The ruling class wants you to be literate enough to understand their written orders. And nothing more. True literacy is punk. True literacy is revolutionary.
If you look at this article and think “this is too long to read” you’re part of the target audience. Make the time.
I read A LOT. I have a couple of degrees.
Ignore snobbery. Listening to an audiobook is just as valid a way of enjoying a book as reading it. I suggest starting with something you think you might actually enjoy, maybe a genuine classic, not this overly long blogpost.
Listen to a chapter before you go to sleep. If people are snobs about audiobooks, don’t mention you listened to it, just say you read it.
I recommend looking on the BBC sounds app/website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/
It’s free.
I’ve tried audiobooks but it seems that - as silly as it sounds - I need closed captions with those
a combination of listening and reading with speeds synced up for me (like CC on video content) would work best, and most options for that are subscription based, or require expensive tech last I checked
I’ll check the BBC sounds out tomorrow though, I appreciate the help
Dude, same!
I’ve also had that experience, but it really depends on how well it’s been narrated.
For example, Stephen Fry’s version of Harry Potter (yes, I know, but it’s really well read) it’s immediately obvious who says what and he’s well spoken. Unsurprising as he’s also a good actor and that does matter.
Some audiobooks the narrator rambles, doesn’t enunciate clearly, and doesn’t make it obvious who said what.
Oh my gosh, I absolutely love Stephen Fry’s narrations! You’re right, the production quality of the audiobook, as well as the cadence of the narrator, can make or break it.
They also have a lot of dramatisations on there. That means different actors read the different parts, sound effects, etc. It’s basically like listening to a movie.
Let me know if you need help finding somewhere to begin. The BBC’s been around for a while and they have A LOT of stuff on there, and it’s only the tip of the iceberg as they regularly change it.
Hell, why not start with some Terry Pratchett. Mort. That’s not on the BBC sounds site at the moment, but here it is on Archive.org:
https://archive.org/details/mort_20220604/01+Episode+One.mp3
https://archive.org/details/mort_20220604/02+Episode+Two.mp3
https://archive.org/details/mort_20220604/03+Episode+Three.mp3
https://archive.org/details/mort_20220604/04+Episode+Four.mp3
Or perhaps you want to show off. Here’s a dramatisation of Dostoyevsky’s The Brother’s Karamazov:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b00y9455
Stars at least one of the actors from their adaptation of Terry Pratchett’s Mort, funnily enough.
frfr audiobooks are great! I’m halfway through Green Mars because I listen to audiobooks at work now, after spending literal years procrastinating on reading the Mars trilogy because I couldn’t make the time to sit down and for real read a book.