Audio Reading of the Classics

[Shirley]

I have found Librivox and wanted others to know about this site.

If reading a large classic is too much you can listen to it for free.

https://catalog.librivox.org/

Hope this encourages more to join in the monthly choices.

[Ahtims]

I've been downloading from Librivox for quite sometime now. Its a good site.

[Shirley]

Smitha wrote: "I've been downloading from Librivox for quite sometime now. Its a good site."

I found my old computer wouldn't do the downloads very well but if I do the stream it works very well.

[Mandy]

i know several friends who swear by librovox. for them, it is an awesome free resource. everyone should at least check it out.

that said, i think i am just too picky about my storytellers to enjoy librovox. i used to compete in storytelling in high school and i have a background in theatre, so i have pretty high expectations for the storytellers of audiobooks. how a story is told makes all the difference for me in how i perceive and enjoy a book.

unfortunately, i have been diappointed with many of the readers on librovox. i tried Pride and Prejudice, Moby Dick (and a few others i can't remember off the top of my head), and i couldn't get through any of them. i couldn't help but critique the reader's performance. finally, i got so distracted by my inner voice saying: "oh, i wouldn't have read that sentence that way" or "they should have read that part this way" that i had to give up. i have listenened to other audiobooks read by James Earl Jones and Meryl Streep and really enjoyed them; but i think those phenomenal storytellers have spoiled me.

[Shirley]

Mandy wrote: "i know several friends who swear by librovox. for them, it is an awesome free resource. everyone should at least check it out.

that said, i think i am just too picky about my storytellers to e..."

My other choice was Kindle and the reading is terrible. Maybe better if you subscribe to Audible.com but rather expensive that way.

At my age with my tri focal glasses reading can be a challenge. This lets me work while listening. Yes, some of the readers are sketchy. The one I am listening to needs her adnoids removed as many do.

[Irene]

Thank you for this link. I will certainly check it out.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Shirley wrote: "At my age with my tri focal glasses reading can be a challenge. This lets me work while listening. "

I have reading glasses. I can't imagine trying to read with the little space eye doctors think you need for close up work. But I just can't bring myself to audio books. I tried them several years ago and my mind wanders. I need full concentration to enjoy a book, particularly a classic.

[Georgiana]

I really like Librivox too, Shirley. I checked out many books that I stopped reading because I didn't like the readers, but I also listened to many books that I would not have read otherwise (or at least not read any time soon).

Right now I'm listening to Anna Karenina, and I'm almost done with Book 1 (read by Kirsten Ferreri).

For me it also depends on the book whether I prefer reading it or listening to the audiobook. I recently listened to The Poisonwood Bible, downloaded from Audible, and I did like it, but I'm pretty sure I would have liked it more had I read the book.

Then there are books like Angela's Ashes, 'Tis, and Teacher Man, which I'm sure I loved more because they were in audiobook format and Frank McCourt was a wonderful reader.

Shirley wrote: "Yes, some of the readers are sketchy. The one I am listening to needs her adnoids removed as many do."

LOL! I hate that. In some cases I think part of the problem is the equipment and the software used for the recording.

[Meg]

I love audio books. I listen to books on the way to work since I have a long commute. The best audio is through audible. You can join audio and get one book a month for $14. Sometimes, which is a real treat, the author reads their own book.

[Bloomin’Chick (Jo) aka The Eclectic Spoonie]

When I commuted to & from work on the train, I listened to audio books as well as read books & magazines. I generally have enjoyed audio books (though I prefer reading them) but every once in a while I get a narrator that turns me off altogether.

[Meg]

The Help, on audible, was terrific.

[Bloomin’Chick (Jo) aka The Eclectic Spoonie]

That's what I've heard! I'm on the waiting list at the library for it :-)

[Becky]

I've been a member of Audible for about 3 years, and love it! Like some of you, I have a long commute, and use it for that. I've listened to fiction and non-fiction, and have found it all approachable.

I also have used it for some of the meatier classics - I like listening to it and also reading at the same time to get the rhythm of the spoken word - I did that with Ulysses and Beowulf: A New Verse Translation translated and read by Seamus Heaney.

I used Librivox when I read The Odyssey - and overall it was okay. There were maybe about 5 different people reading different chapters - but it was more "reading" instead of the performance you get in the Audible books.

Meg - agree about The Help - that one was awesome. More like performance than narration.

[Julia]

I use my local library, we can get books on cd (great for the car) and Playaway (similar to an MP3 player, but with one book loaded on it). I usually get them two at a time but reject far more for skips than for poor voice.

[Julia]

Brenda (Lansdowne) wrote: "I wish I could listen to my books on audio. My mind wanders!"

I own a soup delivery business. My books keep me going whilst delivering! One way for me to know if it's a good book: the speed with which I get the food to the front porch. You know when I am jogging it's a treasure!

[Meg]

I love listening to books on my drive in. It gives me an hour a day.
I would also love the soup delivered to my house, what is your radius???

[Laura]

I would love to hear more about that business, it sounds fascinating.

I keep my mp3 player next to my bed for insomnia. Instead of tossing and turning, at least I can turn on a book! Also great for driving, cooking, and anytime I can squeeze in a listen.

[Julia]

We make our own soups and offer a different one each week (we're expanding so we can offer 2) as well as homemade desserts, breads, and sometimes casseroles and salads. Generally only a couple favorite soups repeat each season -- variety is the spice of life. All vegetarian, I've been told by umpteen mothers that their kids love our soups so much that it has become mom's favorite vegetable. You can find us on the web if you search saratogasoup (dot com); our delivery zone is expanding southwards. I love what we do, I feel like we are a cherished part of the community and also that we are spreading healthy habits to the next generation. :-D We are moving to a new kitchen currently and it is driving me nuts that it has snowed TWICE here and I can't feed anybody. Argh.

[Laura]

Congratulations Julia, that sounds like an awesome way to go to work every day. Making an impact! I love this.

[Elizabeth (Alaska)]

Julia wrote: "...our delivery zone is expanding southwards.... We are moving to a new kitchen ..."

And in this economy! Kudos to you!

[Julia]

Ahhh shucks, you all are way too nice. *blush, blush*

I just started audio reading The Red Badge of Courage , a book that stands out from my HS days as The One That Went Unfinished Because I Hated It Soooooo Much. So far I'm enjoying it, guess that's what letting a book sit for 30 years can do for you. And right after writing that I rarely abandoned a book for voice I abandoned Charles Darwin's Origin of the Species
because the reader was awful.