Every now and then Amazon advertises special deals of "Whisper Sync" or audio versions of novels. I am entertaining the idea because Amazon's more recent advertising includes Game of Thrones. In a year or two I will probably want to revisit the stories in anticipation of G. R. R. Martin's concluding book(s). I just read all of the current novels for the second time and thought that an audio reading might be interesting for the next go-round. Any thoughts?

Tried it, hate it. I can read faster then someone talks.

Audio books feel slow and IMHO the voice acting distracts more then it adds.

I'm a recent convert to audio books. I have found that they are great to listen to while running.

Whispersync is nice because you can read a little, then listen when it is more convenient, and then pick up reading again.

I have quite a few audio books.My enjoyment depends on who is reading it. For instance,some authors I find hard to listen to and as much as I love Spike Milligan,I found his war memoirs increasingly difficult to listen to as the series progressed. He became rushed and not clear and that spoils it.

Someone like Stephen Fry however,who narrates a lot of audio books would be a pleasure to listen to all day.

I like audio books. Reading is a bit of a chore for me. I can only read like ten pages an hour. Where audio books shine for me though with authors like Dean Koontz. I've listened through several of his books given the audio treatment and they were very enjoyable not only because of his mysterious and supernatural stories but also because of some of the quality readers they get.

By the Light of the Moon is read by Steven Lang. Come on now, you can't get much better than that!

if your into Harry Potter, you need to get both versions. the Fry (UK) and the Jim Dale (US)... both are brilliantly read.

also, check out BBC Radio 4 Extra (free online world wide) - while not audio books, you can get tonnes of Plays and Comedies..

into Science Fiction, check out Big Finish for books and plays on Doctor Who, Stargate, etc...

Glad to hear that there is a variety out there!

I agree, it depends on who is reading them. When I workout, I typically listen to podcasts.

I used to listen to audio books all the time at work. Good for entertainment but if the subject is something I need or want to retain they don't work for me. I need to actually read the book for it to stick.

It depends on who is reading them. I prefer radio dramas where its like a radio play more so than a audio book. I enjoy them while hiking or listen to them while I am falling asleep.

The internet archive has a lot of them. Decent place for Arthur C Clarke and Isaac Asimov shorts too.

A Canticle for Liebowitz is good.

A Canticle for Liebowitz

The Leviathan Chronicles is more along the lines of an radio play but its a modern production but I don't think it is still being actively produced.

Leviathan Chronicles

Here is mostly defunct audio drama site but it still has some decent shows. It can be a bit cheesy with some of the shows.

Darker Projects

http://www.oldradioworld.com/shows/The_Shadow.php

I lived in Japan for 9 years and audio books helped keep me sane. I downloaded a bunch and would throw them into my mp3 player and listen to them on the half hour walk to and from work and at the gym. They're great. I still listen to them while working out or when I'm on a particularly dull nightshift.

Check YouTube.. Lots of audio books including the Song of Ice and Fire series. Roy Dotrice does a good job reading. Also, The Star Wars Radio drama is on there as well if you are into that.. Great stuff for laying in bed at the end of the day, or in the case of Star Wars, around a camp fire with the kids..

My wife has Graves Eye Disease and is unable to read anymore. We have been using Overdrive to get Audio books for her thru our library system, but she has just about exhausted their inventory.

Can anyone direct us to a site that lets you DL Audio books for free ?? Or maybe pay a small amount per month to rent the book - she doesn't want to permanently buy one.

Thanks !
Tracy

Great feedback! Thanks!

Tracy, Have you checked out Audible? They advertise a free book for joining their service. I haven't tried it, but I am assuming its like Netflix, only audio books..

I've never listened to an audio book but I wouldn't mind trying something like 2001 narrated by Clarke or Dune narrated by Frank Herbert. Too bad those were never done as far as I know! Of course Herbert died in 1986 which was well before audio books became popular.

My wife had all the Harry Potter books on tape/CD, loved Jim Dale.
She got a free copy of one of Clancy's, I forget which, said the guy was HORRIBLE with a run-on sentence monotone that didn't let you know what was going on.
William Shatner reads his ST novels, I listened to one, he's pretty good at it, naturally. It's quite amusing hearing him do Spock, Uhura, and Picard.




The Jedi Master