To listen to a book
All my life I have loved reading. Ever since I was a kid, I've always kept a book close by. Although I stopped reading constantly for a few years, I recently returned to it as a daily habit.
At first, I read physical books and couldn't fathom the idea of reading digitally. Then, I realized that e-books allowed me to carry an entire library with me wherever I went. So, I embraced digital books.
However, despite this change, I'd never considered the idea of listening to a book. How could I enjoy a story if I didn't read it, if I couldn't see every symbol, letter, every single decision the author made on a page? This way of thinking, perhaps shaped a bit by the type of poetry I enjoy (which doesn't easily translate from paper to voice), made me reject the idea of audiobooks.
This year, bit by bit, I've opened up to the idea of listening to read. I spent a big part of last year listening to podcasts, and a few months ago, I tried my first audiobook, partly thanks to the Vancouver Public Library's catalogue.
Although I still prefer reading on paper or digitally, I haven't had a bad experience with audiobooks. I like that I can listen to the story while doing other mechanical tasks, like cooking or cleaning. And even, since I need to consciously pay attention to the narrator's voice, it forces me to concentrate on the story, to be present in what I'm listening to, instead of getting lost and drifting between letters and pages.
I will continue experimenting with different formats, and maybe one day I'll incorporate another sense into this quest for knowledge, stories, and worlds. In the meantime, I'll split my reading time between digital books and audiobooks.
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