Audio Books: Evolution at its best
Jan 18th, 2010 | By Ali Hassan | Category: Ali Hassan
It’s really a joy to see all the changes around us. Change has undoubtedly been the only constant.
Those who claimed that the internet, the information age, the personal computer shall be the end of it, had to realize their folly. The book still lives, in one form, or another and is thriving.
It’s really fascinating to see that what was once written on stone, clay, metal sheets and tree barks, made its way to paper, then to our computer screens (e-books / pdfs) and is now crooning in our ear with all its glory.
Although, Audiobooks have been there for a while (as long as the 1930s), their popularity has only soared in recent years, giving an opportunity for publishers to release an audio version of the book simultaneously, and earn more revenue and fast.
A number of benefits can be attributed to this innovation: -
a) Increased mobility and productivity: Audio Books give you the freedom to accumulate on the go. You can exercise, travel, commute, run errands, and do your daily chores or any other less mind intensive work for that matter, everything while keeping in touch with the book world. You can finally read in the dark too.
b) Less stress, effort and more clarity, expression and joy: As opposed to being confined to a single place, with appropriate lighting, and a requirement of a very focused mindset to get everything, an Audiobook will help you loosen up. The handpicked professional narrator does the entire job, gives the right pronunciation, expression (whisper, exclamation, inquisitive tone for example) leaving you to focus on the real thing, with an absence of stress to your sense of sight.
Some books are even read by their own authors, for example, Bill Clinton – My life, Malcolm Gladwell – Outliers: The Story of Success, Stephen J. Dubner – SuperFreakonomics, giving you an opportunity to share a similar outlook.
Some books have different voices for each character, turning them into a complete movie for you to imagine and enjoy.
There have already been initiatives to teach through audio. Just visualize the potential number of non-readers that can be converted to readers through this medium.
c) Zero storage problems: How big a shelf have you got? Is it clean of dust and cobwebs? Are the book pages the same they were when you bought them? What if this whole shelf was just a small rack of DVDs or a small storage chip in your cell phone. The possibilities of saving space are endless.
d) More retention: Some people may retain more from sound then sight. The quality of retention may even be better.
Here are a few sites to get you started: -
