Have you ever questioned why so many people prefer audiobooks to physical books or e-books?
This is an idea that I have been interested in for quite a while which is why I am writing a series of blogs focusing on audiobooks, in the first blog we will explore the idea of accessibility within audiobooks, with a piece of prose written by Colleen Thompson and also an interview with Angharad Hampshire on her opinion of audiobooks as a form. The second blog will contain the beyond the walls blogs and podcasting team’s audiobook recommendations. In the final audiobook blog, there will be an interview with Lily Ridett about the audiobook industry and her experience within this.
Audiobooks are favoured by many due to their accessibility, especially when people have a lot of time constraints. In a busy life, it is hard to set aside the time to read for pleasure- I know it is for me as someone who commutes to university, works a part time job and still tries to maintain a social life. For those people like me an audiobook can be a more accessible format. I can listen to this in the car, on the train or even stocking frozen products at work. Audiobooks are more accessible for people like my mum as well, who has a very stressful job that takes up a lot of her time. And enjoys winding down by listening to audiobooks, as physically reading these would take her more time and stress due to her dyslexia, my mum’s journey with audiobooks specifically is what inspired me to look into audiobooks and their accessibility and advantages further.
Below I have included a piece of prose written by Colleen – a member of the blogs and podcasting team – on her interpretation of the accessibility of audiobooks:
The Wanderer- Colleen Thompson
I am the queen of reading a paragraph and not processing a single word. The crafter of textual waymarkers as a seasoned wanderer. The keeper of an absent mind.
Audiobooks are the compass and map; pointing me in the right direction but still up to my own devices. It sounds like a wonderful romp up the mountains, spontaneous and free. Yet, I should know the path by now, I’ve gotten lost on it enough times.
There is an element of jealousy that simmers inside me when people can just sit and listen to a story. How they can hear a description that weaves images of flowers, rain, ocean, cities and follow the path the narrator dictates. I stop to smell the roses and the voice continues the trail without me. How is a simple wanderer meant to build waypoints out of phonetics?
This wanderer doesn’t want to lean on their disability crutch (for it is homemade), but sometimes it is the only way for fellow adventurers to notice. I am not trying to replace books or am too lazy to read. I want to enjoy the tales that the adventurers speak of. But I am but a simple wanderer trying their best to keep on the correct path.
An interview with Angharad Hampshire:
Transcribed by Natasha Baldwinson
Angharad is a Creative Writing lecturer at York St John University.
Why do you like audiobooks?
I like audiobooks because it increases the number of books that I can read. Because of my job I obviously read quite a lot of books, and though I prefer physical books, I don’t always have time to read them. So, I listen to audiobooks when I am out walking my dog, who usually needs an hour’s walk, and when I’m in the car. So, it allows me access to literature when I’m not physically able to sit down and read.
Do you think audiobooks have had a positive impact on the literary community and authors?
Yes, I think they’ve had a hugely positive impact. There’s been lots of research, and though I don’t know the exact percentages, we know that audiobooks have become a really booming industry for lots of reasons. I think audiobooks make reading much more inclusive, as not everyone can just sit down and read. For example, people who are visually impaired and children who are dyslexic or struggle to read. It broadens the access to literature and allows people to consume literature when they’re out and about, like when they’re at the gym. So yes, I think they’ve had a positive impact on the industry.
What is your favourite audiobook that you’ve listened to?
One of my favourite audiobooks that I’ve listened to; I listened to it recently. It’s called We Pretty Pieces of Flesh by Colwill Brown, and it is a novel that’s set in Doncaster. It’s written in the dialect, and Colwill Brown reads it in her native Doncaster accent, and I found that it made the story really accessible. It really brought it to life, so that’s one of my favourite audiobooks.
Given the opportunity to turn The Mare into an audiobook, would you?
(“The Mare” is Angharad Hampshire’s novel, published 2024)
The simple answer to that is yes. I think all authors would want their books made available as audiobooks, because it broadens the number of people that have access to it. Angharad actually informed me after the interview that there will be an audiobook of The Mare available on the new release date of August 27th, 2026. It’s currently in production, which is very exciting!
Do you listen to audiobooks more than once? And the same with physical books, do you come back to read them again?
For an audiobook, I would say no I wouldn’t relisten to audiobooks because I have stacks and stacks of books that I want to get through. But I also rarely read a book more than once. The exception is that I’m in two book clubs. I’m currently rereading Kick the Latch (by Kathryn Scanlan). It’s in my bag now because I read it more than a year ago and I’m going to be talking about it in depth tomorrow. But I don’t normally reread books as I don’t have the time, and I’d rather read something new it’s the same with audiobooks and podcasts. I don’t tend to revisit things unless I’m teaching it.
Was there anything else you wanted to say on audiobooks in general?
The thing I would say about audiobooks is that it is an expanding area in the creative writing industry, so I think it’s something to watch. I know that New Writing North in Newcastle has a section that’s devoted to audiobooks, so it’s still quite London-centric, but that is changing, which I think is a good thing.
Freya Green