What are we listening to? (audiobooks)

[CRussel]

Originally Posted by CRussel

Currently listening to David Case's narration of Flashman, by George MacDonald Fraser. This is the first of the Flashman Papers, and quite entertaining. And David Case's narration is, of course, superb.

Abandoned. Really, I tried, but it was just too much. Too bloody, too brutal, too vicious, and too racist. Which might well make it historically accurate, but doesn't make it anything I'm willing to read. The narration was good, by the way, but not good enough to make it worth it.

[taosaur]

Finally broke through into the Sanderson Wheel of Time books. The characters are all very much recognizable, with the exception that some older characters are no longer arrested at a mental age of 17, and even some of the younger characters occasionally think about something other than gender stereotypes. No complaints there. Sanderson does get a tad precious with a certain character's fish metaphors, which Jordan kept simple, if just as frequent.

Sanderson has set aside the "everyone's an unreliable narrator" bit that was arguably the major redeeming quality of Jordan's writing. It's probably a major philosophical difference between the two authors, that Sanderson insists upon a consensus reality, however odd its features, while Jordan allowed considerable doubt as to whether any such reality did or could exist, or could be accessible to humans.

[pwalker8]

Finished up Artemis by Andy Weir. I thought that it actually worked better as an audiobook, though I thought the ebook was good.. The narrator was good and the story flowed well.

Next up The King Beyond the Gate: Drenai Book 2 by David Gemmell. With a few exceptions the Drenai books don't have to be read in order. Like the Hornblower saga, the Drenai books were not written in chronological order, though certain characters appear in multiple books (mostly Druss and Waylander). I debated listening to first the Druss cycle, then the Waylander cycle, and then the rest, but decided to listen in publishing order.

[issybird]

I was looking for a light listen at OverDrive and stumbled across Just William by Richmal Crompton, read by Martin Jarvis. Just William is new to me, although the Brits will be familiar with him. A few years later than Penrod, he has much the same feel (and I think the licorice water must have been an homage) even though an ocean and the Great War separated them. Both are the of the type directed at children but of appeal to adults, and as well as funny, have a lot to say about class and economics if you look for it. Martin Jarvis is excellent.

As I said, I got it from OverDrive, but it's only $4.80 in the current Audible sale for a five-hour listen.

[orlok]

Originally Posted by issybird

I was looking for a light listen at OverDrive and stumbled across Just William by Richmal Crompton, read by Martin Jarvis. Just William is new to me, although the Brits will be familiar with him. A few years later than Penrod, he has much the same feel (and I think the licorice water must have been an homage) even though an ocean and the Great War separated them. Both are the of the type directed at children but of appeal to adults, and as well as funny, have a lot to say about class and economics if you look for it. Martin Jarvis is excellent.

As I said, I got it from OverDrive, but it's only $4.80 in the current Audible sale for a five-hour listen.

I loved these books as a kid. Not sure what I would think now, some 40-50 years later.

[Tarana]

I have Artemis, but keep having to delay listening to it. I need more blocks of uninterrupted time.

I'm on to All Together Dead by Charlain Harris, which is a re-listen. There is a lot I didn't remember going on in this audiobook. I never listened to the last book or the follow-up, which is why I decided to do a relisten of the series.

[Catlady]

I listened to two just-published books: Tangerine by Christine Mangan and All the Beautiful Lies by Peter Swanson. Both of these had a Hitchcockian/Highsmith feel to them, and I enjoyed them.

Tangerine is a debut novel, with dual narration and an exotic setting (Tangier in the mid 1950s). FYI, the audiobook is scheduled to be a freebie from Libro.fm at the end of this month.

All the Beautiful Lies is, I think, the fourth Peter Swanson novel I've read, and I'd rate it just below my favorite, The Kind Worth Killing.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by orlok

I loved these books as a kid. Not sure what I would think now, some 40-50 years later.

I don't think I could take them in big doses as even in one book it gets a little repetitive, but I'm charmed and amused just the same. The voice artist brings a lot to it in expressing William's imperfectly contained truculence.

[ApK]

My wife just got me started on Simon Brett's "Mrs. Pargeter" mysteries, starting with "a nice class of corpse" and now onto "Mrs, presumed dead."
Simon Brett is very amusing, and good at reading his own work. The books themselves seem like perfectly adequate cozies so far, though my wife tells me there are a few she didn't enjoy at all.

[orlok]

Originally Posted by issybird

I don't think I could take them in big doses as even in one book it gets a little repetitive, but I'm charmed and amused just the same. The voice artist brings a lot to it in expressing William's imperfectly contained truculence.

Martin Jarvis is very well known here for his voice work. At one time you couldn't seem to get away from him (Audible UK has 169 titles that he narrates), and I tired a bit of his work. He is particularly good, though, at children's books and comedy of manners stuff.

[issybird]

Originally Posted by orlok

Martin Jarvis is very well known here for his voice work. At one time you couldn't seem to get away from him (Audible UK has 169 titles that he narrates), and I tired a bit of his work. He is particularly good, though, at children's books and comedy of manners stuff.

Yes, I see he's done a fair amount of P.G. Wodehouse, whose oeuvre I am working my way through slowly, in more or less chronological order. I'm still at the point where Frederick Davidson has done most of them, but I'm glad to have heard Jarvis and liked him, so he'll be a good option down the line.

He also seems to have done a fair number of classics, but I already have go-to narrators for them.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by orlok

Martin Jarvis is very well known here for his voice work. At one time you couldn't seem to get away from him (Audible UK has 169 titles that he narrates), and I tired a bit of his work. He is particularly good, though, at children's books and comedy of manners stuff.

I loved his narration of 101 Dalmatians.

[ElspethB]

I'm listening to A Higher Loyalty by James Comey, read by Comey himself, who, while obviously not a professional reader or narrator, isn't bad. Most of my audiobook listening is fiction, so it is interesting to hear a first-person account in the author's actual voice. Are most audiobook memoirs are read by the author?

[CRussel]

Most are NOT read by the author. The general rule is that authors should stick to authoring, and let narration be performed by professionals. That being said, there are exceptions, obviously.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by ElspethB

I'm listening to A Higher Loyalty by James Comey, read by Comey himself, who, while obviously not a professional reader or narrator, isn't bad. Most of my audiobook listening is fiction, so it is interesting to hear a first-person account in the author's actual voice. Are most audiobook memoirs are read by the author?

I listened to this the day it came out. I thought Comey showed himself to be an excellent writer, and I was also quite impressed by his reading even though I am usually wary of author narrations.

I might as well go on and say I found Comey to be thoughtful, courageous, and committed to truth over his years of public service. I now have a much better understanding of his pre-election decisions and cannot fault him for them, despite unpalatable consequences.

Also, while the publicity emphasizes the Trump-related portion of the book, that's only the last few chapters. The rest of the book takes us through earlier parts of Comey's life and career, and illuminates the principles that guided him.