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Audiobooks vs Paper


Eutierria

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10 hours ago, CJN said:

 always in a journal never the book itself. It is so easy to reference a book (e.g., Tolstoy/AK/245/3 for Anna Karenina page 245 third paragraph)

I whish I could be consistent with journals!! It must be wonderful to look through a journal to see a compilation of your thoughts (that is, if you add an actual note text, not just plot down the reference as to 'underline' it). I'd just end up with two dozens of journals with half a page in each of them with shorthands for authors and titles that I wouldn't remember. (I'll try to remember to announce that kind of failure in the thread "what's the most YOU-thing you did today" next time it happens...^^)

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scarletlatitude

I've considered trying audiobooks for long trips, like my every-two-years trip to Europe. (It has now become a thing. I might as well plan for it.) Being on a plane for 5+ hours can get hella boring. And I tend to get motion sickness if I try to read while moving. 

 

If I am stationary though, I prefer the regular books. One day I will have a huge library with a sliding ladder. 

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Wow...thanks for all the responses. Will find a moment to read these properly ^_^

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I bought two audio books before on Audible and i think it feels kinda like what i imagine radio shows were. The characters come to life and the backgroud music and sound effects kept me pretty immersed. I commute for hours in total everyday so its extremely convenient just to turn on my audio-book and  get going. I can listen while doing chores or studying something tedious too. I'd say it's great if finding time to stare at pages is a challenge. Or just to multitask and get a good listen at the same time.

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AceMissBehaving

I find myself zoning out listening to and reading books. More so listening because I’ll find myself doing multiple things at once. With books it’s easy to go back and re-read anything I find I miss, but with audio it’s a little more jarring 

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I need an actual physical book.  With books (and probably Kindles, although I don't have one) you can go back over a paragraph that is especially complex, and you can skip ahead if a section is boring.  I've never wanted to be "read to", except when I was too young to read myself, so I don't really like audiotapes.  I either take out library books or buy used books.  Since I read a lot of nonfiction, I'll often find used books have notes written in them, but what I've noticed is that the notes usually stop about a third of the way into the book.  I'm always curious why that's so:  have they given up on the book?  Have they had to rush through the book for a class so no time to make notes?  

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i have a hard time concentrating on audio books and i think i miss stuff often. i like actually reading paper books, plus it's more convenient to just pick up and book rather than setting up an audio book, i would think... i'm the kind of person who also likes leaving notes, underlined sections, and dog ears in my books.

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Audio books can be handy for multi-tasking. I listened to a few while drawing but then I switched to ebooks. As much as I like holding a physical book, it's more convenient to loan them from the library via Libby on my phone. Then I can just read them when they become available. So I find paper/ebooks to be better than audio books. Sometimes the narrator can ruin a characters voice for me, or even the whole story. Also, zoning out happened a lot whenever I was listening to a book. .-.

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On 11/25/2019 at 10:05 PM, Zagadka said:

moved from paper to Kindle many years ago, and I've been happy. It is comfortable, I have access to tons of books in one device, etc etc.

I liked that format a lot when I was at University - all PDF Journals on a tablet. For leisure...tried it, didn't like it. I feel more connected & immersed reading a physical copy of a book. 

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On 11/25/2019 at 10:44 PM, LeChat said:

It seems that public libraries in the U.K. also use Overdrive, which offers audiobooks and ebooks; I'm unsure whether all U.K. libraries charge a yearly fee or if it's free, like in the U.S.

I've seen a library with audiobooks - went up to the shelves to have a look - all CDs. I don't own any device that would allow that to play unless it was transferred to USB. 

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On 11/25/2019 at 11:06 PM, SithGrinch said:

There's also something much more satifsying about seeing a full bookshelf rather than a library list on a kindle or computer. 

I felt that ^_^

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2 minutes ago, Eutierria said:

I've seen a library with audiobooks - went up to the shelves to have a look - all CDs. I don't own any device that would allow that to play unless it was transferred to USB. 

I've seen some libraries that still have cassette versions of books on tape. It makes me remember how old I am. (Also my car, since the car I currently have as well as the one I had last year had cassette players rather than CD players.)

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On 11/25/2019 at 11:12 PM, fuzzipueo said:

If you get a really, really good narrator, they can bring the characters to life

Have experienced that once when I had Librivox installed. It really does make such a difference in the immersion of the story. 

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On 11/25/2019 at 11:26 PM, Taival said:

I also have a vivid imagination when reading, and I just couldn't get that same picture of a scene in my head when listening to the book

I'm like this too.

 

The only time where I felt there was an equivalent was by accident - I was driving & listening to Radio 4 - a story about a woman going into labour at the back of a taxi & the driver had to break a wing mirror to cut the umbilical cord. If I'd arrived at my destination before the story ended, I'd have been tempted to remain in the car to find out what happened next. 

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On 11/25/2019 at 11:34 PM, cue said:

If a story is really good I'll download the audiobook version so I can listen while I work and then go back to reading when I get home.

I imagine this to feel quite satisfying & you'll be able to read so much more in a year!  

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On 11/25/2019 at 11:44 PM, Pan Ficto. (on hiatus?) said:

What kind of stories do you like?

I don't really know - they seem to find me rather than the other way around. Usually something with an element of magic or time-travel in it. If it reads like a soap on TV, I probably would lose interest very quickly. 

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On 11/25/2019 at 11:47 PM, CBC said:

Books were my favourite thing ever. Now they're very little besides stress and they make me sad because I know I'll almost never make my way through one anymore.

Sorry to read that - that sounds really horrible. 

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On 11/26/2019 at 12:00 AM, Alejandrogynous said:

I just need that book smell, you know?

Mmmmmm...^_^

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On 11/26/2019 at 1:19 AM, SkoomaPipe said:

, if my great grandma is telling me a story of her youth, I tend to pay attention

Family stories are the best ^_^

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On 11/26/2019 at 3:51 AM, Balance said:

And it sometimes takes longer to hear someone read a book than to just read a book yourself.

I think that would bug me...

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On 11/27/2019 at 1:59 PM, scarletlatitude said:

One day I will have a huge library with a sliding ladder. 

😂I fell in love with the library in Disney's Beauty & the Beast. 

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Have replied to most now. Will reply to rest later once have had some sleep ^_^

 

EDIT: Done! Thanks for all your input. Will have a try with audiobooks & see how it goes. ^_^

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I went through a good chunk of the audiobook versions of GRRM's Clash of Kings and Storm of Swords when I had to do a lot of tedious lab work (enough to cover most of ACOK's 37 hours, and ASOS' 47 :lol: ). I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with it, because the narrator was not my favourite (wrong pronunciation of names, very irritating female voices), but it definitely got me through the books faster than when I would have read it. 

A major downside is that it's not as easy to turn back a page if you missed something, so I tend to pick audiobooks of stories that I'm somewhat familiar with, as to not miss too much. It's a good way to fall asleep to though :lol:

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I only use audio books when driving - but I find them fantastic for that.   I listen to everything to stories to economics and history lectures. Commute traffic no longer seems like a complete waste of my life

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I prefer to spend my downtime doing stuff other than reading books, so as a compromise I listen to loads of audiobooks and podcasts at work. I like to speed them up by 1.5 times or more, though, just because it means I can pack in more audio. Sometimes the narration can be too slow and I just want to hurry them along a bit lol.

 

I've never had a massive issue with losing concentration but then I'm only doing very menial things when I listen.  It makes a dull job much more fun.

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I like both, but I tend to listen to audiobooks for practical reasons. To not lose focus I have to do something else as well, such as walking, cleaning, shopping, doing the dishes or playing a simple game on my phone. The fact that I can listen to the books at the same time as I do something else has gotten me back into reading, and I read at least a book per week, often two or sometimes three. If I would have to take the time to sit down and read every book in physical form I would get through maybe a book per month instead. I do sit down with a physical book every now and then (just got two as an early Christmas gift!), but not nearly as often as I listen them.

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It can take longer for me to process written word by reading due to dyslexia but if I want to feel fully absorbed in a book and fully experience what I'm reading on a personal level, I love a physical book. There's also the fact that the way books are presented and printed can make them so appealing, particularly if they're art based. Not over keen on reading or viewing books off a screen. I can't really place why but it doesn't sit right with me. 

I'm definitely with those of you who find they zone out with audio books also. I find if I have someone reading a book in my ears their voice can send me off to sleep and then I'll have no idea where I'm upto. 

 

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Early stages of experimenting with audiobook - finding myself zoning out. Thought it would be a time-saver by knitting at the same time. Not as enjoyable as I'd previously thought it would be. Will try a non-fiction title to see if that's any better. 

 

So far, my review of audiobook experience...I'd give it a wibbly-wobbly-lukewarm 'meh'.

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I prefer reading digital books and reading. Audiobooks are not my thing. I do have a few physical books though.

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