Let’s talk bookish is a weekly meme, created and hosted by J.R. @Eternity Books, here different topics will be discussed.
(I know these posts are supposed to go up on Friday’s, but I had my blog tour, and didn’t want to post twice in one day..)
Last weeks topic was ‘audiobooks: reading or not?’, I was unable to write the post on time, but I did want to share my thoughts! So I decided to share my discussion today!
If you follow my blog even a bit, you know I listen to loads of audiobooks! If you look at my stats from last year (see post here!), one third of my reading was through audiobooks, which evens out to around 80 books!
So yes, I think audiobooks count as reading!
Listening to audiobooks makes boring stuff so much more fun! Like cleaning my room, working out, groceries (I often find myself staring at cheese, not because I can’t decide but something exciting is happening in my book!), biking to school!
Why does it matter if you consume the story through your eyes or ears?! You still understand the story, still enjoy it (I hope), so I don’t really see why people make such a big thing out of it!
Also there are people who actually cannot read with their eyes or struggle to do that, so I think this is a great solution!
I can understand why people don’t like them, sometimes it is very hard to match with a narrator. A bad narrator really can ruin a book for you. And I definitely have started some books on audio, that I had to put back down, because of the narrator!
Also certain genres are harder to listen to! When I just started listening to audiobooks, I could only listen to contemporary novels, because fantasy worlds were just a bit to complicated, and you can’t really flip back a couple of pages. But now I can, I guess I ‘trained’ myself haha! But still some audiobooks are to hard to listen to. And some books are just better to read physically!
I did two posts about my favourite audiobooks in 2019, so if you need some recommendations:
I definitely think audiobooks count as reading, one still experiences the book, just in a different format 🙂 Audiobooks changed my life, I love them! When life started getting busier, I started relying on them a lot more. No way I could still read as many books if not for the awesomeness of audio!
Glad you love them too
Great post. I do also love that audiobooks can add a bit to otherwise boring and monotonous tasks. I love listening when doing housework, also at work while working on spreadsheets. Also, even though they’re a different kind of reading experience utilizing different skills, I think they totally count as reading!
Yeah listening while doing boring tasks is the best haha
I definitely think audiobooks count as reading – but I also feel as though it varies by person.
I know people (some of whom are in my family) that due to a learning disability, tight schedules, busy lifestyles, frequent traveling, etc., who just don’t have the ability to pick up a physical book and read it.
My brother grew up – and still deals extensively – with dyslexia. That learning difference caused him a LOT of frustration on the reading front. It wasn’t until he was almost out of his teens that he finally picked up a book and read it for non-study purposes. Reading is a painful, difficult process for him – but throughout that time, he had access to audiobooks. That allowed him to continue experiencing books without the trial of visual reading.
For me, personally (who is completely abled, rapid reader), audiobooks feel like a way to cheat myself. XD Just me, personally – not anyone else. When I listen to an audiobook, it feels like I’m cheating myself out of what I enjoy – which is the physical book experience – so I don’t listen to audiobooks.
So I think it depends on the person, what their abilities are and how they approach reading. 🙂
I also know people like your brother! And I know they are very happy with the existence of audiobooks. It is then indeed more enjoyment than a struggle for them to ‘read’ the book!
And you’re right if audiobooks feel like cheating to you personally, than it is your choice not to listen!
I just don’t like when people tell others it doesn’t count!
Thanks for your answer