What are we listening to? (audiobooks) - Page 181

Vegaevent · 10-23-2019, 11:14 AM

Is listening to audiobooks really the same as reading?

Apache · 10-23-2019, 12:48 PM

One uses eyes the other ears. The end result is the same though.
Apache

pwalker8 · 10-23-2019, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Apache

One uses eyes the other ears. The end result is the same though.
Apache

One gets a lot of debate on the question. I tend to experience them differently. I'm a lot more focused and immersed with I visually read a book than I am when I listen to an audio book. This is a good think since I tend to listen to audio books while driving. Being super focused would be a bad thing.

Apache · 10-24-2019, 09:31 AM

That is true. When I read I am oblivious to my surroundings. I have to continually remind my wife to give me a minute to come out of a book when she asks me a question. And if she asked me a question while I am reading she has to repeat it because I have no idea what she asked.

Apache

SeaBookGuy · 10-24-2019, 12:41 PM

A diatribe, if not a rant ...

Just over halfway through the first in a (proposed, no sequel yet) series: Murder at the Mill. Iris Grey, a London artist, has separated from her abusive husband taking a lease on a cottage on the grounds of a highly successful writer; he and his family live in the mansion near the mill wheel. Not exactly a spoiler that the writer is murdered, with the deed in the prologue, and the official act after he and the rest of the possible suspects have been introduced.

I'm frustrated that although she is nominally the amateur sleuth, Again part of a possible series, we are only in her head barely half the time, along with the family members, local residents, police, and even her estranged husband. At 14 hours, it's fairly long for a mystery. Supposedly, she's headed off to Scotland at the end of this story, so I'd be willing to try the next one, but this quasi-cozy format isn't really for me.

sun surfer · 10-24-2019, 06:34 PM

I finished Ivanhoe and loved it. issybird, I can especially see why you were annoyed with that pronunciation since it's probably the most-mentioned name in the book.

Next, I listened to The American Senator by Anthony Trollope and narrated by Flo Gibson. She wasn't my first or even tenth choice as narrator, but she was my only choice. I won't recommend her narration as it's perfunctory, but while not a glowing compliment the steady gait of it at least lets one focus on the story as long as one can overlook some atrocious character accents. Upon a little investigation into why she was the only choice, I found that she dedicated decades to narrate books that many of which were previously unrecorded. So for that I'm grateful as it did give me the ability to listen to this in audiobook. I had previously listened to her narrate Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer and her voice was perfect for that, but even then I noticed the flat narration.

Now I'm onto Saki. First up is The Chronicles of Clovis which I'm currently almost finished listening to as narrated by Ian Richardson, star of the original UK House of Cards among other credits. I'm enjoying his extremely florid narration of this.

Next up will be another Saki, Beasts and Super-Beasts. I would go with Richardson again as narrator if such a thing existed but it doesn't seem to. So it will be with Cathy Dobson whom I don't think I've listened to before, but I like the sample of her narration too. This may be a first for me as it will be interesting listening to (and comparing and contrasting) two different narrations of the same author back to back.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bookworm_Girl

You should try Tana French. This series has excellent writing. I have read pbook/ebook formats. I haven’t tried the audiobooks so can’t comment on the narration quality.

All right, I'll have to move French up my tbr!

Tarana · 10-24-2019, 09:03 PM

Just finished a relisten of Fool Moon by Jim Butcher and on to Making Money by Terry Pratchett. I am relistening to the Dresden Files series in anticipation of the new book in 2020. Once done with Diskworld (6 books left including this one), I'll be moving on to Terry Brooks who will be ending the Shannara series in 2020.

badgoodDeb · 10-25-2019, 12:15 PM

I listen to audio books only while doing long cross-country drives. Yes, reading a book is engrossing of my attention — but listening makes me hear all the little details that I don’t pay attention to when reading. (This is due to the slower speed of voice, vs reading.). True, listening in short bits might not be wholly engrossing, but listening for 8 hours straight (barring every 2 hour pit stops) is very immersive.

* (I need another term, rather than using engrossing twice, but I’m not finding it just now)

SeaBookGuy · 10-25-2019, 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

I listen to audio books only while doing long cross-country drives. Yes, reading a book is engrossing of my attention — but listening makes me hear all the little details that I don’t pay attention to when reading. (This is due to the slower speed of voice, vs reading.). True, listening in short bits might not be wholly engrossing, but listening for 8 hours straight (barring every 2 hour pit stops) is very immersive.

* (I need another term, rather than using engrossing twice, but I’m not finding it just now)

I think the term you're looking for is "engage(d)"?

odiakkoh · 10-26-2019, 02:50 AM

It's been a while since I visited this forum and it's been 8 years(!!) since I made this thread. Time flies lol. But surprisingly, not much has changed because my current audiobook is still American Gods by Neil Gaiman (narrated by George Guidall). It's still one of my favorites that I reread or relisten to over and over again.

pwalker8 · 10-27-2019, 06:48 PM

I finished off Mercedes Lackey's Take a Thief. It was pretty good. I hadn't listened to Paul Woodson, the narrator before, but once I got past the use of an Irish accent for the Companion, I thought he did a good job. Take a Thief is a fill in book for Mercedes Lackey's Valdamar series. IMPO, there were a few minor inconsistencies between this book and her original Arrows of the Queen trilogy that started the Valdamar series. Several of the characters appeared in both. But they were minor and didn't interfere with my enjoyment of the book. Next up, I think I'll try Clockwork Boys by T. Kingfisher. It was between that and the next in the Drenai series, Winter Warriors.

Tarana · 10-27-2019, 08:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by odiakkoh

It's been a while since I visited this forum and it's been 8 years(!!) since I made this thread. Time flies lol. But surprisingly, not much has changed because my current audiobook is still American Gods by Neil Gaiman (narrated by George Guidall). It's still one of my favorites that I reread or relisten to over and over again.

See? You started something that lived on... and on... and on...

Started Grave Peril by Jim Butcher, finished Making Money by Terry Pratchett and will finish A Man of Some Repute by Elizabeth Edmondson tonight. British murder cozy featuring a man who was in Intelligence during the war. Good story so far.

taosaur · 10-28-2019, 11:22 AM

So, kept on trucking into the second Spellmonger book, and while I'm enjoying the sword and sorcery, reviews were right that the protagonist comes off as probably ten times the pompous ass the author seems to intend. I can certainly see where many women would have zero interest in this series, where I could count on one hand the number of female characters two books in, and the protagonist has slept with all but one (the Duchess is too old for him... so far). More empathy is extended to the goblin foes than to the women in this series.

Tarana · 10-28-2019, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

I listen to audio books only while doing long cross-country drives. Yes, reading a book is engrossing of my attention — but listening makes me hear all the little details that I don’t pay attention to when reading. (This is due to the slower speed of voice, vs reading.). True, listening in short bits might not be wholly engrossing, but listening for 8 hours straight (barring every 2 hour pit stops) is very immersive.

* (I need another term, rather than using engrossing twice, but I’m not finding it just now)

That's why while I'm doing errands, I only listen to books I've listened to before (i.e. Dresden Files). Too many short stints. When I drive to my sister's (2.5 hours), I listen to a not-heard-before book. Started The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman this morning. He's not one of my authors, but I'm always willing to give one of his books a chance. I'm about 2 hours in and ENJOYING it, so onward! Excellent narrator.

How about 'enveloped'?

Bookworm_Girl · 10-28-2019, 09:32 PM

I just started The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes and narrated by Julia Whelan. The history is fascinating. I never knew about horse-riding librarians delivering books in remote Kentucky during the Great Depression. Here's a link to an article about this WPA initiative.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/histo...les-180963786/

I just finished A Girl's Guide to Missiles: Growing Up in America's Secret Desert by Karen Piper and narrated by Rebecca Lowman. An interesting coming of age memoir if you can relate to the time period and places.

10-25-2019, 12:15 PM	#2708
badgoodDeb Grand Sorcerer Posts: 8,501 Karma: 64095689 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Harrisburg outskirts Device: Palms, K1-4s, iPads, iPhones, KV, KO1	I listen to audio books only while doing long cross-country drives. Yes, reading a book is engrossing of my attention — but listening makes me hear all the little details that I don’t pay attention to when reading. (This is due to the slower speed of voice, vs reading.). True, listening in short bits might not be wholly engrossing, but listening for 8 hours straight (barring every 2 hour pit stops) is very immersive. * (I need another term, rather than using engrossing twice, but I’m not finding it just now) Last edited by badgoodDeb; 10-25-2019 at 12:18 PM.

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10-23-2019, 11:14 AM	#2701
Vegaevent Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2019 Device: Vega	Is listening to audiobooks really the same as reading?

10-23-2019, 12:48 PM	#2702
Apache Readaholic Posts: 5,137 Karma: 89858112 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: South Georgia Device: Surface Pro 6 / Galaxy Tab A 8"	One uses eyes the other ears. The end result is the same though. Apache

10-24-2019, 09:31 AM	#2704
Apache Readaholic Posts: 5,137 Karma: 89858112 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: South Georgia Device: Surface Pro 6 / Galaxy Tab A 8"	That is true. When I read I am oblivious to my surroundings. I have to continually remind my wife to give me a minute to come out of a book when she asks me a question. And if she asked me a question while I am reading she has to repeat it because I have no idea what she asked. Apache

10-24-2019, 12:41 PM	#2705
SeaBookGuy Can one read too much? Posts: 2,015 Karma: 2487799 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Naples, FL Device: Kindle PW 3, Sony 350 and 650	A diatribe, if not a rant ... Just over halfway through the first in a (proposed, no sequel yet) series: Murder at the Mill. Iris Grey, a London artist, has separated from her abusive husband taking a lease on a cottage on the grounds of a highly successful writer; he and his family live in the mansion near the mill wheel. Not exactly a spoiler that the writer is murdered, with the deed in the prologue, and the official act after he and the rest of the possible suspects have been introduced. I'm frustrated that although she is nominally the amateur sleuth, Again part of a possible series, we are only in her head barely half the time, along with the family members, local residents, police, and even her estranged husband. At 14 hours, it's fairly long for a mystery. Supposedly, she's headed off to Scotland at the end of this story, so I'd be willing to try the next one, but this quasi-cozy format isn't really for me.

10-24-2019, 09:03 PM	#2707
Tarana Wizard Posts: 3,980 Karma: 38840460 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Minneapolis Device: PWSE, Voyage, K3, HDX, KBasic 7 & 8, Nook Glo3, Echos, Nanos	Just finished a relisten of Fool Moon by Jim Butcher and on to Making Money by Terry Pratchett. I am relistening to the Dresden Files series in anticipation of the new book in 2020. Once done with Diskworld (6 books left including this one), I'll be moving on to Terry Brooks who will be ending the Shannara series in 2020.

10-26-2019, 02:50 AM	#2710
odiakkoh Guru Posts: 823 Karma: 1818344 Join Date: Apr 2011 Device: iPhone 5s	It's been a while since I visited this forum and it's been 8 years(!!) since I made this thread. Time flies lol. But surprisingly, not much has changed because my current audiobook is still American Gods by Neil Gaiman (narrated by George Guidall). It's still one of my favorites that I reread or relisten to over and over again.

10-27-2019, 06:48 PM	#2711
pwalker8 Grand Sorcerer Posts: 7,195 Karma: 70314280 Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Atlanta, GA Device: iPad Pro, iPad mini, Kobo Aura, Amazon paperwhite, Sony PRS-T2	I finished off Mercedes Lackey's Take a Thief. It was pretty good. I hadn't listened to Paul Woodson, the narrator before, but once I got past the use of an Irish accent for the Companion, I thought he did a good job. Take a Thief is a fill in book for Mercedes Lackey's Valdamar series. IMPO, there were a few minor inconsistencies between this book and her original Arrows of the Queen trilogy that started the Valdamar series. Several of the characters appeared in both. But they were minor and didn't interfere with my enjoyment of the book. Next up, I think I'll try Clockwork Boys by T. Kingfisher. It was between that and the next in the Drenai series, Winter Warriors.

10-28-2019, 11:22 AM	#2713
taosaur intelligent posterior Posts: 1,562 Karma: 21295618 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Ohiopolis Device: Kindle Paperwhite 2, Samsung S8, Lenovo Tab 3 Pro	So, kept on trucking into the second Spellmonger book, and while I'm enjoying the sword and sorcery, reviews were right that the protagonist comes off as probably ten times the pompous ass the author seems to intend. I can certainly see where many women would have zero interest in this series, where I could count on one hand the number of female characters two books in, and the protagonist has slept with all but one (the Duchess is too old for him... so far). More empathy is extended to the goblin foes than to the women in this series.

10-28-2019, 09:32 PM	#2715
Bookworm_Girl E-reader Enthusiast Posts: 4,871 Karma: 36507503 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Southwest, USA Device: Kindle Oasis 3; Kobo Aura One; iPad Mini 5	I just started The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes and narrated by Julia Whelan. The history is fascinating. I never knew about horse-riding librarians delivering books in remote Kentucky during the Great Depression. Here's a link to an article about this WPA initiative. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/histo...les-180963786/ I just finished A Girl's Guide to Missiles: Growing Up in America's Secret Desert by Karen Piper and narrated by Rebecca Lowman. An interesting coming of age memoir if you can relate to the time period and places.

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