Is Listening the new Reading?

>> 29 September 2009

Here's the question: Does listening to an audiobook count as reading the book?

I recently finished listening to an audiobook of Moby Dick, a book that I would probably would never have gotten around to in print (It's pretty long and there are a lot of other books on my list). Listening to it, however, was very pleasant. I downloaded the text from project Gutenberg and referred to it when necessary, but for the most part, I just listened. I want to know if I can honestly tell people that I have "read" Moby Dick.

On one hand, listening does not require the same concentration as reading (at least for me). I can't, for example, write an email while I'm reading a book. When I'm listening to something (music, audiobook, etc.) I can do simple tasks like write an email. I wonder, though, how different this is from reading in a distracting environment - maybe an airport, or on a subway - where you get to the end of a chapter with only a partial recollection of what you just read.

While listening to Moby Dick, I tuned out at certain points. In the novel, there are numerous and lengthy digressions in which the narrator, Ishmael, pontificates about the science of whales (cetology) and presents a lot of boring information that has been largely supplanted by modern science. I made little effort to listen to every word of these digressions. I ask if this is substantially different from the process of "skimming" book, wherein, we skip the boring stuff and get to the next point of interest. Is there a difference between skimming a book and zoning out of a boring passage of an audiobook?

I realize that there is probably no substitute for a rigorous reading of a novel, but as far as casual reading goes, is there a substantial difference between listening to an audiobook and reading the novel?

Cast your vote and share your rationale in the comments section:

1 comments:

Rich September 30, 2009 at 9:34 AM  

Good topic Joel, I have taken up listening to AudioBooks on the commute to work and on road trips - great way to pass the time. Yes, I agree with all of your points: there is quite a bit of skimming that happens, so it may take away from the complete "reading" experience - but it is also pleasant. It can be a chore to get through some parts of novels, and the great thing about the audio is that you can just hit back and listen to that chapter again if you missed any details.

Let me recommend a few really great audiobooks:

A Wrinkle in Time Series (read by author)
Call of the Wild
The Old Man and the Sea (amazing)
The Golden Compass series - complete theatrical cast

I usually just do the classics or books that have been on my long list that I know I'll never get to.

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