I
tried my first audio book about 15 years ago. I had come into possession
of a cassette tape of Katharine Graham's Personal
History. I was interested in hearing what she had to say so I decided
to give the audio version a try. Unfortunately I tried listening to it
while in bed. Listening to tapes at bedtime did not go well.
Katharine Graham's voice was better than any sort of sleep aid I could have
picked up at the CVS, so I never quite got through the whole book in a
conscious state.
Three
years ago I decided to give the audio book another try. Thanks to an
Audible promotion and a six-hour drive home from the beach I found myself
laughing from North Carolina to Virginia as I listened to Tina Fey share her
memoir Bossypants. If you
haven't listened to it I highly recommend giving it a go.
I
have found that it's difficult for me to follow the plot of a story when it is
presented on tape. My mind tends to wander so I prefer memoir pieces,
like Tina Fey's, that are broken up into small chunks. I've even
found that my 10 minute drive to work offers more than enough time for a story
or two.
The
book this month is David Sedaris' Me Talk
Pretty One Day. The truth is that many a friend has hounded me to
read this collection of essays, observations and slices, but I could never get
into it at all. Hearing David read David is a whole new thing.
I laugh at the insanity of his experiences and smile at his keen perception of
others. Getting out the door to work each day is a little easier knowing that
David is in the car waiting to tell me a story.
I have never thought to have audio book as a companion. "Getting out the door to work each day is a little easier knowing David is in the car waiting to tell me a story." I like the sound of that.
ReplyDeleteAudiobooks are the only thing that can make long drives tolerable for me (and airplane rides and waiting rooms and buses and on). I think stories are twice as engaging when spoken aloud. It's nice to meet a fellow audiobook fan!
ReplyDeleteI hate to admit this but audio books saved me on long drives with my mother, Maxine. She loved to talk...and after two hours of chattering...it was a relief to put in an audio book. She liked it too. I think she talked thinking she needed to entertain me or keep me awake, since I was the driver. Jackie http://familytrove.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteI've yet to give audio books a try. Maybe on our next road trip.
ReplyDelete