Audiobook Week 2011: Your Audiobook Year

June is Audiobook Month and Jen at Devourer of Books is hosting a special week dedicated to audiobooks this week. I’m going to participate as much as I can.

The first discussion topic for this week is “2010-2011, Your Audiobook Year.” And the description for this discussion topic is:

Are you new to audiobooks in the last year? Have you been listening to them forever but discovered something new this year? Favorite titles? New times/places to listen? This is your chance to introduce yourself and your general listening experience.

I only started listening to audio books last November. I am a voracious reader and always thought that I would not like audio books – that I would have a hard time paying attention to the story while I was driving. Then I had to go around to all the libraries in my county for work and decided what better time to try listening to an audio book than that. So, I decided my first audio book should be something I was familiar with. I had been trying to reread the whole Anne of Green Gables series and decided I would listen to the second one, Anne of Avonlea. Well, I loved it! I enjoyed listening and thought the narrator did a fantastic job doing all the voices. I then got the next one in the series, Anne of the Island, and enjoyed it, but it was a different narrator and I wasn’t as thrilled as I was with the previous one. I decided for the next audio book that I would listen to House Rules by Jodi Picoult – that was phenomenal, partly because the story was really good and partly because there were a cast of narrators and I liked how the whole thing was put together. I was hooked!

Since then, I have listened to 12 audio books in total. My favorite audio books so far have been House Rules by Jodi Picoult and Promises to Keep by Jane Green. For now, I only listen in the car, but am toying with putting some on my ipod and listening while I walk in the mornings. So far, I’ve gotten all the audio books I’ve listened to from the library. I’m hoping to find some other good resources for audio books this week.

Because I was still relatively new to audio books in January, when I signed up for Teresa’s Audio Book Challenge, I signed up for the bare minimum (6 audio books). Well, by the end of May I had surpassed that goal and decided to up the ante and go for 20 or more audio books. Hopefully I will meet that goal! My progress along with reviews for the audio books I have listened to this are can be found here. Now I just have to link up all my reviews to the challenge!

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20 Comments

  1. Zee
    June 6, 2011 / 3:58 pm

    Like you my first foray into audiobooks was something I was familiar with. I really do think it makes it easier to get used to the format.

    Welcome to the wonderful world of audiobooks!

  2. Kristin
    June 6, 2011 / 4:12 pm

    @Zee It worked for me…now I can't get into the car unless I have an audio book to listen to!

  3. Heather
    June 6, 2011 / 4:17 pm

    I bet Anne of Avonlea is fabulous. It's been ages since I read that book and have been meaning to reread it for a couple of years now. Thank you for giving me the idea of how to do it!

  4. Kristin
    June 6, 2011 / 4:20 pm

    @Heather The Anne of Green Gables series was always my favorite series and listening to books 2 and 3 were fun!

  5. Erotic Horizon
    June 6, 2011 / 4:21 pm

    It's wonderful that you venture into audiobooks with a set of books already in mind… so pleased you enjoyed them, and continued on…

    I think alot of people are pleasantly surprised they ended up like audio's..

    🙂

  6. Kristin
    June 6, 2011 / 4:41 pm

    @Erotic Horizon I didn't really expect to love them as much!

  7. Jen - devourer of books
    June 6, 2011 / 5:13 pm

    I love how many people are saying they're upping their challenge level on Theresa's challenge!

  8. Kristin
    June 6, 2011 / 5:21 pm

    @Jen – devourer of books I'm glad that I was able to! 20 audio books is now my new goal and I am hoping I make it!!!

  9. Mickey
    June 6, 2011 / 7:11 pm

    Yay audio books! And look, we have the same layout! I changed mine up a bit when I grabbed it from btemplates.com, so it's not exactly the same. Check out my audio book week post? Thanks!

    Mickey @ imabookshark

  10. Unknown
    June 6, 2011 / 8:30 pm

    I have never listened to an Audiobook but really would like to try so i went to my library and asked for the Lord of the Rings Trilogy but was put off when the librarian didn't know the name of the first one even after i told her 3 times!!!

    I will be going back in search of my favourite librarian though as she knows pretty much anything bookish! Perseverance!!!

  11. Chrisbookarama
    June 6, 2011 / 9:02 pm

    I love listening to audiobooks on my ipod while doing all kinds of things. You should try it!

  12. Gigi Ann
    June 6, 2011 / 9:03 pm

    I have quite a few audio books setting on my bookshelf, I really need to start listening to them. I like listening to them when I take the time, so maybe this week I will pull one off the shelf and listen to it.

  13. Kristin
    June 6, 2011 / 9:28 pm

    @ Mickey: I saw that we had the same layout when I visited your site earlier.

    @ Young1: I tend to look up titles for audio books at home and then reserve them so they are put on hold for me.

    @ Chrisbookarama: I am definitely going to look into it this week! I'm just not exactly sure how to go about it – any suggestions?

    @ Gigi Ann: I just listen while I'm in the car driving…it's gotten to the point that I have to have an audio book to listen to every time I go somewhere!

  14. Nise'
    June 7, 2011 / 2:05 am

    I always recommend a new listener to start with something they are familiar with as it helps with learning how to listen to audiobooks.

  15. Literate Housewife
    June 7, 2011 / 2:26 am

    I've found listening to a series with different narrators is a little tricky, too. I like your suggestion about ANNE OF GREEN GABLES. I've never read the series. Why not start in audio?

  16. Amused
    June 7, 2011 / 3:37 am

    I got really into audiobooks last year too and haven't looked back!

  17. Anonymous
    June 7, 2011 / 4:02 am

    Starting with old and familiar is a good idea. When I started listening, sometimes I had to go back and re-listen to the bits I missed. I think I have the hang of it now. Enjoy your audiobooks!

  18. Audiobookchick
    June 7, 2011 / 5:23 am

    Did you know that the average person gets through about 5 normal books per year but the average audiobook listener gets through 12 to 15 audiobooks per year. Audiobooks are a great way to get more reading done as you can listen while you are doing other things.

  19. Sheila (Bookjourney)
    June 7, 2011 / 5:50 am

    I listened to House Rules on audio too and really liked it.

  20. Michelle
    June 16, 2011 / 2:11 am

    I have all but stopped listening to music on my iPod in favor of audiobooks, and I adore music. I just adore reading books, or listening to them, more!