Audiobooks discussion

New members are welcome to introduce yourselves here. We always enjoy getting to know other folks who love audiobooks!

Hi, I’m new to the group.

I started listening to Audible this year and love it. These days I mostly listen to nonfiction as I found myself wanting to learn more and read harder.

I still read fiction in between those challenging nonfiction books.

Right now, I am listening to John Adams by David McCullough. Slow going but I have learned so much!

Thank you to Robin for introducing me to this group.

Welcome!
I loved that book, some parts are faster than others. I felt as if I’d had an excellent history lesson! Enjoy!

Mary wrote: "Hi, I’m new to the group.

I started listening to Audible this year and love it. These days I mostly listen to nonfiction as I found myself wanting to learn more and read harder.

I still read fict..."

Welcome, Mary! Thanks to you, I realized we did not have a current thread for introductions, so I added this one. Feel free to join any discussions, even older ones, as they will then reactivate.

We have threads for current reads, technical questions, various genres, and of course sales and special offers!

Hello, I'm new to the group too.
I started listening to audiobooks around 18 years ago, when they were still a relatively new phenomenon. I taught myself English through them and I enjoy them in the same way as a person likes or dislikes a musical performance. I discovered that how the book is read is quite important, not just what kind of book it is. Initially, I liked the idea of listening to a book because I was learning the language, so I approached it as a study exercise. I was at university at the time and studying was the most important thing for me. Later on, I would say that I became addicted to the habit. I listen to books at every opportunity: while commuting to work, cleaning the house and cooking. I am convinced that it is probably the good book that motivates me to do the laundry; otherwise, it is so utterly boring. I have an extremely busy schedule, so this is probably the only way I can enjoy literature. I am always doing something else at the same time. I listen to both fiction and non-fiction books, usually one of each. If the non-fiction becomes too dry, I switch to the other one. I enjoy different genres. I have made it a habit to listen to all the children's books I can find before offering them to my children, because I have a good idea of their tastes, so it helps me choose the right titles for them. Audiobooks stop me from overthinking and generally help me to be calmer and cope with traumatic events more easily. There are many differences for me between reading a book and listening to it. I regard reading as a huge luxury because it involves setting aside a specific time for that activity, so it is precious. I am careful about what I read — it must be worth it. Listening is like having a friend in the room with you. Hearing a voice alone can be calming when you're feeling frustrated, or invigorating if you're exhausted and want to sleep, but need to clear up after the kids have gone to bed.

Welcome Kalbo! You have expressed very well how many of us feel about audiobooks. I also get bored easily and find audiobooks make housework and other tasks more enjoyable. And most of us feel the narration is extremely important, and hope it is never replaced by AI!

I'm impressed that you learned the language so well partly through audiobooks!

I started with a series of books that I had read in translation several times, so I knew them well. I listened to the whole series at least three times before building up the confidence to try a new book in English. In the beginning, it was beneficial to listen to every book several times; on the second or third attempt, I found that I understood it much better. My spelling is appalling, though, because I have never seen some of the words written down. I can pronounce them, but I don't know how to spell them :-D
I really liked the voice of Stephen Fry. He's one of my favourite readers.

Greeting friends!

I'm relatively new to the audiobook scene, but so far I've enjoyed my experiences with the. I started with The Crying of Lot 49 and The Stranger and had good experiences with both in audio format. Excited that there is a group on here that also likes and appreciates this way of experiencing literature.

Welcome, Seth! You will get lots more recommendations from this group. Feel free to check out any of our threads and add comments if you wish.

I'm not really as I have actually been a part of this group for a while, but I have only commented maybe four times, so I feel like I should go ahead and introduce myself! ;) I started listening to audiobooks when I had a data entry job 35 years ago. Dang - that is a long time. LOL. We used to listen to books while we worked, and we would share them amongst ourselves. Our family has an Audible account. My husband, my oldest daughter, and I listen to books all the time. My other kids also listen to books just not at quite the same intense level that we do! My oldest kiddo and I listen to a lot of the same books. It's really fun. My husband and I also often listen to a lot of the same books. We've been together for 34 years and married for 29, and we have always shared books. He's a really slow reader, and I am a very fast reader, so we only share SOME of our books! :) I have very eclectic taste in books. I love listening to audiobooks when I am driving, doing brainless work, or just relaxing in the evening. A good narrator can really make a book entertaining. We listened to Wizard for Hire by Obert Skye on a road trip with our younger kids two years ago. Kirby Hayborne was the narrator, and he took a decent YA book and made it a fabulous book. He did such a great job. With bad narrators, I can usually get past it because since I read so fast, I always listen fast as well. The speed can often minimize a bad narrator's issues. A really bad narrator can really take away from a book though. The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Daré is a really good book that was practically ruined by the narrator, Bahni Turpin. Audiobooks just add another layer to books, and I love it - even with the occasional crappy narrator.

Misty wrote: "I'm not really as I have actually been a part of this group for a while, but I have only commented maybe four times, so I feel like I should go ahead and introduce myself! ;) I started listening to..."

Thanks for introducing yourself! If any other longtime member wants to tell us more, feel free anytime.

I also started in the cassette days. Sadly, nobody else in my family enjoys audiobooks like I do, although I've offered to share my Audible account.

Interesting that I thought the narration on The Girl with the Louding Voice was great, and it's part of why I gave the book 5 stars. But I know there are varied opinions in our group about many narrators.

Hi, I’m known in the book community as Urban. I have noticed that I’ve relied on audiobooks more and am very excited.

Welcome, Urban! You will get many more ideas for listening in this group

Robin P wrote: "Interesting that I thought the narration on The Girl with the Louding Voice was great, and it's part of why I gave the book 5 stars. But I know there are varied opinions in our group about many narrators."

I have heard a lot of people say they enjoyed the narration. She whined through the whole thing which drove me nuts. Now, it could be because I have five kids.... LOL. I also do not enjoy audiobooks that have multiple narrators. Don't get me started on "graphic audiobooks." It might just be that I am picky........ ;)

Hello, I'm Rachel. Just jumping in with my own opinion on narrators:

I've found it helpful that if I don't like the tone of the narrator, speeding the book up by increments helps. There are narrators I love and others that grate on my ears, but I will endure much for a truly good story. Adjusting the speed helps in most cases.

Ta!

I love the audible with a full cast. Especially if it's humorous. Reminds me of an old-fashioned radio show.

Hi all, I'm Holly!

I'm new to the group and got into audiobooks a couple of years ago. I love the Libby app and using it to get into books while driving during my workday. My favorite narrator right now is January LaVoy!

I just learned that there are so many functions on Goodreads if I use my desktop lol so I'd love to connect!

Welcome, Holly! Feel free to join in any of our threads.

I only use the desktop version of GR, even on a phone or tablet, because I find it a lot easier to use.

Long time reader/listener. At the start of the year I was in a book rut, and was struggling to find any that interest me. I've always been a non fiction gal, but recently I randomly listened to Freida McFadden's book The Boyfriend... and I was hooked! I had officially found a new genre for me to get into. So needless to say, I kept going with her books and have discovered some others on this 3 month journey, and ready for more. Here I am now connecting with you lovely people to help my new found world of fiction!!

Tarah wrote: "Long time reader/listener. At the start of the year I was in a book rut, and was struggling to find any that interest me. I've always been a non fiction gal, but recently I randomly listened to Fre..."

Welcome, Tarah! Great to hear that you found something you love.

Tarah wrote: "Long time reader/listener. At the start of the year I was in a book rut, and was struggling to find any that interest me. I've always been a non fiction gal, but recently I randomly listened to Fre..."

Welcome, Tarah! I listen to a fair amount of nonfiction. I find Classics: Dickens, Trollope, etc. can work really well as audiobooks for fiction!

It is nice to see so many new(ish) people here introducing themselves. Welcome all!

Hi everyone 👋 I listen while driving back and forth to work. Trying to keep the pace of 1 book per week.

Munna wrote: "Hi everyone 👋 I listen while driving back and forth to work. Trying to keep the pace of 1 book per week."

Hey, Munna! I started with audiobooks during my commute to university via mass transit. Not always guaranteed a seat to read a print book!

I also started listening when driving to and from work (on cassettes!). When I switched to a location where I took a bus, I used a Walkman. I've never been able to read in a car or bus without feeling sick, so audio is perfect.

Finally getting around to introducing myself....Aloha and Howdy y'all, I'm Audrey and since I multitask, I love the freedom of audiobooks. I have too many favorite authors to list fully but here are some I've gravitated through the years: Judy Blume, W. Shakespeare, Sidney Sheldon, John Irving ("A Prayer For Owen Meany" will be placed in my coffin; my family teases me when I come home with a new copy like Jerry Fletcher and his "Catcher In The Rye" IYKYK), Amy Tan, James Baldwin, Karin Slaughter, Neil Gaiman, Maggie O'Farrell, Fredrik Backman, and as I'm addicted to her narrations, anything Julia Whelan. I craft (makes listening to audiobooks easier), Hawaiian music, love gardening/don't like the failure), serving as an Election Judge, being outdoors, and art/indie movies. There is no genre I haven't read...though I am working on reading more non-fiction (my weakness is romance).

Welcome, Audrey!

Hi everyone! I'm a long time reader and newish audiobook listener (the last two years.) I find audiobooks a great way to cram more books into my life, I have a job where I have lots of listening time. The only thing I don't like is, how I am now aware of how much I have been mispronouncing names in fantasy books! Eeekk. My fave app to listen to is Libby, because it's free 😂 Right now I am listening to Heir of Novron by Michael j Sullivan. It is the third book, and is 32 hours long.

Question for you all, what speed do you listen at? I like 1.25

Welcome, Cozy/Josie!

I am a big fan of Michael J. Sullivan, as read by Tim Gerard Reynolds. The original series, which you are now in, is my favorite. I had the opposite problem with names, though, I knew how to pronounce the names but had no idea how to spell them, since I never saw the printed book. I thought it was a joke that the wizard had the prosaic name of Ezra Haddon. But it is supposed to be something like Esrahaddon.

For years I never changed the speed, but now it is usually 1.25. I listen on an archaic iPod nano, because it is so conveniently tiny, and that is the only choice. However, for some authors I love, I don't speed it up. I just finished 30+ hours of The Hallmarked Man and had no urge to have it go faster.

I envy you being able to listen at work. I never had a job where that was possible. But I used it everywhere else, doing housework, exercising, and of course driving.

Hi everyone! I am Kitty. My love of reading/listening really skyrocketed during those late nights with a new born

Feel free to add me as a friend! Always looking for recs.

Welcome, Kitty!
Congratulations on your new baby! Feel free to check any of our threads for recommendations of all kinds, and jump in anytime with your own favorites.

Hi all,
I'm an Irish writer who has dabbled with audiobooks on ACX. However, an avid reader since childhood, I found one of the classics to be an excellent audio - Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stephenson. Highly recommended. I never realised when I read the book as a kid that Long John Silver was so sinister.

Hey, Liam!

I can only do the Classics in audio format, print does not work for me.

Hi everyone,
I’m Ali Rad, originally from Iran and now a Canadian living in eastern Canada for about two decades. After retiring from my earlier careers, I turned to fiction writing and have since written short stories and published a novel — Love in Crisis — first in Farsi (Persian) and later in English.
The story follows an Irish-Greek-American doctor whose life weaves through love and political turmoil, leading him toward a creative resolution. I’m now producing both versions as audiobooks — the English one digitally completed and submitted to INaudio, and the Farsi one in progress, narrated with a melodious friend in Iran. I edit and add music and subtle background sounds myself using Audacity.
Although this project has put my next novel, Scions of Santa, on hold, I’m delighted to join fellow audiobook enthusiasts here and look forward to learning from you — and sharing whatever I can in return.

Cozy Reads With Josie wrote: "Hi everyone! I'm a long time reader and newish audiobook listener (the last two years.) I find audiobooks a great way to cram more books into my life, I have a job where I have lots of listening ti..."

that's the speed I like to listen to! I am super new to audiobooks too! I love it!

Hi everyone! My name is Katherine, and I’m currently on a journey to change my life for the better; starting by reading and listening to more books and cutting down on my social media use (and all that doom scrolling 😅).

I've always enjoyed reading, but I often find myself distracted, so I'm working on becoming more focused and consistent.

Audiobooks have been a game-changer for me lately, and I’ve been loving them! Joining a group like this felt like the perfect next step to help me stay inspired and motivated.

Looking forward to connecting and sharing stories with all of you. Nice to meet you! welcome to add me as well!

Hello,
Glad to find this group. I randomly listen to audiobooks and this group might be a good place to learn about others. I'm currently listening to Martin Chuzzlewit by Charles Dickens. It's a group read for another GR group and since it's quite long it's perfect for an audiobook on my commute.
Happy reading and listening.

Hi, Debbie! I was absolutely daunted at the idea of reading Classics (Dickens, etc.) in print. However, they've been outstanding as audiobooks!

Katherine: Here's a tip for you ... it's fine to have mulitple aydiobooks going at once. There are times I've just not been in the mood for a specific ongoing title.

Welcome to all our new members! There are still people in the greater world who don't appreciate the value of audiobooks, or even think they are "cheating" - aarrgh! - but we are all believers!

I read a lot in print also but it's so great to have audio for all those "wasted" hours, driving, doing housework, etc.

Many people find classics easier on audio, especially with an outstanding narrator.

I'm trying to read (and now listen!) to more of the Classics. I agree with Robin P, the narrator makes a huge difference. Seán Barrett who's narrating Martin Chuzzlewit is great!