Audio book suggestions?

[blkhole24601]

Hi, everyone! This isn't fitness related, but this is what this subforum exists for, right? 

 

On Monday I'll be starting an exciting new job with a less-exciting commute; basically, without traffic, it's 50 minutes one-way. Yikes. I'm trying to determine ways to curtail this long drive until I can move closer, and audio books seems like the most obvious answer.

 

I prefer fiction since I'll listen to it primarily in the mornings; I have a CD I listen to in the evenings to practice singing among other things that requires more brainpower since I'll have it. But in the mornings, I'll be plenty tired and wouldn't want to think too hard or too much.

 

So, basically, I'm asking for books that are either awesome or at least decent in audio book format. Also, if you have any other suggestions on what to do when you have a long drive to and from work, let me know, I'll gladly take suggestions! 

 

Thanks everyone!

[Maj. Bloodnok]

What sort of fiction are you interested in?  I consume a lot of audiobooks as well, and there are a lot of really good ones out there. 

 

For fantasy; Neil Gaiman does the voice work for most of his books, and it's very good stuff.  Though the actor they brought in for 'American Gods' was stellar.  You also can't go wrong with Terry Pratchett's Discworld audiobooks; Simon Jones does a lot of different voices and accents for his characters, and of course, it's Terry Pratchett.  If that doesn't lighten your commute, I don't know what will.

 

If you like mysteries or thrillers, I'd recommend Walter Mosley's books, as well as Robert B. Parker's.  Both authors write in ways that sound good when read aloud, and they both tell excellent stories.  I'd also recommend Joe R. Lansdale's 'Hap and Leonard' novels.  (He also writes some very weird science fiction and steampunk.)

 

Another excellent audiobook is "Slumdog Millionaire", by Vikas Swarup.  The story is in turn funny, suspenseful, and heartrending, and the voice actor is incredible.  (I'd never heard somebody do a 'kid from Bombay speaking Australian' accent before.) 

 

I tend to get most of my audiobooks from the public library, either on CD or as free downloads from the website.  Can you run an iPod or mp3 player through your car stereo?  If you can, that opens up a lot more options.  Librivox.org has free audio versions of public-domain works (ie anything published before 1923 or thereabouts), created by volunteers.  The quality can be hit or miss, but a lot of it's very good.  The files themselves are also public domain, which means no DRM, no licensing, and no limits on what you can do with the files themselves. 

 

Hope this helps!

[sylph]

I listen to "The Secret World Chronicle" during my commute. It's available for free via podiobooks if you have the ability to play from something other than a CD. Mercedes Lackey is the primary author on it and it's exceptionally well done and very interesting sci-fi, x-men-ish.

[Suited hippy]

Malcolm Gladwell is a great author for non-fiction, has awesome hair, and voice's all his own books on Audible. I'd highly recommend everyone of his books. 

 

http://o.onionstatic.com/images/14/14174/original/700.hq.jpg?5908

[goodbye_farewell]

The Martian by Andy Weir. I think you will love it. I listened to it on some long plane rides.

[blkhole24601]

Thanks, everyone! This is a great list to start out with.

 

What sort of fiction are you interested in? 

 

Honestly, I'll read practically anything as long as it isn't horror, westerns, those romance books with the cheesy covers on them (you know what I'm talking about), or written by Stephanie Meyer. I prefer sci-fi and fantasy and historical fiction in general, but I also enjoy the classics, straight up fiction, YA that doesn't involve vampires (yes, including those not written by Stephanie Meyer), etc. I do also enjoy non-fiction to include memoirs, but... maybe not for an audiobook purpose.

 

Thanks again!!

[Data_Error]

Since we're in the neighborhood of audiobooks, have you read Ready Player One? It's near-future sci-fi stuffed to the brim with action/adventure and '80s pop culture. Better yet, the audiobook is narrated by Wil flippin' Wheaton.

 

Basically tailor-made for nerds.

[Maj. Bloodnok]

Thanks, everyone! This is a great list to start out with.

 

 

Honestly, I'll read practically anything as long as it isn't horror, westerns, those romance books with the cheesy covers on them (you know what I'm talking about), or written by Stephanie Meyer. I prefer sci-fi and fantasy and historical fiction in general, but I also enjoy the classics, straight up fiction, YA that doesn't involve vampires (yes, including those not written by Stephanie Meyer), etc. I do also enjoy non-fiction to include memoirs, but... maybe not for an audiobook purpose.

 

Thanks again!!

 If you like YA, slide over to pinkwater.com, Daniel Pinkwater's site.  He writes screamingly funny books for young kids as well as the YA genre (I was a Second-Grade Werewolf is a personal favorite).  He's been reading every book he's ever written as part of his podcast, one chapter at a time.  When he's done, he compiles them into complete audiobooks for free download.  Check out 'The Education of Robert Nifkin', 'Alan Mendelssohn, The Boy from Mars', 'Borgel', and his YA parody 'Young Adult Novel'.  Great stuff.

[18ck]

Since we're in the neighborhood of audiobooks, have you read Ready Player One? It's near-future sci-fi stuffed to the brim with action/adventure and '80s pop culture. Better yet, the audiobook is narrated by Wil flippin' Wheaton.

 

Basically tailor-made for nerds.

I enjoyed reading that (on actual paper too, although I think you have to be a certain age to get the full benefit.

 

Other books I've listened too lately that I thought benefited from the audio format were Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (Paul Torday), World War Z (Max Brooks), Lolita (Nabokov - the version read by Jeremy Irons is very funny), I Capture the Castle (Dodie Smith) and The Book Thief (Markus Zusak).

 

If you're looking for scouty inspiration you could do worse than to get hold of the audio versions of Murakami's "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" or Christopher McDougall's Born to Run

[OrangeJorwell]

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett is the first audio book I listened to and I loved it.

 

I also wholeheartedly recommend the book for Ender's Game. I'm going to assume you've read it, but the narration is extremely well done.

 

I'm listening to Game of Thrones right now and it's pretty good, too. Also, if you listen to all of them it would give you something to listen to for a long time.

[FalseAesop]

The Dresden Files, by Jim Butcher. Narrated by James (Spike from Buffy) Marsters.

To steal TV tropes summary...

A horror/fantasy/mystery series of novels, fifteen and counting plus associated short stories and comic miniseries and the like, by Jim Butcher. Harry Dresden is a wizard and private detective operating out of modern day Chicago, and reluctantly hired by a special police task force as a consultant on supernatural crimes. The Genre Savvy protagonist cracks jokes about the Urban Fantasy- Dungeon Punk setting and the tropes it uses.

It's he kind of series were when a wizard, his apprentice, his dog, his utterly terrifying fairy godmother (no really), a holy knight, an incubus, two half turned vampires, and a Chicago police detective are gearing up for a suicide run against near gods they argue about who has dibs on being "the Legolas" of the group.

[humanperson832]

Marc Maron's "Attempting Normal." Just trust me.

[Suited hippy]

I'm just starting "Pandora's Lunchbox" now. It is about the food industry and processed food. Very interesting, and while listening to it in the grocery store yesterday it was enough to keep me from buying donuts for my post run snack.