No longer just the greatest invention for bathtub readers, the audiobook is, according to new data, the surprise saviour for solving one of the world’s greatest problems: getting non-readers to read. Sales of audiobooks have doubled in the past five years, according to Nielsen Bookscan figures revealed at the London Book Fair this week, with commuters and men aged 25 to 44 accounting for the bulk of that rise.
But presumably factors other than fidgety, word-averse men are also at play. Perhaps the astronomic rise of the podcast over the last decade has made everyone more audio-friendly. Since Amazon bought Audible in 2008 for $300m, the retail giant has also been flinging cash at the form with wild abandon, as free and ambitious as Stephen Fry’s reading of Harry Potter (don’t worry if you’ve only started, his slightly ropey Hermione gets better).
So as ebook sales fall and print sales hold steady, audiobooks are liberating everyone who has tried to read a book while doing the dishes. But finishing them is another battle: stats from audiobooks.com last year revealed that most people never got to the end of most audiobooks, including War and Peace (20% of readers completed), Swing Time by Zadie Smith (52% of readers completed) and Nick Clegg’s Politics: Between the Extremes (67.5% of readers completed, a surprise success). Here are a few you won’t give up on:
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders Read by Nick Offerman, Keegan-Michael Key, Don Cheadle, Lena Dunham, and others
With its screenplay-like format, the prospect of reading Saunders’ Booker prize-winning novel may seem daunting – so investing in this seven-hour audio version, read by a starry 166-person cast, is a great alternative – and perfectly suits Saunders’s inventive take on the novel.
Let’s Explore Diabetes With Owls by David Sedaris Read by David Sedaris
Once you hear Sedaris’s nasal lilt, you will be unable to read his books without it echoing in your head. Everything sounds funnier when read in his voice, even the slightly morose musings on growing up gay.
I, Partridge by Alan Partridge Read by Steve Coogan
Read in the mellifluous tones of the voice of Norwich radio, Coogan’s hilarious memoirs for his monstrous creation are as good in audio, particularly the wonderful footnotes. Jurassic Park!
Yes Please by Amy Poehler Read by Amy Poehler
The Parks and Recreation actor’s memoir is even more charming when read by her, with the addition of famous friends and her parents.
