Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Reading books on the go

A year and a half ago I somehow got the idea that I could listen to books on CD or mp3. I think the first book was John Adams, by David McCullough (a fantastic inspirational book, by the way), which I took on a trip to California. I would checkout audio books on CD or mp3 from the library and download them into my mp3 player. It was amazing how quickly I could read/listen to a book. I would listen driving the car, while working in the yard, riding my bike, or just relaxing. It is funny--I associate certain books with doing certain things ("Escape" by Carolyn Jessop reminds me of building a block retaining wall, "Teacher Man" by Frank McCourt of a business trip to Colorado, "Shiloh" by Shelby Foote of demolishing our kitchen, "Hunger Games" of being sick with a bad cold and sleeping downstairs, etc.).

I have "read" more books the past 18 months than any similar period in my life, I'm sure. I read over 30 last year, and 36 so far this year. The vast majority of these have been audio books, and the majority of those non-fiction.

On another post or two I'll have to give some book reviews and recommendations.

4 comments:

  1. Have you ever considered getting into podcasts? I find it hard to do books on tape because sometimes I drift in and out of the narrative due to external distractions. So podcasts are great because they are short(er) and it's not absolutely crucial to the "plot" that you pay attention every moment.

    My favorite podcasts are Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, America Abroad, and We The People Stories.

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  2. I find it not easy to listen to books on CD when I'm around the house but they are the greatest thing on road trips. They're especially effective when the right narrator is chosen.

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  3. I love audio books! I used to walk around with a book and try to grab a minute or two when I could. Now I can just listen whenever I want. And my mp3 player is smaller than any book! I can 'read' while driving, shopping, cleaning, riding my bike, etc. I also love that I can get them free from the library. I've been trying to find a way to get LDS published books the same way.

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  4. I also have trouble being distracted and my mind wandering, especially when driving. Sometimes I will lie down and close my eyes at home to complete a book on tape that I began in the car and couldn't finish. Then I have trouble staying awake! I'm willing to keep trying, though! It is difficult to accomplish the reading I would like to because I use my eyes and read so much in my job. It seems to only get accomplished on vacations, and then only sparingly since I enjoy the break from using my eyes and reading and I enjoy resting the brain from overwork.

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