Hardcopy Vs. Audiobook

[Walker]

Any thoughts on which is better and why? I do like having the book in hand, but be nice to kick back and listen.

Any experience?

Thanks

 

[blacknorth]

Hardcopy is usually better for me. However, a good reading performance can transform what appears to be an indifferent story on the page. At the moment I'm listening to some BBC readings of stories by John Connolly, read by Tony Doyle sounding remarkably like Richard Harris, and I'm enjoying the experience of hearing them more than the experience of reading them.

 

[Parson]

Rarely listen to books, but it can be enjoyable. Note however that a lot of recorded books are condensed versions.

 

[elvet]

I'd say both. I'm listening to the unabridged Lord of the Rings, and following along with the book. That's my routine when I'm on the stairclimber at the gym and it really passes the time quickly.

 

[thepaladin]

I prefer to read a book in hard copy, but there are times that an audio book can be enjoyed when reading isn't either possible or at least convenient. I discovered audio books when I was still working. I spent hours in a vehicle and audio books gave me a way to enjoy lit. Also if you just don't feel well or have some reason that you can't read (some mind numbing activity for example) then the audio book can keep you from losing your sanity.

Of course there's also those nights when you just can't sleep....

 

[Rodders]

I'm definately a book person and will prefer to read a story any day of the week.

Whilst i have no objection to listening to radio versions of HHGTTG or Star Wars, i can never get into an audio book.

 

[The Judge]

One of the few audio-books I've listened to was one of the Sharpe novels read by Sean Bean. Even with sexy Sean's dulcet tones, I didn't enjoy it as much as reading the self-same book. On the other hand, it meant that I could sit and do my cross-stitch at the same time, which I couldn't have done if I'd been reading. So yes, audio books have their place, but it's a distinctly second place as far as I'm concerned.

Having said that, I re-listen to the BBC radio dramatised version of The Lord of the Rings every other year or so, far more often than I re-read the books. I also love the dramatised version of the Lord Peter Wimsey novels. I think the difference is by being dramatised they become different entities, and so are enjoyed in different ways.

J

 

[Sparrow]

I've listened to the entire Harry Potter series in audio form, performed by Jim Dale. The guy is brilliant. Full cast audio performances are good too, with the BBC producing the best of it... LOTR and Hitch Hiker's Guide are classics.

I prefer audiobooks over hardcopy because my work is so eyeball-intensive.
Though they do tend to lull me to sleep, which isn't always a bad thing.

 

[ktabic]

Give me a physical book and I'll happily read cover to cover and forget minor things like food, drink, sleep. But I can't listen to audiobooks. I end up getting distracted by other things, and the audiobook ends up in the background and I miss chunks of it. Now having said that, I hadn't thought of listening to them in the gym, like elvet mentioned above, so I might give that a bash, once my foot heals up.

 

[Jon Sprunk]

hardcopy for me, but I listened to a Vonnegut novel (forget which one) on a long car ride years ago and it was very nice.

 

[GOLLUM]

Generally Hardcopy over Audio for me too but there are some excellent audio books, the audio adaptation of Zafon's Shadow of the Wind and the LOTR BBC radio production being 2 examples that spring to mind.

The other point of course is that audiobooks are a lot more expensive than their hardcopy counterparts, often 2-3 times the price, so until that changes it's doubtful they'll be bought in huge quantities except presumably for people who have e.g a sight impairment or schools, long distance travelers/workers etc.

I do agree though that a book read in the hands of a masterful orator can often lift it above the seemingly mundane.

We have a fanatatic audiobook shop in Melbourne that stocks a wide range of both Fiction and non-fiction including SFF. It's an ejoyable venture I undetake 1 - 2 times a year, so I now plan to visit that shop again before the New Year.

Cheers.

 

[Omphalos]

hard copy, because I cannot get too interested in listening to a story. Its a much more cerebral experience to read the book, to flip around and re-read parts and think about them again after reading something later. thats hard for me to do with buttons.

 

[GOLLUM]

Actually that's a good point you bring up Omphalos. The point relating to how you can often become distracted and miss chunks of the story is another I think.

 

[Omphalos]

I imagine today's yout does it much better with buttons, though. Im getting to be a fogie.

 

[Rodders]

I'll have to check out that LOTR radio dramatisation. I could never get into the book and i havent yet seen the films. (I do feel that SF and F wise i'm missing out on something very important. .)

 

[GOLLUM]

I'll have to check out that LOTR radio dramatisation. I could never get into the book and i havent yet seen the films. (I do feel that SF and F wise i'm missing out on something very important. .)

Well please note there are 3 major audio versions of LOTR Rodders.

The ONLY unabridged version of LOTR I know of is narrated by a single person Rob Inglis and he does an excellent job without a cast or additonal sound effects etc.

Then.....there are 2 abridged versions that both have their upsides as well as downsides. One was done in the ealy '80s by the BBC and was the main one I was referring to in my previous post. I heard this first back in 1983 around the time I was discovering LOTR and Tolkien. The other was done in the early 2,000's by a US cast. Both do sport an excellent cast and various sound effects etc. but both do cut into the narrative.

I still maintain that the BBC is the best of these and the one I would recommend if you want the essence of the story with a superb cast of voices. If you want to hear all of it then the Robert Ingliss production is your bet.

Be warned, they are not cheap, probably approx $150 - 200 US I'm guessing.

The BBC and I assume US team also created a version of the Hobbit, which is also very good.

I suggest you google for further details or await some of the Tolkien afficianados here to put in their 2c.

Cheers....

 

[elvet]

The ONLY unabridged version of LOTR I know of is narrated by a single person Rob Inglis and he does an excellent job without a cast or additonal sound effects etc.

That's the one I have, and it is very well done. I also have his reading of the Hobbit, and Martin Shaw's Silmarillion.

 

[HareBrain]

Tolkien afficionado with two bright shiny cents here!

Well please note there are 3 major audio versions of LOTR Rodders.

The ONLY unabridged version of LOTR I know of is narrated by a single person Rob Inglis and he does an excellent job without a cast or additonal sound effects etc.

Then.....there are 2 abridged versions that both have their upsides as well as downsides. One was done in the ealy '80s by the BBC and was the main one I was referring to in my previous post. I heard this first back in 1983 around the time I was discovering LOTR and Tolkien. The other was done in the early 2,000's by a US cast. Both do sport an excellent cast and various sound effects etc. but both do cut into the narrative.

I still maintain that the BBC is the best of these and the one I would recommend if you want the essence of the story with a superb cast of voices. If you want to hear all of it then the Robert Ingliss production is your bet.

Just to make it clear, the BBC one is a dramatisation, not a reading (unless Gollum is referring to something else I've never even heard of) and so includes little of Tolkien's descriptive prose, which in my view is one of his strengths as a writer. Also, I think I might have found the beginning a little confusing - and a bit narrator-heavy - if I hadn't already read the books. And it removes Tom Bombadil and the barrow wights, which, while understandable in a dramatised version, is a shame.

Personally, I'd try the unabridged audiobook and then the BBC drama.

The BBC and I assume US team also created a version of the Hobbit, which is also very good.

Yes, I have this too, and like it very much, though it is a very different beast to the LOTR drama. The LOTR play makes me think of vast spaces and galloping horses, the Hobbit play a red fire cracking and popping in an old black iron grate. Pronouncing Gollum "Goll-oooom" was an interesting choice - but don't discount it for that!

 

[The Judge]

Rodders, the one I was talking about is the 1983 version. It is abridged as Gollum says, but to my mind this was not necessarily a bad thing (Tom Bombadil was always due for the chop!!). I can certainly recommend this one, but I have to accept it sounds a little dated in places, and not having heard the others, I don't know whether it is better than they are.

One thing in particular I like about it -- and again I don't know if this is shared with the others -- is the use of music. Not just incidental/background mood-tunes --they actually set some of Tolkien's verse to music. It's highly effective, helping the atmosphere a great deal, especially when it is the cast members themselves singing eg Sam when looking for Frodo. I enjoyed it so much, I went out and bought the separate record. (It's playing now!)

J

 

[paranoid marvin]

Novels and audiobooks are entirely different beasts , and I think that both can be enjoyed for what they are , and are dificult to compare. A Pratchett book read by Tony Robinson , or Sharpe story by Sean Bean really helps to bring their worlds to life , and , although abridged , they tend to cover the 'best' bits of the author's creations. Novels read on the other hand create words and pictures in the mind , and the written ord helps the reader to capture the nuance and intricacies of the authors words in a way that the audio experience simply cannot. Which is better? Do you prefer apples or oranges?

As for LOTR , yes the BBC radio version is beautifully packaged , presented and brought to the theatre of the ear, It is an entirely different experience to reading the book , and leaves the listener entranced for the duration. The Hobbit and HHGTTG adaptations are also highly reccomended