Week 11 Prompt Response: Ebooks and Audiobooks

I didn't get into audiobooks until around 2019, when I listened to Anna Karenina on CD. Since it was a literal CD, I didn't have the option to listen at double speed, so it was a very long process, but I found that I hugely enjoyed listening to a narrator. I actually think I felt more immersed in the story than I would have if I'd just been reading. For me, it can sometimes feel like a chore to pick up a physical book and start reading, and it's very easy for me to get distracted and let my mind wander. But with audiobooks, the fact that I just have to listen makes it much easier. Also, I am generally okay with most narrators. Rarely is a narrator so obnoxious that I can't stand to keep listening (though it has happened a couple times).

When it comes to Ebooks, on the other hand, I still haven't learned to love them. I have no ethical qualms; I just don't like reading books on a screen. I spend so much time looking at screens already, that I feel like books should be a break from screens rather than additional screen time. I also have mainly used Ebooks for assigned readings in college (way cheaper than physical textbooks), which might be the reason they instantly feel less fun to me, and more like homework.

As far as appeals are concerned, I absolutely think that audiobooks are preferrable for books with dense, complex prose and slow pacing. For example, while I probably COULD have read Pride and Prejudice and Moby Dick the old-fashioned way, I assume that I was able to enjoy them more by listening to the audiobooks. Having someone else reading super complicated or ambiguous sentences aloud takes a lot of the work out of my hands. Also, counterintuitively, I find audiobooks helpful for more experimental books. I listened to the audiobook of Lincoln in the Bardo, which has a cast of over 100 narrators, and it was extremely fun. It felt almost like watching (or listening to) a play or TV show. Then, when I first looked at the physical book, I realized that it would have been much more difficult to understand than the audiobook, because of the unconventional formatting. However, this would not be the case with an experimental book that heavily depends on the physical structure and format of the book itself, such as Leaves of Grass.

I do love beautiful physical books, but they are expensive, so I enjoy the fact that Ebooks and audiobooks often provide an easy and cheap way to see whether it's worth it to me to pay for a physical copy of a book.

Personally, I have not ever adjusted the font, spacing, or color of text in an Ebook, but I can see why this would be a hugely appealing feature for those who want larger, easier to read font. One aspect of Ebooks that I have personally used and enjoyed is the fact that uncommon words will often be linked to definitions or footnotes.