Poll: Are Audiobooks Shameful?

[Something Amyss]

My mom listes to audioboks in her car because she spends a lot of time driving. Because she lacks a lot of technical understanding, I download and burn all her books for her. Occasionally, I listen to one. I've listened to the first two Hunger Games titles, for example. In part, I didn't want to take the "risk" buying the books when I could just listen to them. Sometimes, it's nice to be able to not have to read a book.

Mostly, I'd rather just read. I get something different off the printed page (or the e-ink display, since 90% of my reading is now done on a Kindle) than I do from simply listening in. I don't know. Listening makes me feel a lot more passive, but I'm not against it.

last time it was a series of unfortunate events....read by Tim Curry

And now I must go find that.

I think you mean seppuku, unless your planning to commit to a numbers based puzzle game.

This is someone who intentionally wrote "shamefur" so I assumed it was just some internet meme deal.

 

[Lilani]

So, over the past few weeks, I've "read" 2001: A Space Odyssey, Solaris, Slaughterhouse Five, the first two Foundation books, The Thing on the Doorstep, Shadow Over Innsmouth and several trashy Horus Heresy novels.

By "read", I mean listened to.

Whenever I discuss these novels with someone whose opinion of me I care about, I make sure not to specify that I consumed them in audio form.

Am I being an overly self-conscious pejorative, or should I just go commit Sudoku right now?

I think audiobooks are becoming more acceptable than ever. In the past they existed for those unable to read, whether it be by blindness, old age, or even illiteracy. But now Audible.com has become one of the many "hip" services that Amazon.com provides. Now with the Internet and MP3 players, audiobooks have found new life. People listen to audiobooks the same way they listen to songs, at work or on the road, in situations where they can listen to something. I listen to audiobooks all the time at work, being in computer graphics often leaves me silent in front of a computer for hours on end, only pausing and unplugging so I can listen to how something times out with the audio I'm working with.

So I say don't be ashamed, be proud. Audiobooks are cooler than ever. Being ashamed of listening to a book is like being ashamed of reading a book on an e-reader instead of a physical copy. The only people who care enough to get angry about the distinction are morons whose opinions don't deserve the time of day. And with how successful Audible has become, believe that you are not alone.

 

[Bazaalmon]

I work at an office job where we're allowed to listen to stuff on headphones, and I must say that a good audiobook really helps pass the time. I actually just finished book 2 of A Song of Ice and Fire last week, and I'm going to start on Brandon Sanderson's second installment of the Stormlight Archive series. I still read books at home when I have the chance, but it's not always practical to have a book and it's not like I could read at the office when I work. I also agree with many of the earlier posters, a good orator really helps. I actually have the UK version of the Harry Potter audiobooks, which are narrated by Stephen Fry instead of Jim Dale like the US version, and it's quite possibly the greatest thing ever. Books are books, regardless of format. Anyone who gives you attitude for listening to your books in audio form needs to thank their lucky stars that they apparently don't have any real problems in their life and should stop being so petty.

 

[Olas]

I feel a bit of shame. It's almost like cheating.

Wait, books are a test now?

The way I see it, unless you're just trying to show off or strengthen your literacy, there's really no advantage to consuming a story through text as opposed to spoken word. In fact I can see many disadvantages to it as it occupies much more of your attention to read whereas you can listen to an audiobook while doing other activities ie driving, doing dishes, playing Minecraft, etc. Then again, if you're a fast reader you might be able to consume a story much faster by reading it than by listening to it, so there's arguably a trade off.

I think it's a safe bet that everyone in this thread has an acceptable degree of literacy, and is old enough to where their brains are no longer in crucial early development stages, so there's really no reason to dismiss audiobooks. Saying that traditional reading is somehow superior feels like an obnoxious form of elitism over something utterly trivial.

If you're using audiobooks so that you can do something else whilst listening, there's no problem with that.

If you're just sitting around listening as an alternative to sitting around reading, yes, you should be ashamed.

Why? Also, I would imagine very few people actually do the latter as it seems somewhat unstimulating to just sit around and stare off into space while listening. Then again, before TV people used to do just that with the radio. One neat thing about radio broadcasts is they would have sound effects and musical backing. I haven't listened to many audiobooks but I get the impression not too many incorporate these elements and I think it could be cool.

 

[Snotnarok]

I had gotten crap from a friend because what I read is technology/science news and not novels or whatever. Closest thing I read is comics, but that's all taboo, especially if all of the reading is electronically done/off a screen. You need REAL books or you're not interesting apparently.

Can't express how shallow the person has to be to think and act on these things.

people have a real thing for physical books..and I do understand it even though I use an E reader

I love the cover art from the 80's/90's one of my favorite things is a copy of "the plains of passage" I remember reading that series at my grandmas house, I remember finding it in an old second hand store, it had a little note written in it...a birthday present from some guy to his mum...

aww gee now I'm getting emotional, sometimes I feel like going to my local second hand bookstore and buying a bunch of paperbacks for the hell of it

I understand the appeal, there's nothing wrong with it but the attitude I saw was snobby instead of emotional. I mean I understand the appeal for others in reading novels, it's awesome. I'm just more nerdy perhaps, I like reading technical articles and science discoveries, it's all exciting to me in ways novels simply aren't. I'm aware it's strange haha.

Yeah my gram was like that, got me emotional in a different way. :\

 

[Zhukov]

Wut?

Why would they be shameful? That... that makes no sense.

I don't think I've ever heard anyone say anything negative about audio books. "Man, would you believe that Bob listens to audio books? No, I swear, it's true. I know, right? Fuck that guy. We should tar and feather him!"

Hell, I don't think I've ever heard anyone say much of anything about audio books.

Personally haven't listened to one since I was a kid. When I was about eight I used to listen to Enid Blyton stories.

Wouldn't have much reason to listen to one these days. I'm going to be able to read it to myself several times faster than someone can speak. Listening would be frustratingly slow and I don't think it would add much to the experience.

Also because...

I don't actually listen to audio books, but I don't think there's any shame in doing so. It takes a lot of commitment to sit down and read a book, because when you do so you can't do anything else. Listening to an audiobook is a lot more passive, and allows you to do other things at the same time (like driving), so they're much more flexible for someone with a busy schedule.

I listen to audiobooks all the time at work, being in computer graphics often leaves me silent in front of a computer for hours on end, only pausing and unplugging so I can listen to how something times out with the audio I'm working with.

How on Earth do you guys listen to them while working?

Maybe it's just because I cannot multi-task worth a damn but I would not be able to do that. I'd either get distracted by the audio and stop working effectively or I'd focus on my work and suddenly realise I haven't taken in a single word for the last five minutes.

[sub][sub]Oh hey, another one back from the land of the banned. Is the Escapist having a mass amnesty or something? Although as I recall your ban was by request.[/sub][/sub]

I love the cover art from the 80's/90's one of my favorite things is a copy of "the plains of passage" I remember reading that series at my grandmas house, I remember finding it in an old second hand store, it had a little note written in it...a birthday present from some guy to his mum...

Christ, I think I remember that cover.

Was it the one with a man and woman in furs (presumably Ayla and Jondalar) next to a fireplace? She's crouched and looking "out" from the cover while he's standing behind her looking off to the right. Also, there might have been a horse somewhere in there.

I recently saw that series in a store with new covers. They were done in a style that resembled cave paintings. Looked pretty cool actually.

 

[Lilani]

How on Earth do you guys listen to them while working?

Maybe it's just because I cannot multi-task worth a damn but I would not be able to do that. I'd either get distracted by the audio and stop working effectively or I'd focus on my work and suddenly realise I haven't taken in a single word for the last five minutes.

[sub][sub]Oh hey, another one back from the land of the banned. Is the Escapist having a mass amnesty or something? Although as I recall your ban was by request.[/sub][/sub]

Sometimes I am doing something which requires silence (like coming up with a new design or new approach to something), but otherwise a lot of my job is copying and pasting work that's already been done, lol. When making a commercial spot or digital sign, we have a pretty set format and all I'm doing is making copies and applying new product and information into them. As you can imagine, that can get pretty monotonous. Either that, or I'm working on a single project that I know the desire outcome of, so I'm just spending my day working toward that outcome. During those times I need something to break up the silence, and a good story can keep my attention a lot longer than music (with music, I'm tempted to change the song and adjust the volume all the time, but with a story I can just let it run).

[sub][sub]Also, I don't know about the rest, but I was voluntarily banned back then. I got this new job and wanted to completely dedicate myself to it for a while, so I requested a ban :3 Now I've got things more in line so I asked to come back, and they let me.[/sub][/sub]

 

[Vault101]

Christ, I think I remember that cover.

Was it the one with a man and woman in furs (presumably Ayla and Jondalar) next to a fireplace? She's crouched and looking "out" from the cover while he's standing behind her looking off to the right. Also, there might have been a horse somewhere in there.

I recently saw that series in a store with new covers. They were done in a style that resembled cave paintings. Looked pretty cool actually.

with an icy blue color scheme? I belive thats the one..I know it had the wolf in it, I also know the newer covers which are ok...but got nothing on dat 90's

[snip]

she actually came back because I came back...

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Wut? Why would they be shameful?

Who are the 22 people who voted YES? That's like voting that cabbage is shameful.

 

[Folksoul]

Do you have severe vision problems/are you blind? Is audio version is the only version in your language? Are you driving or other similar activity? Is the narrator JUST THAT AWESOME!? If so, listen away without guilt. To the OP, you like audiobooks? Do your thing dude. It's all good.

Person in my D&D/MTG circle despises reading. He can, and is not dyslexic or anything. He simply gets offended when he is expected to read that isn't something mandatory like a road sign.

Protip: Don't bash the act of reading in a room full of English majors/ honours lit students. That opened a well of sarcasm that has yet to run dry, even years later.

 

[laide234]

Not everyone has the time to actually sit down with a book and read. I listen to audio-books while I commute or work out.

 

[tangoprime]

Not everyone has the time to actually sit down with a book and read. I listen to audio-books while I commute or work out.

This one knows what's up.

Audiobooks are great for a long commute or trip. Also great for working out/hiking/running/biking. I have the audiobook version of World War Z's CDs in my car at all times, and have nearly the complete works of HP Lovecraft saved on my car audio system's HD and my mp3 player. WWZ is made pretty great by the fact that each vignette is done by a different voice actor, including Mark Hamill, Simon Pegg, Alan Alda, Rob Reiner, Henry Rollins, and Martin Scorsese.

Audiobooks are also great for flights if your someone who gets a headache trying to read on a plane. Anyone who says you should feel shame for enjoying literature this way is basically just being a snob and/or has never had to deal with a commute or have to multitask. I have a huge collection of things I've read, and a huge backlog of physical books, simply because I don't have the time of day to tear into them, and if I got really hooked into one I know it could potentially make me procrastinate on important things. Listening to a chapter or two of something on the way too and from work, especially if traffic is bad, is a great way to ingest literature that you wouldn't ordinarily be able to fit into your schedule. In reply to an argument against this- if you can't pay attention to an audiobook and drive at the same time, you probably shouldn't be trusted with a motor vehicle to begin with- it's far less distracting than even talking to passengers. Should we not ever have passengers either?

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

I don't think they're shameful, I just don't care for them. The problem, at least for me, is that they don't serve a purpose. I can't listen to them when working out because they neither assist in the workout nor do they provide any real entertainment as I can't really pay much attention when working hard. When driving a car I tend to find they have the opposite problem as they tend to be remarkably distracting and, as such, seem remarkably unsafe. And if I'm not in one of those two scenarios, I can likely just pull out a book and read it myself in a fraction of the time and without the pesky bother of having other people twist my interpretation of what I'm reading.

 

[Raikas]

I don't see why it would be shameful - people who don't have the time to both read and workout, or who have a long driving commute (or a long train/bus commute who get carsick) can multitask with audiobooks. Plus there are more audio versions of books than there are large print or braille versions, so it's good for people with visual impairments as well. And where's the shame in being busy, carsick or blind?

I do think it's a different experience than reading something on your own, because there's a level of performance to the reader's work (the emphasis they select, the way they read certain voices), so there's less creative work on the part of the reader in selecting their own emphasis/accent, but that hardly makes listening to them shame-worthy. It just makes it different.

Gotta admit it: I personally find audiobooks to be shameul.

Out of curiosity, why?

 

[axlryder]

Many people with a long ass commute can attest to the value of audio books. I consider myself a fast reader, but why waste the hour and a half in the car? Plus there's the sight impaired, etc.

 

[Something Amyss]

Maybe people just aren't listening to the right audiobooks, a good voice actor makes all the difference. I was dismissive of audiobooks until I started listen to Sue Grafton novels on audiobook, which are read by a tony-award winning actress who does an over-the-top amazing job while reading. You know, someone who actually acts out the books, makes it a performance rather than just reading.

The thing is, voice acting is often a crap shoot. While there are many books that have fantastic narrators, they may not coincide with your taste or even the specific desires you have at that time. To draw from my limited experience, I honestly felt the woman narrating the Hunger Games series for Audible dragged the book down, and almost everyone I know who has heard it agrees.

Like, I get that a good narrator can make the same difference, but maybe people aren't interested in the "right" audiobooks. There's a sea of crap out there that makes Anime dubs look like Shakespeare delivered by an all-star class of thespians, and a lot of it's the popular stuff.

 

[Vault101]

Many people with a long ass commute can attest to the value of audio books. I consider myself a fast reader, but why waste the hour and a half in the car? Plus there's the sight impaired, etc.

also some of us arent those lucky mutants who can somehow read in a car without wanting to vomit their guts out..lucky bastards...

 

[game-lover]

Another thing I wanna add with my penchant for libraries. Audiobooks can be totes convenient.

I've been using the newly discovered digital library ever since I had this pesky fine 'cause some books got wet. I still read solid books but it can be faster to get the audio forms. And since I prefer them over ebooks, it's wonderfuls.