird. I listed to a dramatic reading of Ann of Green Gables and the woman reading Diana Berry's dialog was up in years, and it pulled me out of the story every time she spoke. Hearing a 14-15 year old girl sounding like my grandmother was just jarring.

06-29-2025, 11:28 AM	#15
Debi Zealot Posts: 100 Karma: 287498 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Virginia Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle Voyage, Ipad Mini 2, Ipad Air 2	I've used audiobooks to help me sleep for years. My first suggestion is to listen to something that you've already read/heard so you're not tempted to try to stay awake to find out what happens next. I'm also not a fan of the "dramatized" versions that seem so prominent now. Just the words please. I have a very large playlist of favorites that play on a loop so there's no silence when I wake up during the night. If I wake up I listen to whatever story is playing and drift back to sleep. One of my all time favorite voices is Davina Porter. I hope there's a nugget in my comments that might help.