AudiobooksNow Blog

We talked about the many things that we can enjoy with the help of audio books – whether it’s to accompany us during exercise or to help us when teaching our kids the value of listening and reading. Check out the many stories we’ve prepared for you in this cycle:

• Discover how listening to audio books while performing other duties can help you to multitask and get two things done at once from Tiffiny Carlson.
• Are you among those that use audio books to keep you going during exercise and fitness training? Find out how others are using audio books during their fitness routines at lululemon.com.
• Listening is one of the first things taught to kids at school. The literacy benefits of listening can be brought along with a child as he/she grows up and learns different lessons.
• Audio books have different purposes, and teaching kids how to read is one of them. Whether it’s teaching your own kids or a group of children in a formal setting, these are great tools to have.
• It’s a relatively new debate in the world of books: Is listening to audio books considered an equal to actually reading them, from cover to cover?
• Finally, to close off the cycle, we had a little talk about the different benefits of listening.

It’s not just women whining to their boyfriends this time. Listening is an actual skill that is necessary in life. Let’s not over-complicate things – without listening, we wouldn’t be able to communicate properly. Without being able to listen, we would just keep blabbering and no one would be able to understand each other, let alone reciprocate reactions and replies. We won’t make sense in any way. Can you imagine if nobody listened – ever? The world would be full of noise and misunderstanding.

Listening helps hone the values that are considered integral for a healthy social and emotional life. It allows us to connect to other people and build relationships. Listening allows us to empathize to our friends and family, and they to us.

On a more serious note, we all know that listening is a skill that we learn early on in life – even before we are born into the world. As we grow up, it allows us to learn new things and discover stuff we didn’t know before. There are many ways to sharpen this skill: engaging in meaningful conversation, listening to or reading stories, watching educational plays or films, and a whole lot more.

Listening is very important on so many levels. Sometimes, we forget how to do it, even as adults. Teaching our kids how to listen and comprehend the things told to them is a good reminder about this valuable life skill.

A lot of people are ditching traditional books for other forms – such as ebooks and audio books. The question that puzzles audio book users is this: is listening to audio books considered “reading”? Some people may say it isn’t the same thing, while others will beg to differ. Troy Janisch shares his thoughts on this matter.

Source: http://www.socialmeteor.com/2012/04/23/does-listening-to-an-audio-book-count-as-reading-sometimes/

If you’re thinking of using audio books in teaching kids how to read, you’re on the right track. This new technology can make the task more enjoyable for both you and the kids while keeping it simple and easy for everyone. Renee Vians gives us some steps to follow when using audio books for teaching.

Source: http://www.ehow.com/how_4471885_use-audio-books-teach-reading.html

Listening is a skill that is very important for when we are very young – and not just for communication and social etiquette. The literacy values of listening can set the path of a child’s development until he/she grows up and starts school. Audio books are great tools to hone this skill. Read more on Scholastic.com.

Source: http://www.scholastic.com/parents/resources/article/developing-reading-skills/literacy-benefits-listening

If you are a regular runner or you are looking to start a running routine, consider audiobooks for your running entertainment. Audio books have been a great source of inspiration and motivation for many runners. Follow the link to read more about adding audio books to your running or exercise routine from lululemon.com.

Source: http://www.lululemon.com/community/blog/running-while-reading/

Have you ever used audio books for multitasking? Whether there is a subject you need or wish to learn more about or you just can’t find the time to sit down and read the newest releases by your favorite author, audio books can help you. Click here to find out more from Tiffiny Carlson about how audio books can be a great tool for multitasking.

Source: http://vpgautos.blogspot.com/2013/02/audio-books-perfect-mulitasking-tool.html

This time around we’ve looked at how to maximize your enjoyment of audiobooks, how to organize your audiobooks on iTunes, how to find more time for reading, and whether or not they offer the same level of satisfaction as physical books.

• We talked about how to get maximum enjoyment out of your audiobooks, even if you’ve always loved reading physical books in the past.
• eHow.com has some great tips on how to organize your books in iTunes so you can keep it separate from your music lists and find what you need faster.
• We talked about the debate among book lovers on whether or not listening was as enjoyable as reading. There are some great tips on how to ensure your audiobooks experience is a great one.
• Olga Khazan, a contributor for Forbes.com, offered her thoughts on the issue of whether all books are suited for conversion to audiobooks. It depends on the type of book, according to some experts.
• Jimmie Lanley, a blogger and parent who homeschools, offers her tips on how to fit in more time for reading. She is an advocate of listening to audiobooks as a time-saver, for both children and adults.
• We also talked about whether die-hard book lovers can really make the jump over to audiobooks. It may depend on the type of book, and whether or not you enjoy multi-tasking while listening.

There are some die-hard book lovers out there who love the feel of a paperback or magazine in their hands. They love to curl up with the latest best-seller in front of the fireplace and escape to a different world. Can these people get just as much enjoyment out of listening to audiobooks?

There is some debate over whether they are quite the same thing and of course everyone has their own opinion. It really comes down to the individual and whether or not they are willing to keep an open mind to trying new things.

Kudos to Olga Khazan, a Forbes.com contributor, who understands that the issue is not necessarily black vs. white – that conversion of some books to audiobooks will work better than others. According to Khazan, it can depend on the type of book. With difficult topics, for example, physical reading may pose an advantage, because you can go back and re-read the sentence or paragraph until you understand what is being said.  It’s harder to do that when you’re listening.

Physical environments are different when listening to books as well. Often, people are listening and doing other things at the same time, such as exercising, driving or cleaning. if you consider yourself a multi-tasker, then listening to audiobooks may suit you just fine and you won’t miss curling up with that paperback after all.

Reading, it seems, has become a luxury that many of us just don’t have time for anymore. Children too, it seems, are not reading as much these days, and that has become a concern for many parents. Jimmie Lanley has posted on her blog that audiobooks may be the answer to fitting in more reading time, for both kids and adults.

Source: http://heartofthematteronline.com/how-to-painlessly-add-more-books-to-your-reading-schedule/