I am a big fan of audiobooks. I always used to listen to them as a kid (on a tape player!) on car journeys in particular and before I went to sleep. I went through a phase of not listening to audiobooks for a while but now they are my preferred method of consuming books and for me, they make reading so much easier and more fun. Since signing up to an audiobook subscription service in early 2020 when I was ill I have gone from maybe reading 5-8 books in a year to approximately 100 books each year! If you want to see more of my book related content, what I'm reading & reviews then follow me on my book account @katiekbooks on both Instagram & Tik Tok. Here are some of the reasons why I love audiobooks so much:
1. They enable me to read more books faster - I have a really short attention span and get distracted so easily (especially as I have chronic pain) so have always found it difficult to sit down and read books for long periods in the traditional way. I can listen to an audiobook on and off throughout the day though and they keep my attention much better. Of course they are also excellent if you have any kind of visual impairment too.
2. You can multi-task - I love how can do other things whilst listening to a book like editing photos for my content, tidying up, making lunch or going for a walk.
3. They bring the story to life - Hearing the characters voices adds an extra layer to the story, making it feel like a reality and bringing the characters to life. All the extra details, the voices, accents and everything all really immerse you in the story, it feels like a movie just for your ears!
4. You get extra details - Some audiobooks go the extra mile and add in extra details, for example I recently listened to a book about a rock band and the male narrator actually sung one of the songs written in the story with guitar playing as well, it was amazing! Some audiobooks have a full cast so almost all the characters have different actors assigned to narrate them and others I’ve listened to include details like background noises i.e. doors closing, traffic sounds, cutlery clinking in a restaurant etc.
5. They’re comforting - There is something so cosy and comforting about having a story read to you (maybe it takes me back to being a child, I don't know) but I find it really relaxing, especially before bed.
6. I find new authors through my favourite narrators - I have a big list of favourite narrators, those whose voices I really enjoy and are versatile doing both male and female parts of dialogue. Well, on most audiobook apps you can search my narrator as well as author, genre etc and when I’ve really liked a narrator searching more of the books they’re narrated has helped introduce me to books I might not have necessarily come across or selected otherwise!
7. They don’t take up any physical space - if space is at a real premium in your house (which it is in mine!) and you don’t have room for the giant bookcase of your dreams (or it is already over flowing) then the fact that you can have thousands of books in an app (and not even taking up loads of GB’s on your phone if you only want to have one downloaded at a time) is amazing!
8. They don’t weigh more than your phone - books can be heavy! As I’ve already mentioned, I have chronic pain so carrying and even holding a book to read for any length of time can be a physical struggle for me, especially hardbacks. So the fact that they’re in my phone and I don’t even have to hold or carry that in order to listen to my favourite books is brilliant.
9. You know how to pronounce character names and locations you might not otherwise - This has happened to me so often, especially with fantasy stories, where I would just have no idea how to go about pronouncing something if I hadn’t heard it (some of spells in Harry Potter for example!). The narrators will usually be able to confirm these things with the author prior to or during recording too. Even giving characters accents I wouldn’t have necessarily realised they were suppose to have when just reading the text too.
10. Nobody can tell what you’re reading - Ever felt judged by the cover of the book you’re reading? Ever felt slightly awkward reading a book on the train with shirtless man or embracing couple on the cover? Fyi you really shouldn’t as they’re a beautiful thing, but I get it! Audiobooks are so much more discreet though - just make sure you don’t press play on full volume when you’re headphones aren’t connected!
Where can you get your audiobooks?
Most of these involve a monthly subscription where you pay a monthly fee and get a credit per month to exchange for an audiobook. Then you have them to listen to at your leisure on your phone. These audiobooks are then yours (in most cases) even if you cancel your subscription later. You can then purchase extra credits if you want to buy more audiobooks than your 1 credit per month allows (this usually works out cheaper than buying the audiobook at the RRP). In most cases the audiobook apps will give you a free trial before you officially sign up too. Audible is the main one I currently use and I like that they offer a members benefit of a library of free audiobooks to listen to without the need to spend any credits called the Audible Plus Catalogue.
Sign up for a free trial here!
Do you listen to audiobooks? Or do you prefer reading physical books or e-books?
