Audiobooks?

[Addey]

Does anyone subscribe to audible.com? I understand it is worth the monthly fee and can be downloaded to a player.

Thanks, Debbie

uwcheese

 

I LOVE Audible. I've been a member for at least the past 3 years. The discount you get by being a member is worth it. Actually, I have the 1 book a month plan. Well worth it if you listen quite a bit like I do. I listen while I travel. I can't read on an airplane, but my ears work. That and I can 'read' and crochet at the same time.

Just be careful which player you use, only certian ones support the audible format. (I use an iPod, which is on the list...) They've got a great list and links to hardware that supports their format. Also, sometimes they run deals where you can get a free player!

[Debbi-a1]

Just browsing old threads...

Anyone have other ideas? I am getting an MP3 player and listening to audiobooks would work with it. Never thought of listening while I crochet or even clean, great ideas!

Plus I dont' read enough because I crochet over reading (although I do love to read).

Thanks.

Debbi

PS: If anyone else is looking for cassette players, check discount stores, like Family Dollar to others that are more then just $1. I saw some there.

[LizaKaye]

I normally listen to an audiobook whenever my hook is in my hand. My favorite so far has been "Rhett Butler's People", it was 15 cd's long!--but read in a deep southern accent which made it soooooooo real.

I'm listening to a mystery/ghost story now called "The Girl Who Stopped Swimming", I normally don't like that kind of book, but I'm tired of the romance/fluff kind of books I've been reading for years.

So while I think your idea is a good one, ONE person will be limited in their time to listen to the hundreds of titles that are out there-maybe enlist the help of several people and you can all review them.

My local library is my source for getting all the best sellers, surprisingly they have some of the newer books, so check out the library, can save a lot of $$$.

[MaryPat]

I listen to them all the time while commuting. I watch television while crocheting. I borrow from the library. Only actually bought one in my life.

Someone gave me one and it came with a sticker with a bar code. You were supposed to go to a site and see if someone else had already read the exact same one you did.

[TheLadyWind]

I listen to audio books all the time when I am crocheting...so peaceful!

[happy stitcher]

Does anyone subscribe to audible.com? I understand it is worth the monthly fee and can be downloaded to a player.

Thanks, Debbie

uwcheese

 

I'm a member of Audible! I love it! I listen to them all the time. I joined several years ago, and I get two books a month. I always look for long books! I finished "The Painted Veil" today, and now I'm faced with deciding which one to re-listen to until I can get a new one!

 

I listen while driving, I listen while doing chores, I listen while crocheting, I even listen while doing my hair and make-up. I'm ADD, and with a book in my ear, I can continue a task without getting distracted. Before Audible only half the dishes got done, half the clothes got folded, and I was distracted several times just while doing my hair and make-up. My aunt is the same way. We've both discovered that an audiobook keeps us on task.

 

Another thing I really love about them is that I can listen to some of the classics that I never found the time to read. I recently listened to "Candide" and "Great Expectations", although I read those many years ago. There's also "Anna Karenina", "Pride and Prejudice", "The Great Gatsby", and "Jane Eyre" - which I never picked up the books to read. I definitely feel that Audible has made me a more well-rounded person.

 

I can recommend some books if anybody wants to PM me with a desired genre! My ALL-TIME FAV is the George R. R. Martin series "A Song of Ice and Fire" - the first book is "A Game of Thrones." It's really a wonderful Adventure Fantasy type series.

 

Judy

[Uwcheese]

I am not very technical, so could someone help me? I have a gift subscription for a while on audible.com.

I would like to get an mp3 player that is small enough to hook on workout clothes and enough memory to store books on. I would like an FM tuner but dont really have to have it.

How big of a memory do I need to have this capacity. I dont understand how to know how many books you can put on it.......

Hopefully someone can help me sort out this confusion....

lol.....debbie

uwcheese

[happy stitcher]

Why don't you start by looking at the players Audible supports. That way you're looking at ones you know will work with Audible. I have an iPod, but before that I had an MP3 that Audible gave me when I enrolled.

 

Just go to the Audible site, and in the top menu, select "device center' - then there's a drop down menu so that you can browse by manufacturer.

 

Here's a link, but since it's so long I'm not 100% sure it will work:

http://www.audible.com/adbl/store/deviceCenter/devices.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes

 

I hope you find one you like!

[Cliffnote]

I listen to audio books all the time on my mp3 player. My library has a website I can check out audiobooks overline.I would find it useful, Its good to hear other people opinions and recomendations.

 

kim

[Momcrochets]

At the moment I'm listening to 'The Long Patrol', one of the Redwall books (my 3d favorite, by the way), and I'm going to start 'The Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler' or whatever it is, when the Graph-ghan CAL starts.

One tip about borrowing library audiobooks (my main source): Try to borrow tapes over CD's, as library CD audiobooks do not wear well. The copy of 'Mattimeo' I borrowed stuck and stuttered in several places. The long patrol is doing better, but I think I am one of the first people to listen to my Library's copy.

So far I've had good luck with audio cds from our library. DH likes to have something on his long drives (drives truck for a living--not a semi, the smaller ones). After he finished Zorro (Isabelle Allende (sp?) which was 13 discs long, we listened to it in the evenings at home. We also have the Narnia series (the Focus on the Family radio drama version) and have borrowed several others from the library...His truck only has CD, so I'm glad we haven't had much issue with scratches. Another one he liked was "At Home in Mitford" part of the Mitford series by Jan Karon...about a parson/parish priest in a tiny town...quite a charming, and fun series. Right now I found "Little Women" for him (yes we like classics). Also a good find, b/c it's l-o-n-g

 

(DVD's OTOH at the library, esp the free ones (think anything PBS) are almost always in horrible shape)

[Schmetterling]

I subscribed to audibles for a bit after getting my mp3 player from Best Buy (included a trial membership). I was excited because they had a book published in Australia that I had been trying to find for literally nearly a decade. I downloaded it to my player with ease.

[Uwcheese]

Thanks for the info. The mp3 players come in 1,2,3 or more GB. What do you think I need? I would like to put a few books on it at a time. Will that take up all the "space?" I asked the guy at the local electronic store and he had no clue about the memory books takes , but had tons of info on music!!!

lol....Debbie

uwcheese

[happy stitcher]

Thanks for the info. The mp3 players come in 1,2,3 or more GB. What do you think I need? I would like to put a few books on it at a time. Will that take up all the "space?" I asked the guy at the local electronic store and he had no clue about the memory books takes , but had tons of info on music!!!

lol....Debbie

uwcheese

 

Mostly that depends on what format you download the books. I never download in less than "3", but "4" is the highest. The higher the format, the more space the books take. Personally, I wouldn't go with less than 2 GB. I have a 30 GB iPod, though, so I may be a bit biased.

 

Why don't you call the techs at Audible and see if they can help? I've had to call them more than once, and they've always been very knowledgeable.

[Schmetterling]

I have an 8 and haven't used up a drop in the bucket of the space available.

[Uwcheese]

Thanks, that makes sense.... Looks like I will be doing some shopping this weekend. Can't wait to get some books off audible to listen to....

Debbie

uwcheese

[boksie]

Project Gutenberg has some free audiobooks. Most are classics and that sort of thing.

http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Gutenberg:The_Audio_Books_Project

[Debbi-a1]

I finally got an MP3 player. A SansDisk Fuse. I'm trying now to figure out how to download books... this may take a while, the "quick start" directions didn't give me much. But that's fine. This one has 4GB, I figure that was more then enough for me.

Debbi

[Momcrochets]

Debbie-A1:Sandisk has a website with more complete instructions, and FAQ section...(for example, I found out my media player was too old, and that's why it didn't recognise my new-to-me sansa clip) HTH

 

Question for audiobook readers...do you find it distracting when each chapter has a different reader? I would think it would be a nuisance, but several of the books I've looked at at gutenberg project and librivox.com have that exact thing going on...come on, I'd even be willing to read/record a whole book to be put on one of these sites...they're public domain books, so I don't think the issue is copyright... So is it a nuisance? or something relatively easy to deal with in order to get a free listen to a good classic?

[Debbi-a1]

Thanks for the info. I was looking through the site. Then I remembered mine will allow me to drag and drop (I'm sure others will too). So I saved them on my D drive and then brought up My Computer and dropped them in Audio book. I started to listen to one part and it seemed fine. I'll see if these have different readers and how that feels.

Debbi

[callen610]

I LOVE listening to audio books - both while driving and while crocheting. Anything by Bill Bryson or Barbara Kingsolver is terrific.

[adagio]

Question for audiobook readers...do you find it distracting when each chapter has a different reader? I would think it would be a nuisance, but several of the books I've looked at at gutenberg project and librivox.com have that exact thing going on..

I've listened to books by multiple readers, and generally don't have a problem with it. I've discovered I prefer certain readers over others. And one or two I don't like at all. So imagine if the book you wanted to listen to were read by someone whose voice reminded you of nail on a chalk board? I am grateful for the balance of readers I enjoy, and readers who could use some improvement! Sometimes you will find entire books read by one person, if it really bothers you. At Librivox, if you poke around you will find out how the books and readers come together. If you find a reader you really like, look for more done by him/her.

[squirrel]

I've only just come across the Librivox site and I love it. I'm still on my first download "Jane Eyre" and it's great. I burned an mp3 CD to listen to in the car on my daily commute. Some readers are better than others but I was impressed at how professional some of them sound.

 

I also have a subscription with Audible and borrow CDs from the library - I do a lot of commuting and to make matters worse I've started listening at work. I keep running out of books.

 

I use my little mp3 player to help get me off to sleep when hubby wants the light out.

[shuttlebuggy]

I love to "read" and crochet - and posted on another thread that had a poll about who does this - I think they were all thinking reg books but since I have neuropathy in my hands that make pages a bit hard to feel and sometimes extremely frustrating to turn one at a time - I turned to audiobooks.

The first one I got was from a friend and while I was a passenger I crocheted my heart out on a long trip and got to read at the same time!

Now I participate in my states library for audio books and I get a catalog and player free.

It is a cassette (old school I know) player and tapes but hey - I love it and my dh listens along too!

[Debbi-a1]

On LibriVox, does anyone know the difference between Versions? Thanks.

Debbi

[adagio]

hm, not too sure what you were referring to on the Librivox site. But some books have been done more than once, hence, different 'versions'. Some may have many readers for a single book, or maybe one person did the whole book. Also, some books not originally written in English may have different translations, and these may be done as separate 'versions' as well. On the link you gave there are links to a FAQ and a Wiki. You may find some answers there.