The Fellowship of the Ring discussion

Yes. It reminds me of sitting through too many boring lectures. When I listen to an audio book I start wool gathering, looking out the window, getting a paper book to read....

It depends on the reader. I love audiobooks and usually listen when I am walking or in the car. Some readers are excellent and some are not. But I love audiobooks.

audiobooks are an aquired taste - I never used to like them, until I started doing long road trips, and having a 2+ hour commute every day - I quickly learned to appreciate/enjoy them - but you have to essentially re-train your brain to listen to them

i don't neccesarily consider them cheating, but rather an extension of reading when I normally wouldn't be able to - in the car, doing chores, working out etc

I have an hour commute to work (and then another hour back) so I love audio books. I get tired of listening to the same songs on the radio every day. But it really depends on the narrator and the story. I love Rob Inglis narrating LotR - he does different voices and gets really into it. And I get a kick out of his different singing voices for the poems lol I can't take those seriously. But other than when I'm in the car or bored at work (we are allowed to listen to music, etc with headphones) I don't really listen to them. If I'm not multitasking I prefer an actual book.

Ellen wrote: "It depends on the reader. "
Definitely. I once started listening to an audio book where the reader sounded like a bored, obnoxious teenager and dragged out every single line.

Tirzah wrote: "I started audiobooks about a year ago for the same reason many of the others have stated: long commutes. Audiobooks have actually improved my listening skills and they certainly kill time on the ro..."

This makes sense to me.

John wrote: "Curious as to everyone's thoughts on this, but I simply cannot get into audiobooks. The idea of them sounds great, but every time I try, I get bored or distracted so easily. Also, I sort of feel li..."

For what it's worth I can't do audiobooks either. I get distracted waaay to easily.

Many readers are a turn off. Many are capable of making a book come alive. I have an hour commute like Angela who commented above. I typically knock off a book a week that way. An advantage is that I can not skim and frequently listen to favorites multiple times. It's a different experience, but an equally valid way to experience a book for me.

I agree with Ray and Tirzah, listening to a favorite is so much fun, if the narrator is enthusiastic. This is my first time listening to audio for LotR but I'm sure I will do it again. And I love the Harry Potter audiobooks too. A good narrator can bring a story to life even if you've read it a thousand times. I can't begin to imagine what some of the other drivers on the road around me must think when I'm busting out laughing at parts in a book that I found funny when reading, but find even funnier when I listen to them. And the best part is that when you miss a spot in a book you already know well because you weren't paying full attention it doesn't matter because you already know it! Haha

I feel that when I can no longer hold a book, will be when I do audio. I just can't seem to get into let the written word go yet.

John wrote: "Curious as to everyone's thoughts on this, but I simply cannot get into audiobooks. ..."

Interesting that you should post this under The Fellowship of the Ring...


I've tried a number of times to read The Silmarillion but have never gotten very far. I started listening to the audio-book version of it though and for me it was better. Some tales are best told around the tribal fires. This may be one.

I find that audio-books have a place but they generally do not replace text.

Also I've listened to many of the Shakespeare Plays as audio-books. I find that it's easier to understand the material when it's spoken by folks who know what they're doing. Ditto for The Diary of Samuel Pepys. Hearing Kenneth Branagh reading that other fussy Englishman's private musings just made them that more interesting.

Finally, books like The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl which deals a lot with the internal musings of a lust addled teen boy and his inner dialogue works incredibly well as an audio-book.

i rarely listen to books i've alerady read, mostly because I have the voice stuck in my head and I find the narrators voice rarely matchs up - so I go for new to me books

I don't listen to audiobooks very often, but I've found that sometimes I can have a better appreciation of a story if I can hear it as well as read it (after all, the very first stories were spoken, not written down).

I can enjoy Shakespeare if I take my time with it and really get myself into a Shakespeare mood, but I've found that by listening to a Shakespeare radio drama, I can process what's going on much more quickly.

On the flipside of that, I don't listen to audiobooks very often because oftentimes the voices that the reader uses for the characters doesn't sound at all like the voices I use for the characters in my own head, and it takes me out of the story.

I don't like anyone reading anything to me. People try to read me something from an article in a magazine or newspaper and I'll just ask them to see it. I read fast so I think that's why I rather read it for myself.

Ruth wrote: "I don't like anyone reading anything to me. ..."

Might I suggest a few instances where being read to might be beneficial?

An author reading their own work. I've been to a few of these in NYC and they have been great. Their added emphasis can point out things you'd otherwise miss.

Listening to a book (or play) when exercising. I've enjoyed a number of Shakespeare plays while working on the stairmaster. Having to concentrate on what is said is even more distracting of the this type of tedium of exercise, than having to concentrate. For me its a better anodyne than music.

A long car trip can be a great place to listen to a book that I've been meaning to read but just haven't gotten to.

It just doesn't penetrate the brain unless I read it myself.

I think it depends on the book and the brain involved. For me, it is not a totally different experience, just somewhat. I have enjoyed many audiobooks. I like them in the car. Listening to an Adrian McKinty read in an Irish Accent is great. Listening to Jo Nesbo takes a little getting used to since Scandinavian names sound a lot alike to non-Scandinavian ears. If one is easily distracted visually when listening I guess...my concentration is good though.

Stephen wrote: "...Some tales are best told around the tribal fires..."

Sure. It seems that before there was written word, there was spoken word. Listening is a skill also but sometimes it is a welcome means and a joy in such as drama. I say no to multitasking unless it is to accompany driving when you’re on automatic, or a pleasurable walk on a trail through the woods in all seasons.

Galicius wrote: "... I say no to multitasking unless it is to accompany driving ..."

That just shows you haven't spent a few decades riding the NYC subways. One thing you do NOT want to do is engage the crazier passengers. Books and audio-books are a good way to do that.

I love audio books. Just love them. So relaxing (as long as you have a good reader), and you can get other things done.
Great for driving. So much better than most radio stations.

Stephen wrote: "That just shows you haven't spent a few decades riding the NYC subways..."

I spent some early years riding the NYC subways before you could isolate yourself from the cacophony and passengers who were less crazy then perhaps but I was blessed and lucky to run away from them all early enough to enjoy the last decades in natural surroundings. I would probably escape to audio books if I had to remain in my earlier world.

It took me years to get into listening to audiobooks. I started listening to podcasts several years ago, and I think that taught my brain to start paying attention to spoken word productions. One of the first audiobooks I listened to was The Blood of Flowers, and I just loved the narration. I've been listening to audiobooks regularly since then. I also still read extensively, I'd say 50-50 audiobooks and ebooks.

I actually loved the first audio-book that I listened to, though I never would have read the book. My best friend's grandparents were blind and had several books on records (books for the blind) as they were called at the time. (mid 60's)

One cold rainy day at their cabin up in Petosky, Mi We listened to a book all together while the grandma did some baking. It was a perfect intro to listening to literature for pleasure.

I would like to offer some suggestions to help you penetrate an audiobook. If you normally read on your own it may be hard to embrace audiobooks. It would be like being an actor on stage for most of your life but then forced to watch television instead. All the "work" is done for you -- the character voices, the emphasis, etc. I cannot dismiss this complainant against audiobooks but I can suggest ways to help you enjoy audiobooks if you are willing.

1. Hold the book while you listen, or at least have the ebook. By having the book in front of you, turning the pages with the narrator, not only are you less likely to become visually distracted, but you may also feel more engaged with the book. It may bridge the gap between reading by yourself or with just the audiobook.

2. Adjust the speed of the narration. Most digital audiobook playbacks allow you to speed up or slow down the speed (I am especially thinking of Audible and Audiobooks.com). I would urge you to speed up the audiobook. Especially with LOTR. I listened to the entire LOTR at 2x because the narrator spoke so slowly (n.b. slow down the speed for poetry sections or it will sound comical). I find that speeding up the audio forces me to concentrate since I am more likely to miss a word. This heightened concentration protects you from being distracted and helps you remain more engaged with the text.

3. Start with books and series you already know. This point has already been brought up but I want to stress it here. Audiobooks are foreign territory for most and use a different skill set. Instead of starting with something unfamiliar, I would suggest begin with a book you have already read or one that you have seen the movie for. This way you feel grounded and educated; thus, you will be less likely to get confused and feel more engaged.

4. Know there are two types of audiobook listener. Above in the comments, I have read that many listen while they drive or do chores. This is one type of audiobook listener. Their engagement with their tasks provided the needed tactile-entertainment relief. The other listener sits in an armchair, in their bed, or on the subway. They interact with the audiobook as much as they would a regular book. My suggestions lend more toward the latter type of listener, but I feel anyone could use them. Understanding what type of listener you want to be is important because it influences what books you want to read and how seriously you will concentrate on them. I am both type of readers, but I tend to choose easier books for when I am in a car and more challenging books, like LOTR, while at home.