Around the Year in 52 Books discussion

In last week's discussion of podcasts, some people mentioned audiobooks. If you listen to audiobooks, do you have favorite narrators? Do you prefer a single narrator or multiple narrators if the book has different points of view?

For a long time, I didn't think I would like audiobooks because I generally didn't like being read to. That's because most people aren't very good at reading aloud. But professional narrators make a huge difference. There are some series I will only do on audio because the book isn't as suspenseful/funny/engaging when I read it in my head.

Some of my favorite narrators are old-timers - George Guidall, Davina Porter, and Barbara Rosenblatt. Also Katherine Kellgren and Frank Muller who both died too soon. Others are Michael Page, Tim Gerard Reynolds, Bahni Turpin, Wil Wheaton, Simon Vance, Robin Miles, Rosalyn Landor, and Kate Reading. Also celebs like Tom Hanks, Meryl Streep, and Lin Manuel-Miranda.

I generally prefer one narrator who does all the voices, but two can work if there are 2 POVs. I don't care for "full cast" which is more like a radio play, I find it confusing.

I've loved audiobooks since college (my school was a 12 hour drive from home!). I don't really pay attention to the names of the narrators, but I have a really hard time listening to the same person do a different book. I've given up audiobooks because I can't get the first book out of my head while trying to listen to the second book done by the same person.

A couple I've loved:

Song Yet Sung read by Leslie Uggams
The Heretic's Daughter read by Mare Winningham
The Percy Jackson series starting with The Lightning Thief read by Jesse Bernstein
The Final Revival of Opal & Nev read by a full cast
I don't usually like more than 2 narrators, but I loved it in Opal & Nev. I've heard from people who read it and found it boring, but I was never bored listening and couldn't wait to get back to it.

I rarely listen to audiobooks but one I really liked and thought the narrator was terrific is Fairy Tale by Stephen King. It won the 2023 Audie award for male narrator - Seth Numrich. I only listened to 50% of it but it was good up to that point! I started to get confused (which is one reason I don’t like audiobooks) so I have to switch to the physical book.

I started listening to audiobooks during my 2 hour daily commute. I did not think I would like them, and in the early days, tended to read nonfiction that I knew I would otherwise not read ( Alexander Hamilton). I soon moved to mysteries and suspense. It would be normal for me to have one book going on in the car and a second physical book going on at the same time. My favorites are Bahni Turpin, Neil Dudgeon, Elizabeth Knowelden, Patrick Tull, Barbara Rosenblatt, Rob Inglis reading ( The Hobbit for novels; Scott Brick, Michelle O'Bama, Randy Rainbow, and Neil deGrasse Tyson for nonfiction.

Pam wrote: "I rarely listen to audiobooks but one I really liked and thought the narrator was terrific is Fairy Tale by Stephen King. It won the 2023 Audie award for male narrator - Seth Numrich. I only listen..."

I loved the first half of Fairy Tale and the narrator.

I love audiobooks! I like both single or dual narrators. I’m not fond of most “full cast” productions. I have way too many favorite narrators. I also don’t like several of the popular narrators. Though, I’m really not picky and will listen to just about anyone. Sometimes, I just have to adjust the speed of the narration.

The only way I can go to sleep is listening to an audiobook. I generally prefer it to be me a reread with either a male narrator or a female with a lower pitched voice. I do get tired of listening to the same 5 minutes over and over again.

My current audiobook is throwing me off just a bit. It is a British narrator since it is primarily set in Oxford. Twice their has sentence will be something like “We eat/ate dinner” eat or ate is pronounced with a short e. It completely throws me out of the book since it is such an unexpected pronunciation for me. Otherwise, it is a excellent book.

Jennifer W wrote: "I've loved audiobooks since college (my school was a 12 hour drive from home!). I don't really pay attention to the names of the narrators, but I have a really hard time listening to the same perso..."

I had a really hard time going from Scott Brick narrating The Passage and The Twelve to Alexander Hamilton. I ended up having to wait an extra year for Hamilton (even though 2 years had passed since I listened to The Twelve).

I’ve been listening to audios since they were on audio cassettes- maybe 30 years? It started with 8 hour car rides for family trips, and long commutes. Now almost everything I read is via audio, out of necessity, and the narration makes a big difference. The quality has improved tremendously over the years. It was a sign of respect for the medium when Meryl Streep agreed to narrate Ann Patchett’s new book Tom Lake. She was perfect.

The right narrator can make a huge difference, and I love good accents. A few that I would immediately recognize are Julia Whelan, Cassandra Campbell and Marin Ireland. Saskia Maarleveld is great with different accents, and different types of books.

Some of my favorites (that I’ve replayed):
What the Wind Knows - Saskia Maarleveld
Migrations - Barrie Kreinik
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk - Xe Sands (it took me a while to get used to it, then I loved it. also Euphoria
Their Eyes Were Watching God - Ruby Dee
This is How You Lose the Time War - Emily Woo Zeller, and Cynthia Farrell
Circe - Perdita Weeks
Daisy Jones & The Six - multiple narrators including Jennifer Beale
When All Is Said - Niall Buggy
Educated - Julia Whelan - and many others

I apparently prefer female narrators!

I always have an audiobook going-it's usually a book i am reading for a challenge or one i own. That being said, some British narrators i have trouble following.

NancyJ wrote: "I’ve been listening to audios since they were on audio cassettes- maybe 30 years? It started with 8 hour car rides for family trips, and long commutes. Now almost everything I read is via audio, ou..."

I also started in the cassette days, getting tapes from the library. Back then many of them were abridged, partly because of cost, partly because someone thought people who listened to audiobooks were too busy to read or didn't like to read. A lot of the early ones were self-help or business oriented. I used a Walkman cassette player and when they stopped making those players, I bought some on eBay. I skipped over the CD era (too bulky and you can't keep your place when moving from car to home) and finally got into the digital era around 2010.

We are now in the golden age of audiobooks with huge numbers of titles of all kinds recorded by professionals, no messy tapes to fix, lots of options. Overdrive and Libby are free from libraries, Librivox has free audiobooks recorded by individuals rather than professionals. But if you have a little money to spend, there are multiple services - Audible, libro.fm (which supports independent bookstores), and others. Just watch out for services that say you get "unlimited listening". Usually after 1 or 2 popular books in a month, you are restricted to a generic pool of books.

The only truly "unlimited listening" I ever had was from Recorded Books back in the 2000's. You paid a monthly fee of about 35.00 and you created a wishlist (similar to the old form of Netflix). You could keep the book (boxes of cassettes or CDs) as long as you wanted and had a label to mail it back for free. As you returned them, you got new ones from your list. Sometimes there was a wait for new and really popular titles. But if you didn't like something, you could send it back right away. Of course, this was only for books in their catalog.

For any other audiobook fans, you might be interested in the Audiobooks group here on GR, where I am one of the Mods.

I would listen to Jim Dale read his grocery list!

Loved the audiobook of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency narrated by Lisette Lecat. However, they changed narrators around book # 14 (I think).

Second Ruby Dee's narration of Their Eyes Were Watching God

And, Robin, I'm surprised that you neglected Jim Frangione who narrates the Chet and Bernie mystery series by Spencer Quinn ... book # 1 is Dog on It I ❤ Chet the Jet!

Book Concierge wrote: "I would listen to Jim Dale read his grocery list!

Loved the audiobook of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency narrated by Lisette Lecat. However, they changed narrators around book # 14 ..."

Yes, I forgot about him, I swear Jim Frangione was a dog in a previous life!

I rarely listen to audiobooks as it’s too easy to become distracted or fall asleep, and therefore miss a large chunk of the book. On the rare occasion I do listen to one, it’s usually a classic group read I can’t lay physical hands on or for which I can’t find a reasonably priced ebook, and I turn to Youtube first. Librivox has a channel there with a large selection of books and I’ve also found some Audible books there.

I have found that I prefer one to two narrators. One of the problems with Librivox is that its volunteer readers and some narrators are better than others. I do NOT like their full-cast plays, as some of the readers are really good, but the few bad readers will ruin the listening experience. If we are reading a play I will sometimes look for a professional production and either try to follow along or watch after I read it. You can find some of the PBS or BBC productions on YouTube.

A couple of pleasurable listening experiences were Bronson Pinchot reading The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury and Michael Prichard reading Dandelion Wine and The Martian Chronicles by Bradbury. Leonard Nimoy has also narrated some of Bradbury’s works, such as two of my favorites, “Usher II” and “The Pedestrian.”

I also loved Brooks Jensen’s reading of Tolstoy’s novella Master and Man and yesterday I listened to The Loved One by Evelyn Waugh, read by Simon Prebble. The latter was one of the classic group’s October selections and I did NOT see the twist coming at the end.

No audiobooks.

I like to read books and listen to music

Ooh I love audiobooks. I also discovered them as a child when my aunt would listen to them on cassettes for long car rides to Disneyland or the snow.

I used to always have one print/ebook going and one audiobook pre-2020 when I had to commute 3 hours total to the office everyday. Now I almost exclusively do audiobooks with a toddler. I’m just so tired by the end of the day, even reading with my eyes is a struggle.

There are still sometimes where the narrator completely turns me off (Demon Copperhead). But I’m pretty flexible now since I read so much.

One voice I’m embarrassed to say grates on my last nerves is Elizabeth Acevedo. I just wish she would get someone else to narrate her wonderful books.

For one that’s not mentioned that I love, I’d recommend Adam Lazarre-Smith. He reads SA Crosby’s book.

I love audiobooks. I always have an audibook and at least one physical book on the go.

I do not follow specific narrators, but there are few that if I hear their voice, I stop listening. I enjoy both the large cast productions and the single narrator. The cast productions make it easier to follow when too many of the characters who have similar names.

I started audiobooks in the last 4 or 5 years. Non-fiction or classics were my go-to's while doing chores. I now listen to some many genres.

I love audiobooks. I always have an audibook and at least one physical book on the go.

I do not follow specific narrators, but there are few that if I hear their voice, I stop listening. I enjoy both the large cast productions and the single narrator. The cast productions make it easier to follow when too many of the characters who have similar names.

I started audiobooks in the last 4 or 5 years. Non-fiction or classics were my go-to's while doing chores. I now listen to some many genres.

I love audiobooks. I can listen to just about any professional reader and enjoy the performance. I do think many authors should leave the reading to professionals, since it is indeed a skill not shared by all. I like single narrators, multiple, or full casts. I used to listen to audios constantly to study for my certifications, so I never get zoned out. As an auditory learner, I feel like I am the perfect audience for them.

Anastasia wrote: "I love audiobooks. I always have an audibook and at least one physical book on the go.
.."

Me too.

But speaking of narrators - I just listened to The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth. I borrowed it from the Chicago library with my US library card. The book is set in Australia and I'm an Australian. I found the narration really weird for a book set in Australia. I did a little digging around and it turns out there are different narrators for the book sold in Australia compared to the American on. The Australian sold book has an Australian narrator (which after listening to the sample, clearly would have been better for me).
The American narrator wasn't bad per se, just not giving Australian accents, which was very off-putting for a book set in Australia (to me as an Australian who hears Australians speak daily :P).
So my question is - does the American Audience prefer American narrators even when the book is set in another country? Is that how we sound to Americans?

I should have listened to the Australian version but I didn't realise there was a difference until too late (and I wanted to borrow from the library rather than buy it :P)

@Bec I am Canadian but wanted to answer your questions about accents.
I would prefer someone from the country the book is set in read it. Certain words and names have distinct pronunciations that a person from the place would know that another would not. I may not know how to pronounce it myself, and this presents a learning opportunity for me.

In some instances, a narrator from a different country can change the tone or meaning of a word as well. I have had personal experience of this happening while listening to an audiobook. The narrator had a detective pick up a Marijuana joint instead of a hat. That changes a story quite a bit.

I also believe it can be jarring to hear the wrong or badly mangled accent for the setting. I will switch to reading the book instead of listening if that happens.

Thanks for your opinion Anastasia. So you are thinking the same way as me. I just don’t understand why an Australian author would use an American narrator for the American market for her book set in Australia.
And lesson for Me - don’t borrow Australian audio books from my American library card! (My Australian one didn’t have it).

Bec wrote: "Thanks for your opinion Anastasia. So you are thinking the same way as me. I just don’t understand why an Australian author would use an American narrator for the American market for her book set i..."

The books I have listened to by Liane Moriarty had Australian narrators, which was good.

Bec wrote: "Thanks for your opinion Anastasia. So you are thinking the same way as me. I just don’t understand why an Australian author would use an American narrator for the American market for her book set i..."
I feel the same way. I enjoy the variety of accents around the world and definitely would prefer an Australian reader for a book set in Australia.

Love me some audiobooks! Full casts can be hit or miss; I recently enjoyed the Six of Crows audio and several years ago DNF'd the Dune full-cast - still not sure how that one won an Audie Award, I thought the production was terrible.

I have a ton of favorite narrators and a few I tend to avoid.

As far as authors reading their own work, I'm okay if it's a memoir (Viola Davis's was incredible) or Neil Gaiman reading his own books, he's wonderful.

The only narrator that I'd deliberately look for is Wil Wheaton. I couldn't say what he does that makes me enjoy his work more, but I'd listen to something that wouldn't normally make it onto my TBR just because he was reading it.

I really enjoyed What If It's Us with Noah Galvin and Froy Gutierrez voicing the two main characters in their alternating chapters. I read the sequel, Here's to Us, instead of listening, and I regret that because it was definitely nowhere near as good. I usually prefer reading to listening, so that's a first for me.

The only other narrator I remember well enough to recommend is Toni Morrison, who reads her own books. She has a beautiful, soothing voice, which doesn't necessarily match the content of the stories, but I could listen to her all day.

I'm a visual learner so listening to books does not work well for me. I did enjoy listening to Keith Morrison's reading/telling of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow that he presented on his new podcast Morrison's Mysteries.

I find this thread fascinating! I love audiobooks. I first started listening to audio books when I was in college and worked a job where I did data entry all night. We used to check out books from the library and pass them around. It was fun, and everyone had their own taste in books, so I was exposed to books that I probably wouldn't have picked for myself.

Barbara Rosenblatt and Johanna Parker are my two favorite narrators. Viola Davis narrated her autobiography, and she was fantastic. I tend to enjoy women narrators more than men narrators because, in my opinion, women tend to do a better job with male characters than men do with female characters. Having said that, I think Will Patton is a great narrator. Isabella Star LaBlanc did a great job with Firekeeper's Daughter. Lameece Isaaq, Joneice-Abbott Pratt, Sneha Mathan, Soneela Nankani, Lucy Price-Lewis, Paul Sparks, Robin Miles, Samantha Desz are some narrators that I have really enjoyed. A couple of people mentioned Bahni Turpin - I have read two books by her. On one, I thought she was awful. On the other, she was okay. I'm not crazy about her narrating, but I would listen to another based on the recommendations here. I really do not like listening to Toni Morrison narrate her books. She has a nice voice but not for narration. She's very quiet and breathy, and I don't think it translates to narration well at all. I am a massive Stephen King fan, but I prefer to listen to his books read by a professional voice actor. His voice is very nasally. There were a few books that I could not stand the narrator: The Girl with the Louding Voice - Adjoa Andoh: she whines through the entire book. It drove me nuts. Stina Nielsen was also an awful narrator. She narrated The Court of Silver Flames, and oh my goodness - awful!

I am not a fan of multiple narrators. It works okay for non-fiction books from multiple points of view, but for fiction I very much prefer one or maybe two narrators.

I began listening to audiobooks this year. I have listened to two series. One was performed by a man. He did male voices pretty well, but couldn't get the necessary variety for women and children. Currently, I am listening to C.J. Archer's Glass and Steel series. It is performed by Marion Hussey. She has a great deal of variety in her male and female voices. There are slight stumbles at times, but they are forgiveable. I have researched the making of audiobooks. A 10 hour reading can take 20 hours or more to create. A well done book is a joy to listen to.

Thank you for this question, Robin. The very worst part about being a reader is trying to decide what audiobook to listen to. I'm super particular about what types of books I listen to, but I also pretty much only listen to audiobooks (no podcasts, though today has been a Taylor Swift day).

I don't really pay attention to the names of the narrators, though I do have some that I recognize immediately and I enjoy that. The exception would be Julia Whelan, who narrates some of my favorite rom-coms but also other more literary (and apparently nonfiction!) works. She also wrote and narrated Thank You for Listening, which I loved.

I've been sitting here scrolling Libby trying to find my next audiobook, but now that I think about it, I may just go look up Julia Whelan's works and find something from her.

One book that I tried and hated this year was The Covenant of Water, which is narrated by the author and it was... not great. I think it's a book I could have enjoyed, but the audio is 30 hours long and the narration was a struggle.

Emily wrote: "One book that I tried and hated this year was The Covenant of Water, which is narrated by the author and it was... not great. I think it's a book I could have enjoyed, but the audi..."

Most authors are not the best at narrating their own books, unless they are also actors/performers themselves.

Emily - I’m so sorry that you didn’t enjoy the narration for Covenant of Water. I thought it was a fabulous book but I remember thinking that the audiobook might be difficult to follow because of the storyline.

I listen to very few audiobooks. I’ve found that I can follow mid-grades or books where I’m doing a combo listening and reading. I’m currently listening to Hoot narrated by actor Chad Lowe and I like the narration a lot! I tend to like male American narrators the best. I have a hard time paying attention to British narrators. I have no idea why other than that’s what my ear is used to hearing.