12
Can we talk about audiobook narrators making or breaking a book?
I just finished a book club pick called The Hollow Places by T. Kingfisher. I listened to the audiobook version and the narrator had this super flat tone that made every character sound bored. I almost quit halfway through. Then I grabbed the physical copy from the library and it was a totally different experience. The pacing and humor popped right off the page. It made me wonder how much the narrator's style actually changes the book. Has anyone else had a book they hated on audio but loved in print? Or the other way around?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
stone.evan15d agoMost Upvoted
johnson.lee your Road example hits hard because I had almost the same thing happen with World War Z. The full cast version was incredible but then I tried a single narrator version and it was like listening to a robot read a grocery list. I've definitely become that person who samples the first five minutes before buying now. And hey, maybe the narrators aren't the problem maybe I just have the attention span of a gnat on espresso. Either way, you're spot on about narrators making or breaking a book.
6
johnson.lee25d ago
I used to think a good story could survive any narrator, but you proved me wrong with that Hollow Places example. I listened to The Road by Cormac McCarthy on audio and it was so monotone I barely finished it. Picked up the paperback later and the same bleak story felt way more intense and emotional on the page. Totally changed how I pick audiobooks now.
4