Audio Books

[LynnAB]

You're very welcome! Bad narrators have been the downfall of some very good books for me! I recently listened to a gal with a British accent read a book with Polish, Chinese and Dutch characters and she tried to do all the added accents.... ::CRINGE:: It was horrid!

I also liked "Ireland" which does a good transistion between ancient Irish folk lore stories and more current day Ireland. Plus, it is read by the author which I like. You can feel a little more heart behind the readings... I'm sure they have more of a serious emotional investment with the story line then the average narrator! Amy Tan reads a number of her books and I've always found them an easy listen.

 

 

Hmmm ... Amy Tan. I haven't read anything other than Joy Luck Club when it first came out in book form. Thanks!

 

Lynn

[LynnAB]

I have to cast another vote for audible.com. I'm legally blind and cannot read print so I'm as close as one can get to being a professional audio book reader. I've had an account with audible since 2001 and have never had a problem and have read over 300 titles through them alone. I also read books from the Library of Congress, known as "talking books" but I find audible to be much more modern with their multiple formats, mp3 if you want to burn CDs, or their even higher tech formats which use much less memory per book. Audible also carries current releases and each title has a "sample" button where you can listen to a good bit of the book and see if you like the reader or format before purchasing, can't do that with audiobooks you buy at Borders.

 

Once you become an "audio learner" or a person who is used to listening to books rather then reading them with your eyes, you will find passive reading to be much more enjoyable. You can read a book while you do multiple other things instead of stopping your life to read your book.

 

Hope this helps! Good Luck!!

Kyle

 

 

Hi, Kyle,

 

I would definitely VALUE your opinion since listening/hearing are critical to your enjoyment of a book. My mother was the same way, and I used to get her books on tape. She became a serious critic of good narrators.

 

I soooo agree with your comment about doing multiple things while reading a book. I have been listening to books on cassette tapes in my car off and on for the last few years. They come in really handy while I'm driving an hour to an hour and a half each way, each day. I accomplish a lot of "reading" that I normally wouldn't have time for. The thing is that I'm starting to enjoy audible books more than regular books. I'm finding that I'm truly LOVING having someone read TO me. It's such a pleasure ... quite a luxury.

 

I've taken a few CD books out of my local library, but of course they don't have every book I'm interested in. That's why I'm looking at alternatives ... like Audible.com. The only problem I'm foreseeing is the cost of these services. They sure can add up, as I see it. Oh, well. I imagine it will be worth it in the long run.

 

I'm very much open to suggestions for wonderful audible books and/or especially good narrators!

 

Thank you,

 

Lynn

[jimbo5544]

I'm sorry I haven't written back in days. For some weird reason this thread didn't come up in my subscribed threads, so it didn't look like I had any responses!

 

I don't know much about back-to-back cruises yet other than what I've read on the boards. I believe you get off the ship in Miami, are quickly led through Customs by someone from RCCL, and go right back on the ship. Don't hold me to it, but that's what I've read. That woudln't be bad at all.

 

LOL, not too bad at all. The only thing I would not like so much to do would be to pack and then unpack.

[LynnAB]

LOL, not too bad at all. The only thing I would not like so much to do would be to pack and then unpack.

 

 

Exactly ... and you don't. You leave everything in your room, walk off the ship, get escorted through Customs, and walk back on ... and go back to your same cabin. That's the beauty of it. You're already unpacked, already have a cabin, and just go to it whenever you want to. I've read a lot of posts where people say how neat it is. Even if most of the cabins aren't ready, apparently you can go to your cabin anyway. I guess they make those up right away. Whatever. It sounds very easy. I guess I'll be able to report more after May. The only thing that's going to seem really different to me is being in an inside cabin. I couldn't afford two weeks in a balcony stateroom, though, and I am NOT complaining about this. I feel soooo grateful to have something special like this vacation to look forward to. I truly NEED it.

 

Lynn

[jimbo5544]

I am sure it will be fine and exactly what the doctor ordered. As far as being in a inside room, I totally understand about the cost factor. We discuss all the time whether we can go back from a balcony room to something less. I do so love to sit out on the balcony in the afternoon on days at sea. But staying on for another cruise is the best one I have heard.

[jimbo5544]

I would love to hear your thoughts afterwards on how much you missed the balcony.

[jimbo5544]

The only time we tried to go down from a balcony was back in April 06 when we booked a window cabin on the Carnival Ecstasy back in April 06. Just her and I and when we got on the ship, we went to our room, looked out the window and joked about the lack of a balcony. It was a 5 day cruise that we kind of booked on a whim and on that class of ship the only balconies are suites which we could not afford. What the room did have was a bunk as well (3 sleeper). We went up on deck to have a sail off cocktail and just after we got a drink to celebrate the sailing heard our names paged. We went to the pursers desk and they explained that they had a situation that wanted to ask if we could help them wit. They explained that there was a family of 3 that had been put in a cabin for 2 and they tried to give them a cot, which they refused. I thought they were going to ask us to downgrade to the lower 2 sleeper which was an inside cabin, but what they had available and they were offering to us was the Owners penthouse suite. It was absolutely huge 4 rooms. We LOVED it.

[LynnAB]

The only time we tried to go down from a balcony was back in April 06 when we booked a window cabin on the Carnival Ecstasy back in April 06. Just her and I and when we got on the ship, we went to our room, looked out the window and joked about the lack of a balcony. It was a 5 day cruise that we kind of booked on a whim and on that class of ship the only balconies are suites which we could not afford. What the room did have was a bunk as well (3 sleeper). We went up on deck to have a sail off cocktail and just after we got a drink to celebrate the sailing heard our names paged. We went to the pursers desk and they explained that they had a situation that wanted to ask if we could help them wit. They explained that there was a family of 3 that had been put in a cabin for 2 and they tried to give them a cot, which they refused. I thought they were going to ask us to downgrade to the lower 2 sleeper which was an inside cabin, but what they had available and they were offering to us was the Owners penthouse suite. It was absolutely huge 4 rooms. We LOVED it.

 

 

Oh, my! I always DREAM about something like that happening .. but so far it hasn't. I'll let you know about the inside cabin. My husband and son are FINE with taking an inside statement. I am the ONLY one feeling a pang of knowing I'll miss the balcony. BUT ... as they keep pointing out to me, TWO WEEKS on a cruise ship! True! I figure we'll just spend VERY LITTLE time in the cabin. That's okay, too. The ship is sooooooooooooo huge, and I love being in the midst of everything that's going on most of the time. I may be SAD at the thought of not having a balcony, but getting off the ship at the end of the first week is really, really SAD. One week goes by so quickly.

 

I know what you mean about sitting on the balcony, though. I love that, too. Actually, my favorite part of the balcony is hearing the ocean at night. Sigh!

[jimbo5544]

yes that is a very nice feature. I ahve lsitened to many audio books out there as well.

[LynnAB]

yes that is a very nice feature. I ahve lsitened to many audio books out there as well.

 

Oooohhhhhhhhhhhhh ... that hurt <g>. I guess I'll have to find somewhere else on the ship to listen to my audio books <g>. By the way, I'm probably going to order my player tomorrow. I'm waiting to see if there are any great Cyber Monday sales. You never know ...

[jimbo5544]

There will be plenty of spaces to listen, not to worry. In fact, on some classes of Carnival ships (I believe the lifeboats are mid level on the ship, and partially hidden from the sun but not the lovely breeze) there are lounge chairs and almost no one goes through that area. I am sure there places like that on the Freedom of the Seas as well.

 

Funny you mentioned waiting till Black Monday. Had a conversation with on of my sister in law's regarding MP3 players and whether there might be some deals and I had thought of you (but had forgotten about when I was on line last evening). Let me know how you make out.

[LynnAB]

There will be plenty of spaces to listen, not to worry. In fact, on some classes of Carnival ships (I believe the lifeboats are mid level on the ship, and partially hidden from the sun but not the lovely breeze) there are lounge chairs and almost no one goes through that area. I am sure there places like that on the Freedom of the Seas as well.

 

Funny you mentioned waiting till Black Monday. Had a conversation with on of my sister in law's regarding MP3 players and whether there might be some deals and I had thought of you (but had forgotten about when I was on line last evening). Let me know how you make out.

 

 

I was going to get online tonight and let you know what I decided on <g>. I ordered a Cowon D2 (4gb) today ... and an 8gb high capacity SD card. I like the fact that it's expandable with the SD cards and decided on the 4gb player to save money there. After seeing my son's player, I really, really like it. Plus, it works beautifully with bookmarks. Sooooo I'm excited. He got a black one, and I ordered the white one ... just to be different. I'll definitely report back to you on this once I get my own and put a BOOK on it!!! For now, though, I'm excited!!!

 

Thank you for asking.

 

Lynn

[jimbo5544]

Outstanding, hope you really enjoy it. I wish you thousands of happy listening.

[LynnAB]

Outstanding, hope you really enjoy it. I wish you thousands of happy listening.

 

 

Thank you! I'm really excited. This will open a whole new world of listening for me. Thus far I've only heard books on my CD player in my car as I drive to work. It's going to be exciting having the Cowon and listening to books whenever I want to.

 

I checked the tracking on my player, and it should be here tomorrow!!! Yeah!!!

 

Lynn

[jimbo5544]

I would start with a free service from your library and test playing, downloading, and bookmarking, before you get into any pay service. That way you will feel comfortable for any premium download service. With the size you are getting you should be able to put on multiple audio books and listen at will!!

[LynnAB]

It may not be to your taste but I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fellow who reads the Harry Potter books and the Peter Pan series. I think his name is Jim Dale and I would listen to him read the phone book. His pattern, tone and voices are enchanting~

 

 

Hi, Claire,

 

I got A Christmas Carol read by Jim Dale at my library. You're right! His voice is WONDERFUL. Thank you sooooo much for the recommendation.

 

Lynn

[LynnAB]

I would start with a free service from your library and test playing, downloading, and bookmarking, before you get into any pay service. That way you will feel comfortable for any premium download service. With the size you are getting you should be able to put on multiple audio books and listen at will!!

 

 

You're so funny! Before I read YOUR message, I posted one to Claire who suggested the narrator Jim Dale. I told her how I had gotten A Christmas Carol from my library (among others).

 

Sooooooooooo, I'm doing exactly what you suggested ... checking our my libraries first <g>.

 

Did I tell you I'm getting an 8gb SD card to use in the player also? That way I'll start with 12 gbs right away. Can you tell I'm flipping out here? I'm really enjoying the thought of someone reading TO ME!

 

Do you keep a log of the books you listen to? I'm just wondering which Sandra Brown books you like the best. Also, if you haven't listened to Envy, I'd suggest it. That book I had on cassette tapes a few years ago, so I can attest to how much fun it was to listen to.

 

Have a great day!

 

Lynn

[jimbo5544]

You're so funny! Before I read YOUR message, I posted one to Claire who suggested the narrator Jim Dale. I told her how I had gotten A Christmas Carol from my library (among others).

 

Sooooooooooo, I'm doing exactly what you suggested ... checking our my libraries first <g>.

 

Did I tell you I'm getting an 8gb SD card to use in the player also? That way I'll start with 12 gbs right away. Can you tell I'm flipping out here? I'm really enjoying the thought of someone reading TO ME!

 

Do you keep a log of the books you listen to? I'm just wondering which Sandra Brown books you like the best. Also, if you haven't listened to Envy, I'd suggest it. That book I had on cassette tapes a few years ago, so I can attest to how much fun it was to listen to.

 

Have a great day!

 

Lynn

 

I do keep a log now. I did not for the longest time, just basically went on memory when I either signed out an audio book at the library(s). Since joining simplyaudiobooks.com, the second audio book I received was one I had already listened to but forgot (@#$%^&*). So I wasted a rental. I learned two lessons, 1.)memory might not be the first thing to go with age, but it is sure is on the short. 2.) that I needed a log of books listened to.

 

So I started an excel file of author and title. Every time I go on line or to the library I always find a book that I have listened to and add it to the list in addition to the the one I take out.

 

I don't think I have listened to Envy (I can certainly say that it is not on my log), but have added it to my wish list. With 12 gig you will not be constrained in terms of size or number of books downloaded, but you should keep in mind that with all services (free and rental) there is a time out feature, they wont disappear, but you will not be able to listened without re-checking them out. The online services they don't care but may have restrictions about number of books you can download within a certain period. Might be a consideration in terms of what service you use (in terms of what features they allow).

[LynnAB]

I do keep a log now. I did not for the longest time, just basically went on memory when I either signed out an audio book at the library(s). Since joining simplyaudiobooks.com, the second audio book I received was one I had already listened to but forgot (@#$%^&*). So I wasted a rental. I learned two lessons, 1.)memory might not be the first thing to go with age, but it is sure is on the short. 2.) that I needed a log of books listened to.

 

So I started an excel file of author and title. Every time I go on line or to the library I always find a book that I have listened to and add it to the list in addition to the the one I take out.

 

I don't think I have listened to Envy (I can certainly say that it is not on my log), but have added it to my wish list. With 12 gig you will not be constrained in terms of size or number of books downloaded, but you should keep in mind that with all services (free and rental) there is a time out feature, they wont disappear, but you will not be able to listened without re-checking them out. The online services they don't care but may have restrictions about number of books you can download within a certain period. Might be a consideration in terms of what service you use (in terms of what features they allow).

 

 

 

Wow, I didn't know the books TIME OUT. Is that for simplyaudiobooks.com and audible.com or ALL the services? That's terrible! I'm figuring I may want to keep some books to hear again OR just at my leisure in between other books. I had no idea. THANK YOU for pointing that out. I guess I'll have to check each book service for their specifics.

 

Right now since I'm brand new at this, I'm finding my library(s) have a lot of books. Of course I can foresee a point where I'll want "other" books by an author and the library doesn't carry them. I've noticed this already, so that could be the determining factor about joining a "service."

 

I sure can't see BUYING unabridged audio books for $70 - $100!!! I guess that's the reason for the rentals, hmmmm?

 

I like your idea of an Excel spreadsheet. I'm such a compulsively organized woman at times that that even sounds like FUN. Sick, huh? I guess it's the court reporter coming out of me at times even when I'm home <g>.

 

Right now I'm in the process of looking for light/funny/cozy mysteries, romances, and general fiction and am interested in a few authors ... Carolyn Hart, Sarah Strohmeyer, Sandra Brown, Jennifer Crusie ... etc. Of course, the library seems to have SOME of each author on CD. I'm going to start looking online to see what the different services offer.

 

This is fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Lynn

[LynnAB]

I do keep a log now. I did not for the longest time, just basically went on memory when I either signed out an audio book at the library(s). Since joining simplyaudiobooks.com, the second audio book I received was one I had already listened to but forgot (@#$%^&*). So I wasted a rental. I learned two lessons, 1.)memory might not be the first thing to go with age, but it is sure is on the short. 2.) that I needed a log of books listened to.

 

So I started an excel file of author and title. Every time I go on line or to the library I always find a book that I have listened to and add it to the list in addition to the the one I take out.

 

I don't think I have listened to Envy (I can certainly say that it is not on my log), but have added it to my wish list. With 12 gig you will not be constrained in terms of size or number of books downloaded, but you should keep in mind that with all services (free and rental) there is a time out feature, they wont disappear, but you will not be able to listened without re-checking them out. The online services they don't care but may have restrictions about number of books you can download within a certain period. Might be a consideration in terms of what service you use (in terms of what features they allow).

 

 

 

Oops. I forgot to mention a few things <g>.

 

The 12gb is also "supposed" to be for my music <g>. That's one of the features I like the most about the player I'm getting ... the SD card for expansion. I can always pick up "another" card at some point.

 

And ... so you don't think I'm totally light and fluffy by my last post, I also like more in-depth fiction (as long as it doesn't depress me, but you already know that). I particularly like legal stories. I guess that goes with the territory of my career. I've just "discovered" Lisa Scottoline, who writes legal thriller type books. I haven't read any of hers yet, though. Have you??? I'm wondering how they are.

 

Bye again ...

 

Lynn

[jimbo5544]

Oops. I forgot to mention a few things <g>.

 

The 12gb is also "supposed" to be for my music <g>. That's one of the features I like the most about the player I'm getting ... the SD card for expansion. I can always pick up "another" card at some point.

 

And ... so you don't think I'm totally light and fluffy by my last post, I also like more in-depth fiction (as long as it doesn't depress me, but you already know that). I particularly like legal stories. I guess that goes with the territory of my career. I've just "discovered" Lisa Scottoline, who writes legal thriller type books. I haven't read any of hers yet, though. Have you??? I'm wondering how they are.

 

Bye again ...

 

Lynn

 

Richard North Patterson seems to fall into that genre, listened to some of his. I have not heard Lisa Scottoline, but I sure will check her out. I am pretty sure I had mentioned this before but I really enjoyed most of John Grisham, which are mostly legal thrillers and for the most part not too heavy. There are some exceptions like The Painted House and Bleachers. His last book I believe was The Innocent Man which is not fiction and since you are in the "industry" might be a good listen for you. I have about a dozen that I have listened to more than once.

 

In regards to downloading from sites on the internet, I know the ones I have checked out (including the free ones) have a time out feature. The ones tied to the library service has an auto renew feature but you would need synch up your device with the website again.

[LynnAB]

Richard North Patterson seems to fall into that genre, listened to some of his. I have not heard Lisa Scottoline, but I sure will check her out. I am pretty sure I had mentioned this before but I really enjoyed most of John Grisham, which are mostly legal thrillers and for the most part not too heavy. There are some exceptions like The Painted House and Bleachers. His last book I believe was The Innocent Man which is not fiction and since you are in the "industry" might be a good listen for you. I have about a dozen that I have listened to more than once.

 

In regards to downloading from sites on the internet, I know the ones I have checked out (including the free ones) have a time out feature. The ones tied to the library service has an auto renew feature but you would need synch up your device with the website again.

 

 

 

I just HAD to follow up and let you know that my Cowon came yesterday. Oh, my. I'm in love with this player <g>. I'm JUST learning and just beginning with it, so don't expect miracles yet ... but I've put put my Christmas music, cruise music, and one book on it.

 

I'm "tweaking" how to tag books so they're the most organized. I had a book converted to MP3 format. My only problem that I'm seeing is that I think I may have to manually go into each disc of the book separately on my player. If I select "play all," it puts the tracks in order but messes up because is will have, for example, track 1, track 1, track 1, track 2, track 2 .... etc. ... based on putting the tracks first but not doing each full disc of tracks before going on to the next disc. Am I explaining this properly so you can understand? Do you have any insight on this? Do you do any "tagging" on your computer first before putting the book on your player? I did, but I'm not sure I did it the most efficient way.

 

Please keep in touch!!! You're my book guru <g>.

 

Thank you,

 

Lynn

[LynnAB]

This is kind of a follow up to my previous post. When I was at the end of listening to disc 1 of my book, the player went right to disc 2. I didn't think it was going to do that. I guess when I organized my files on the computer, it work after all. Hmmm. We'll see if things keeps working okay for the next disc <g>.

 

Lynn

[Lizziebiff]

Hi

 

I have listened to audiobooks for years as I drive a lot and got fed up with the radio.

I use an ipod 80gb and have literally hundreds on it. I have a subscription with audible and download 2 a month (the most expensive ones) and also buy some when they have a special offer. I agree the narrator is very important, some can be over dramatic and others just drone on. I always listen to a sample before I download. Hope this helps

 

Liz

[jimbo5544]

This is kind of a follow up to my previous post. When I was at the end of listening to disc 1 of my book, the player went right to disc 2. I didn't think it was going to do that. I guess when I organized my files on the computer, it work after all. Hmmm. We'll see if things keeps working okay for the next disc <g>.

 

Lynn

 

I had found the saem problem and thought I would ahve to do a lot of organizing after loading only to figure out my PC (or the MP3 player) was managing all of it as well.