BAND September 2011 – Audiobooks and Nonfiction
B.A.N.D., Bloggers’ Alliance of Nonfiction Devotees, launched in July and is being run by a small group of bloggers as a way to promote the love of nonfiction amount bloggers. Each month a discussion question will be put forward giving everyone and anyone the chance to respond. If you are interested in hosting a month do check out the tumblr site and let us know!
Kim of Sophisticated Dorkiness hosted the first discussion, asking What’s your favorite type of nonfiction? in July. In August I led the discussion, asking How did you get into nonfiction? This month Cass is hosting and she wants to know about nonfiction audiobooks. She asked (see her post here):
If you’ve listened to non-fiction audio books before: What did you enjoy most about the experience? What’s your favorite non-fiction audio book?
If you haven’t listened to non-fiction audio books, I offer you this challenge: dare to try a non-fiction audio book, then write a review or a post about your experience.
Until this year I had listened to a total of, I think, 1 audiobook, ever. I then ended up working on a client site for which the drive from the hotel to the office was about an hour, which meant two hours of driving each day. I quickly turned to my Audible subscription and started picking new books!
I’ve tried a number of different types of audiobooks, with mixed success. My issue is that when I’m reading I often reread passages, turn back to reread a page or two, or just stop to think about what is being discussed. Especially with nonfiction, I like to stop my reading and consider what is being said, think through the issue being discussed, and just generally take my time. I am also a big note taker and I use the notes both as a summary after reading and as help in writing my reviews (I love adding quotes!).
With audiobooks, especially while listening on the iPhone connected to the car while driving, it is fairly impossible to easily stop and think or to take notes. I think if these two items were addressed I would enjoy audiobooks more. Also if they had better narrators that didn’t annoy me. Perhaps too if I had more time for listening, rather than simply driving. With my job I can’t listen during work which I know is what a lot of people do.
That being said, I’ve listened to 13 audiobooks so far this year and have many more lined up to listen to eventually, whenever I get the chance. I’m finding it best to stick to narrative type nonfiction that is less heavy and less scholarly than what I would usually go for as I tend to miss some of the facts and generally remember less.
Nonfiction I’ve enjoyed on audio this year include The Education of a British-Protected Child by Chinua Achebe, The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth by Alexandra Robbins, and The Vagina Monologues by Eve Ensler.
What about you – do you enjoy audiobooks as a way to read nonfiction?
You know my thoughts on audio books, so I won’t say anymore, Amy. Would love to read the Achebe book and also Vagina Monologues – which is on my TBB (to be bought) list but somehow never gets to the top.
I love BAND, the acronym. Kind of cool:)
Yes, I do Adura
I highly recommend the Achebe especially!
I have only ever listened to two nonfiction audiobooks, and while one was a little difficult to grasp (The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer), the other went very well ( The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks). If a nonfiction book is really heavy on the intricate details, it tends to be harder for me, but when it’s a work of narrative nonfiction, I do rather well with it.
I keep hearing great things about Henrietta Lacks on audio zibilee, thanks for reminding me
When I had a car with a tape deck, I used to listen to audiobooks on long drives. Now that I have an MP3 cable, I seem to only listen to This American Life! Anyway, the audio book that stands out the most to me was a biography about one of the founders of MGM Studios. It was so fascinating I remember having to stop to go to the bathroom at a gas station and being completely unable to get out of the car because I was so entranced!
Heh a car with a tape deck eh joyofbooking… it’s been awhile since you listened to audiobooks it seems! I wish I had known of audiobooks then! I could have tried to force the family to listen on long trips!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Amy. If I had things my way there would be way more gender studies/lgbtq non-fiction books on audio, and then I could be the ultimate reading achiever lol. Instead I listen to a lot of American political books, current events and history and the like. Luckily there are a lot of them available to download from the library! hehehe
Thanks for the great topic Cass! Yes, more gender studies and LGBTQ would be fantastic I agree! I think I just have to start listening to more biography type books, they seem to work better in audio!
I have the same issue with note-taking and audiobooks. I often find them harder to blog about just because the details I’d usually include are hazy. If I listen to a book with beautiful writing, I often feel like I can’t catch it all when I listen.
That being said, I do love audiobooks! I listen while cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, and commuting, so I get through a fair number. I’ve listened to some nonfiction. I often find memoirs work best for me, as well as lighter narrative nonfiction. Any book that has lots of numbers, detailed facts, or names and places or that jumps around a lot gives me trouble on audio. As for narrators, I always listen to a sample before I commit to an audiobook. I can usually tell after listening for a few minutes if the voice is one I can listen to for 8+ hours! There are some audiobook productions that just do not work for me, and I’ve learned not to try them
Yes, so hard to catch it all Erin! I am glad I’m not the only one with that issue
Memoirs would work better I think, I should listen to more of them. Smart on testing them too – I NEVER think to do that!
BAND has made me want to work an hour away again so I can get back in to audiobooks! I stay home with my son now so never get uninterrupted audiobook time. I loved the biographies I listened to when I was working far away though. I learned so much but if I spaced out a few minutes I didn’t miss everything. LOVED John Adams by David McCullough this way. (Given how much I drove, those 700 pages on audio only took a few weeks!!)
That is a pretty fantastic endorsement for the project, thanks Rebecca
I should try more biographies I think.