Me who listens to the audiobook while I'm reading it: " I'm playing both sides, that way I always *WIN!* "

Audio books are pretty amazing, also they mean that ppl who are blind or with severe vision impairments, can experience the joy of a great story.

Audio Books: 1: I believe it was Stephe King who talks about how originally stories were told around a fire. The tribe would listen to a storyteller verbally tell them a story, and audiobooks are a return to that type of storytelling. 2: When I drive to the VA, an hour each way, I can't exactly read a book. But I can listen to a book 3: With an audiobook, I am more likely to get the names right. (Unless the reader mispronounces them) 4: I am a slow reader, but with audiobooks, I can comfortably turn the speed up from 1.3x to 1.7x and within a minute of acclimation still feel relaxed listening to it and no longer even think about how it is a faster speed (For others they can do 2x or even 3x) The practical effect of this is, when I read a book that would be a 10-hour audiobook it will probably take me 15 hours to read, but if I listen to it at a moderately faster speed I can listen to it in 7 or so hours. 5: The older I get the worse my eyes are, When I read it is almost exclusively on Kindle nowadays because the print in books is just so blurry, But listening to books is far more comfortable for me.

Personally, the biggest benefit to listening is that i'm not a native English speaker, so listening to audiobooks help-me comprehend better the language.

Having ADHD, reading the text while listening to the audiobook has allowed me to read 30+ books a year where before it'd be a good year if i read 5

I am a visual person, I love reading physical books, and when I listen to audio books I have to “reread” passages way more often. My younger sister is the exact opposite. She can look at a school instruction a dozen times and not understand it until it is read aloud to her. I think a major factor in audio vs visual books is how your brain best processes input information.

Depending on narrator, and enjoy audiobooks more than reading physical book. They add a different level to the story and help me picture the story better. Plus audiobooks work out better for me while driving to work.

I drive an hour to work, work 8 hours, then drive and hour home and my book addiction needs to compete with my video game and manga addiction but I can't read manga or play videogames at work or while driving so when I can read a 700 page book in 1 day when It used to take me months that's pretty cool

I think one of the things people forget -- or like, assume is a sign that audio is bad -- is that you can rewind and listen when your mind wanders. I've had this discussion so many times with people, and that is always the question -- "what about when your mind wanders, or you get focused on something and you don't take it in? That's the problem with audio!" As if that doesn't ever happen when reading a physical book?? I can't tell you how many times it's happened to me that I've read a paragraph, or even an entire page, and then realized I wasn't paying attention and then had to go and read it again... sometimes multiple times. You can do that with audio books too. It's the same thing. But I think a lot of people (even some audiobook readers) forget that this is possible, and that it's the exact same phenomenon between the two mediums. One is not better than the other. Listening to you talk about the students who had to listen to the podcast vs the ones who had to read it, that was the first thought I had -- did the students who listened get to rewind and relisten if something was confusing for them, or if they got distracted? Could they pause the podcast to consider something? I haven't read that study, but I would imagine that wasn't the case, that they likely only got to listen to it once. I would also bet that the students who read the physical version of the lecture weren't regulated in that same way, when something was confusing, they could go back and read it again. They could also probably stop reading for a few moments just to try and process what they read, something that was likely not an option for the audio listeners. The limitations of audio are often a result of people not remembering they have as much control over the audio as they do over a physical book.

Reading a physical book is faster, but with audiobooks, you can work or drive simultaneously

One thing I never really considered until recently about audiobooks is how much influence the narrator has on creating the characters they read. I recently listened to a very popular book that everyone seems to love, and I *hated* the main character. In retrospect, I began to wonder if it was at least partly due to the way the narrator interpreted her personality, and whether I might have interpreted her differently in my own head if I had read the print version. When we read, we're building the vision ourselves, but with audiobooks, we have some help (or hindrance?) in that area.

I've discovered, personally for me, Audiobooks actually help me get out of reading slumps. I do prefer physical reading because I am a visual learner but audiobooks definitely have they're perks to them and have helped me out of reading slumps which I find good because slumps are terrible. I also find that listening to an audiobook while physically reading the same book and following along help as well but these are my personal experiences. Both are great and beneficial!

This reminds me a lot of the discussion of writing on paper versus typing. Everyone says you can't learn through typing. It isn't HOW it is WHAT you get used to. I am physically disabled. I haven't been able to handwrite more than a paragraph since I was 9. I only type. Since that is my ONLY option, I am used to it and I can learn that way. Same goes for audiobooks. I am severely dyslexic. I can't read on my own practically at all. If I can't hear it, I don't know what it says. I am 95% reliant on audio. I have no idea what it feels like to learn through reading. I only know audio learning. I developed that skill to a high level. If you don't own a car, you are going to be really good at bicycling. I just mean, if you take out options, then whatever you are left with will be the best way to do that thing and your best way to succeed. Having options is what causes these discussions. I have NO options when it comes to reading and writing. I can ONLY type and listen; therefore, I am really good at it and it is really effective for me.

Great video! One difference you didn't touch on is that an audiobook is (in my opinion) one extra layer removed from the author's story, because you're getting it through the lens of the narrator's interpretation. Audiobook narration is an art form and different narrators will interpret and deliver a story differently, that's why people are able to have discussions about their favourite and least favourite narrators. This can be either a pro or a con depending on your subjective opinion. A good narrator can really elevate a story! But in the same way a bad narrator can make it difficult to listen to. The worst is when a series switches narrators midway through and the narrators pronounce some names differently!

I like it when you have the book in front of you AND you’re listening to the audiobook. I’ve never been able to just listen to an audio book, I’m a visual learner, BUT. When I have it while reading, it makes the whole experience more…cinematic. Highly recommend it

Thanks for doing this. Like you, I was diagnosed with a condition that makes reading comprehension potentially one of the most difficult things in the world. I was diagnosed with ADHD. As a kid, I could read books all day, every day. Sitting and grinding through books one after another, sometimes multiple in a day when it rained and I couldn’t do my farm chores. But when it came to my textbooks, it was so hard to understand what I had read. After I was diagnosed as a teen, my mom found a recent study (late 80s-early 90s) that said some ADHD kids (known as ADD at the time) had better comprehension when they were listening to texts while reading with their eyes. She found my textbooks through an organization that provided textbooks on cassette tapes (yes! Cassette Tapes!) for blind students. It helped tremendously. Back then, not every book made for the pleasure of reading was released in audiobook format at the print release. It had to be requested by readers first in most cases. And even then, it was on cassette tapes. Eventually we had CDs, but that still was a lot in manufacturing costs. Digital means I have a wider range of books to consume. Now as an adult, there’s so much to do and I have a very difficult time sitting for long periods if time to read, plus I feel a lot of societal guilt if I take time for me to sit and do nothing else while I read. For a long while, I stopped reading altogether. Audiobooks brought me back to the worlds I had been forced to leave behind.

I work a lot on the computer and my eyes can be sore at the end of the day. An audiobook doesn't require me to stare at something for a long time when I am already tired. Reading isn't a competition. Just a hobby we all share

I'm so glad you brought up how useful audiobooks can be for people with disabilities like dyslexia that make physical reading difficult! I have a sister with a different disability that has made physical reading extremely challenging and slow for her since high school. It stopped her from being the avid reader she once was, and audiobooks are what has allowed her to love reading again! I can't imagine trying to tell her that somehow none of the many series she's finished count because they were in audio format. I've always been a visual person more than an auditory person, so I have a strong preference for physical reading, but that doesn't invalidate audiobooks! Let people read in the way that works for them. Any reading is good reading!

The discussion of processing and comprehension is very interesting as a educator. Also personally I have a processing delay so I will listen and read along as it allows for better comprehension. From a educator and personal standpoint I would consider someone saying audiobooks don’t count as reading to be ableist.

I'm an adult, with a career, with kids, home, etc... Plenty of responsabilities and not enough free time. I love reading but for the longest time I would read like a book a year for entertainment and everything else I read was related to my field or because I read to my kids. After audiobooks and putting commuting time towards stuff that I love, I have been listening to so many more books... I've already "read" over 100 books just this year. Books I found time to physically read? About 1 for entertainment purposes... Audiobooks have also allowed me to read in English and in German since where I live it's not really that easy to get them.

I feel like I have more of a connection to reading a book, I feel like I’m in the world. When 8 listen to an audio book it’s interesting and convenient, but I don’t have the same connection.

I feel like it's a good thing to train our mind and train our visual capacities, as well as our listening capacities. It's two different things, but both useful :)

Audiobooks were super useful to me, when I had to drive for over an hour, multiple times a week. So good.

Yes. The answer is yes. (Although I personally love to reread physical books via audiobooks whenever I can. Fifth time listening/reading Dune is a spice trip :D )

the competition you mentioned is probably left over feelings about elementary school reading logs.....which in my experience, parents reading to kids absolutely counts anyway so it's still unfounded. 😆

I've never read a physical book (except as a child) but i love audiobooks especially at work

Amen. "Audiobook listening isn't reading" is so incredibly ableist. If you wouldn't tell a blind person without access to braille books that they cannot read, don't say that listening to audiobooks is "cheating".

I like to listen while I read physically. It helps my adhd brain stay focused 😄 Also, I think preference differs so much between people with different processing abilities and learning styles, so it’s important to consider that before judging how someone reads.

I remember in highschool my English teacher got mad at me for reading 1984 through audiobook instead of physically I felt so guilty. Now I mostly only listen to books and it helps cuz it turns out I have ADHD and dyslexia that was undiagnosed until I was 20. I can only physically read if my brain decides to hyperfixate on the book

Wonderful discussion, Merphy! One thing that makes me nervous about audiobooks is when authors don’t have input or agree with the way their books are read. I listened to an audiobook that I loved and later heard the author say the way the narrator portrayed a certain character wasn’t right. Hearing that made me feel like I didn’t experience the story the right way. I still enjoy audiobooks from time-to-time, and yes to letting people experience how they want to experience a book! 🙌🏼

This topic seems to surface every 30 days. I think both sides can have it there way and those who feel really emotional about either side, can just agree to disagree with the other side. If someone says, "have you read Children of Time," and you listened to the audiobook. Then, I think "yes I have" is an appropriate answer. If the person grills you on it and questions the legitimacy of your comment because of it, then that other person sounds insufferable. Speaking practically, if my kids teacher says, "I'd really like Junior to read more, every study tells us reading x hours a day is important to build children's vocabulary, cognition, spelling, grammar, etc." The teacher is talking about physical reading. I think a lot of the "argument" about audio vs physical comes from a competition that makes no sense. Both styles of consuming a story have value in different ways. If you are consuming books for pure enjoyment, then it makes no difference how you consume the story. Both sides win :)

I love audiobooks!! I’ve being listening to audiobooks on a off (depending on my time and the book) for a few years. But this year I started diamond painting and it is ideal for listening to anything while doing it, since it doesn’t take much focus. I just put on my ear buds, get into my books app and sit down to work on my canvas. And I’m still crying and laughing and enjoying the story. I still physically read and love both formats.

I really like how you pointed out that people learn in different ways. I personally learn really well from watching videos, but I have a hard time comprehending when I read. But when I add an audiobook to it, then I have the visual and audio aspect which makes things so much easier.

Fun fact about retention : I am French and I like reading books in their native language (if I can) . Most of it is english since a big piece of the SF/Fantasy well known catalog was written in this language. I feel no difficulty reading in French and English. I can watch TV show, whatever without subs. However I feel audio books in foreign language is very hard. I usually have my mind wandering while audio booking and the language barrier makes it worst. Fact retention wise it is very complicated and I had to drop it. Voilà, just sharing my experience if you find it interesting :D

See...this is what I don't understand...and I wish people would not call listening as reading. Reading is done with the eyes. Listening is done with the ears. You are right, there is no competition in consuming a book. What I don't like is when people say that they have read a book, when in fact they have listened to it. Again...reading is done with the eyes, listening with the ears. It might be activating the same part of your brain to do it, but the action is different. It's just like baken and vegan baken ...not the same... However it is an individual thing. Some people like reading a book, some people like listening to a book. It is all good.

Thanks for this, Merphy. As someone who's been called a cheater for reading audiobooks several times this is validating. Also, as someone with ADHD, I've noticed significant improvement to my attention span since I've started listening. I also fall asleep while reading less😂

A correction: it has been well debunked that we are a type of learner (visual, audio, mechanical learning), as everyone is every type of learner. We are better at learning the way we practice learning. And that is the meta of the studies you covered, and it is probably the biggest "variable." It is the visualization in your mind that stretches your brain to be better :p

I think the biggest problem with audiobooks (at least for me) is that it's way easier to zone out than it is when physically reading. So often, I miss key moments, leading to confusion in later moments, leading to me misunderstanding the book.

I absolutely love audiobooks. I was that kid who brought books to school and read them in class(even though I'm dyslexic so I often had to reread whole lines/pages out of confusion), and as I got older the book became a Kindle my dad had got me for Christmas one year. I read so much my teachers started taking my kindle at the start of class so I wasn't distracted lol. I used the Kindle Text to voice thing when I found out it existed, it cured the problem of needing to reread because my dyslexia didn't affect it anymore. Then Kindle changed and no longer allowed the text to voice because they had audiobooks now so they wanted you to pay lol.. At first I wasn't a huge fan of it, I'd actually grown accustomed the robotic lady voice for a couple years lol. But now I listen to an audiobook for minimum 7 hours a day, and some days it's closer to 15 hours. I've stayed up all night before because I got so into the audiobook I just had to finish before I could sleep! I have a vivid imagination and so when I listen to audiobooks it's like my mind creates a movie of it in my head. Sorry for the rant, I just felt like divulging some of my love of audiobooks lol.

I personally think that one of the aspects that draw us into reading a book is the storytelling aspect of it. So if you prefer to read books or listen to the audiobook version of it, that's completely up to you as both methods enable us to be drawn into the story in similar ways. So you do you :)

Thank you talking about this Merphy. While I don't have dyslexia, I feel like I can kind of relate due to my OCD. Sometimes I have trouble getting through books when my compulsions cause me to read the same sentence or page 100's of times. Whenever I get stuck in this loop audiobooks really help me break out of it.

I too am dyslexic, and I’m also a very auditory learner. I have much higher auditory comprehension than reading comprehension and I have listened to an average of about 100 books per year every year of my adult life. Obviously, I’ve known the benefits of audiobooks for years, but I’m really glad that audiobooks have become so much more popular in recent years. Also, a pro-tip to all the hard core listeners out there - audiobooks and video games make a fabulous combination.

"Audiobooks are cheating" sounds like, that it was said by someone who was forced to read for a student assignment.

I take issue with the car/bike analogy. The reason that seems silly is because the thing they’re trying to do is arrive somewhere - which they both did. The difference between that and audiobooks/reading is that people are generally talking about the goal of reading itself. Audiobooks simply aren’t reading - they’re listening. It’s an objective fact. So a better analogy would be someone in a running marathon finishing with roller skates on. Yes they all got to the finish line, but the context of the race is running not roller skating. So the destination doesn’t matter IF the people are talking about the process. In the same way if you’re talking about READING, which most conversations around this are, then yes audiobooks are like roller skates. Now if you’re talking about something like “intaking information” or “experiencing stories”, etc, that moves the goal away from the process (reading) and places it on the destination (finish line). In that case no matter how you get there it doesn’t matter. Personally I prefer the second conversation and don’t think it matters how you get there. But when talking to people it’s important to recognize which of those conversations you’re actually having. Because you might end up trying to justify roller skates to a running club. And just like reading and audiobooks, running and roller skating are both great and very similar and neither is morally or philosophically or any other way better. But they’re different, so IF you’re in a conversation about running then roller skates will cause friction. But I think the core problem is that all conversations are around “reading”. That’s why you’re having to get tongue tied trying to force that word to include audiobooks. You feel compelled to do that because there is a massive culture around “reading”, but not much of one around “story loving”. I can get a t-shirt that says “quiet I’m reading”, there’s “Booktok” etc. All these things have reading as the basis and default. And people want to be a part of that so we shoehorn in audiobook listening and there’s friction because it’s not, as a matter of fact, reading. That being said it would be basically impossible to change the cultural phenomenon of “reading” to “story consuming” or whatever, so including audiobooks as “reading” is the only thing we can do.

I read and listen at the same time. It makes you concentrate more, fly through so many books, and it’s perfect for those of us who have TOO MANY books to get through haha

In spirit, audiobooks "count" as having read a book. Semantics is another story. 😊 Thanks for the research and breakdown!

Love that you put this together. I do both and have a strong preference for physical books for certain genres, but really really love how audiobooks have enabled me to read more and read more diversely (specifically, super long fantasy novels!). Let’s not worry about what is “better” and just enjoy the books!

When I fell sick. I binged listened to the Dresden Files. The best thing about audiobooks is that they are handier. People don't bother me when I have my headphones on, but when I have a physical book... It's a whole other thing.

As a dyslexic who consumes about a book a day, audiobooks are a constant companion during the day. Love them!! 💙🌸🐛

Using the bike example, the reason I say audio books isn't reading is because if you used a car to get to the location you would say "I drove here" but for some reason people say "I biked here" which isn't true. The amount of effort doesn't matter I agree. It just bugs me when people "listen" to a book and not "read" a book. That's the ONLY thing I don't like about it haha

Leaving the sources in the description is very helpful.

I like having certain series for audiobooks, looking at you stormlight archive, so I don't have to carry a tome around with me. I've been carrying Asimov's foundation books around with me cause I can quickly pull them out a read a chapter when I feel like it. Plus doing basic tasks like cleaning, washing up, folding sheets and walking home from work are perfect listening. However I can start to zone out if I'm doing anything more complex like drawing, thank God for the 30 second rewind button!

Technically, as audio books has the plus of being acted, I would feel that that would add to enjoyment as well as to retention.

I started listening to audiobooks in my 30s while on hour-long commutes for work, and with benefit of hindsight it was prolly about the time that my long-sightedness was kicking in, so that may have been a factor, i used to read a fair bit when Ii was younger. I have nearly 100 books in my audible library now, i've been able to go through some books I was putting off or had been interested about and have had a range of experiences, mostly positive: The Wheel of Time audiobooks are incredible, and having the same narrators as I've been starting to dive into the Cosmere books has a massive plus for me. I remember starting to listen to Harry Potter and hearing the way Stephen Fry talked about the Dursleys in the opening paragraphs and thinking "oh, this is going to be fun" Covering the main Dune series, some Stephen King, some contemporary things like the Millennium trilogy and Huinger Games, or some classics like 1984 and Bram Stoker's Dracula... Listening to Corey Taylor narrate his own novels and getting to hear his sarcasm or bile etc in his rants was great. I've wish-listed The Hobbit & LoTR, as narrated by Andy Serkis, should be amazing. Starting to suffer chest pains shortly after turning 40, and sitting in a waiting room of a local medical centre, waiting to talk to a GP, and listening to an audobook to help kill the time, which just happened to be Pet Sematary, narrated by the guy who played the title role in Dexter ... morbid, much?

Thank you Merphy! I appreciate the stellar research you've done to better all our comprehension on this matter! 👍

"I'm a big reader, if you didn't know" -Merphy

Actually, learning styles like you described aren’t really a thing. Veritasium has a video on it.

I have ADHD, and in my early 20s I realized I was a terrible listener. This was during the first big rise in the popularity of podcasts, and I consciously decided to become a better listener by training my focus on podcasts. I'm not perfect, but listening to audio stories has vastly improved my ability to listen to people in real life, and I credit it with my being able to go back to school and get a science degree. Today I listen to a TON of audiobooks, but I've found on average, while I enjoy them, I rate books I've physically read more highly than books I've listened to. For me, something gets lost in the multitasking, and in the narration by another person. I still consume them every day, but I now save books I know I'll love for physical reading, and pick more wildcards for audio listens.

Great video! I'm an audiobook listener, I read 1 to 2 books a year and listen to around 30. A.P. Canavan said something the other day that I hadn't considered. The main difference between between reading and listening is that when listening you don't get to make choices about character voices.

I used to love reading so much. These days, I rely on audio books bc I have less tolerance for being in incredible pain than I did as a child, and eye strain can & does trigger my migraines. I wish audio books weren't so expensive, though. My family shares a library & my mom pays for Amazon prime for other reasons, so I get to use the 1 "free" credit per month, and there are sales... but the sales only discount audio books to share the full price of paperback books are. I understand there's an extra step of production of audio books, but it's still an accessibility issue and it sucks.

Thank you so much for this video! Loved it! I am legally blind and, audiobooks have brought me so much joy over the years. As a kid, I hated reading mostly because, I began learning braille a few years later than blind students usually start learning it. Braille is the system of reading and writing for the blind made up of dots, that we read By feeling the dots with our fingers. The code has around 250 character combinations and, a bunch of rules for when and how to use these characters. As a result, I was never able to read at my grade level with braille. I depended on audiobooks for textbooks in school because, they were simply the most efficient option at the time. I didn’t start reading for pleasure until my junior year in high school. When I started reading through audio for fun, I read 8 Books in 4 weeks and, I have never looked back. Now, many years later, I have significantly improved my skills in braille And, I have mastered the symbols and rules for the code. I am just working on improving my reading speed. So, I still predominately read through audio.

I love having the option. There are definitely some text types that lend itself well to audiobooks (biographies, horror, non-fiction etc) but other books that I think need a closer and more intense examination that I tend to do better with reading. In saying that, there are voice actors who can add so much to a text (looking at your Stephen Fry) and offer up such rich rereading of texts that you know and love. Literature has always had a sense of status associated to it, and a proper way for it to be done. Time to throw that out the window and focus on getting great stories to as many people as possible.

Awesome video, one of your best. Appreciate your advocacy here for listening; for books; and for people as individuals

One of my best friends is legally blind. He can't read anymore. Thank goodness for audio books or he couldn't consume a story at all. For me audio books are with me on my daily hikes with my dog.

Have you heard of Aphantasia? I've never known why I had such a difficult time while reading books. Especially ones that were very descriptive because my mind would just wander through the pages without actually "seeing" any of the described stuff in my mind. Which is why I always liked reading a book afters seeing it's adaptation. Because then I could at least "remember" how everything and everyone is supposed to look. Is this something that you'd like to do a video on some day?

The typical use case for audio books is that one can listen to them while _doing other things._ Household chores. In the workplace. *Driving.* I wonder how many, if any, of the studies of comparative comprehension levels between reading and listening to books take into account that in practice listeners to audio books are rarely able to pay full attention to the audio book? It seems like a pretty important thing to know. Because there _have_ been studies on multi-tasking, and the results are that nobody is as good at it as they think they are. This also suggests two reasons why some people might regard audio books as "cheating." One, because _in practice_ someone who listened to an audio book while driving (say) probably won't comprehend or retain as much of the material, because of the other things they were actively doing while they were passively listening. And two, because by definition it doesn't demonstrate the same commitment of time and attention as sitting down with a paper or e-book copy and _not looking at other things_ for an hour or twelve.

I like these conversational videos you’ve been doing lately!

I don't know why, but personally when someone says "audiobooks are cheating" the first thing that comes to my mind is them not enjoying reading at all but being forced to it because "it's the norm" or "the correct way"; which would beg the question, why would you be mad to the person enjoying audio formats, instead of being mad at the one dening you that possibility? All contain in this thought experiment or hypothesis

Even if science did say "audiobooks are worse " I'd still listen to them. They fit better into my life and I'm a really good auditory learner, so I'll muddle along.

This was a phenomenal video! Your arguments have won the day. If anyone ever brings this topic up to me again, I plan to direct them to this video. Great coincidence, I just told one of my colleagues a day ago that I listen to audio books while cooking. Maybe I just cook the same stuff over and over and thus it doesn't require much thought, but I think it's very easy to multitask with audio books. I also clean and, sometimes, even organize stuff, which you would think would take some brain capacity. :)

This is SUCH an awesome idea for a video! Love it!

I'm dyslexic and losing my eye sight. Auidobooks are how I've been able to continue to enjoy books. So in my opinion the argument between audio vs physical is moot.

The parallel you made between: biking vs taking a car To reading vs audiobooks was very interesting. I don’t think the debate is about how we both got to the ending but it’s what we tell people HOW we got to it. For example If I went on a beautiful ten mile hike and then someone biked it, drove it on a motorcycle, looked up the trail on the internet, or just anything that had to do with that trail other than HIKE it and then proceeded to say “oh I hiked that trail too” then I think that’s where the actual problem is with this debate. Just because we enjoyed the same trail in different ways doesn’t mean we can’t discuss the beauty of the trail together. It’s just we have to be ok with the fact that we appreciated the trail in different ways. I disagree when people say listening to an audiobook is “cheating”. I think people can enjoy a story regardless if they read or listened to it. But the actual definition of “reading” is: the action or skill of reading WRITTEN or PRINTED matter. So I think when someone listens to an audiobook they actually should say “I listened to it”. Not “oh I read that book”, because they technically didn’t read it. Look at it this way, when I was a kid my dad would read me books before I went to bed. I would never wake up the next morning and tell my mom that I read that book last night…. Because I didn’t…my dad did. But did we both get the same information and can we have a discussion about it? Yes and that’s awesome! So I guess to answer the question from your title: I think audiobooks are not reading. It’s listening. But it doesn’t mean you get any less enjoyment from all the great books out there! People just need to be ok that reading isn’t the only way to enjoy a book, and listening to a book isn’t reading it. But in the end, they are both enjoying the same story :) Just want to say thanks for all your great content!

I usually change the pace of my reading, like on detailed descriptions I read slower and on fights I read faster. I know you can change the speed on audible but it just happens naturally while reading, I don’t even think about it, I don’t like pressing the buttons all the time, that’s why I preffer reading

I love reading but have ALWAYS struggled so much because I have a short attention span. I’ve always stayed away from audiobooks because I felt like I was cheating myself out of the benefits of reading or taking the easy way out. Over the last few months I’ve been listening to audio books as I work and it’s not cheating or taking the easy way out. I’m getting the story. And sometimes I’ll listen and then read or vice versa and it helps even more. Both are worth it but it all differs for each individual. Great topic!

I started to listen to audiobook in the beginning of this year, and now every book I pic to read, I tried to listen the audiobook together, because I love it!

I love how everyone talks about whether audiobooks “count” or are “cheating”. Is there a test or game somewhere for how many books you “read”? Do I get a prize for reading? 😁

I do a bit of both. Audio books allow me to multitask where reading needs to keep my undivided attention. As a dude who doesn't have a lot of free time to sit down and read, audiobooks are a godsend. Nothing beats sitting down all cozy and reading a book but sometimes you just don't get to have that opportunity. I say just enjoy the story how you want. Which is what I feel is the most common sentiment among avid readers and audiobook listeners.

In audiobooks, one is consuming stories, learning pronunciation by "Listening". So it's not reading but listening and as long as one is learning things it's fine but whoever calls it reading is wrong. It's just another medium of consuming things.

Audiobooks are cheating ? I didn't even know I was playing a game D:

I can’t do audiobooks, I can’t imagine things that I’m hearing as beautifully and explicitly when reading myself! Just can’t beat reading a book yourself.

Thanks, this was one of the biggest questions that I had!! This was one Great video! I really enjoyed it!!

Oh my memory is so bad! It's a bit of a relief to hear that yours isn't great either and still you are able to discuss books as well as you do! The audiobooks that I don't love as much, I will forget quicker. But a great story with a good narrator, that's like having watched a good movie! Also thank you for being so nuanced (and calling people out for being extreme)! Imagine people complexly.

Been trying to get into audiobooks, might help me stop skim reading novels and actually listen to the details more carefully.

of course it's really reading. for many disabled people, audiobooks are the only way they're able to read. how mean it would be to say it doesn't count

Audiobooks are how I get chores done! I've had to change my habits while reading audiobooks, because sometimes I would try to listen and start reading an article online or something, which made that listen time totally not count. But if I'm doing something where I can pay attention and I'm *not* using the language processing portion of my brain for something else, I think it's totally fine.

Thank you for all the information on audiobooks. I solely listen to audiobooks. I grew up with a learning disability and audiobooks helps so much. This helps my son as well with his dyslexia. I hate when people say it’s not reading so again thanks for the facts!

The blade itself by Joe Abra Comby is a really good example of why you might want to try out audiobooks. The narrator is incredible and he really brings the story to life in a way I suspect I would not have if I would’ve just read it visually

Some years ago I taught literature to a Group of blind people, and they were “new” blind, so they were born seeing, but had become blind for some reason or other - sorry about this messy Danish sentence….. audio books were SO important to them! And they also taught me something: Blind people don’t listen to audiobooks, they READ them and I find that very interesting that for them reading is reading no matter the format. I read both physical, kindle and audiobooks. My distinction between my reading is `reading` and `read-listening` 😊📚🦋 Just wanted to put that perspective into the discussion 😊 many kind reading regards from Hanne, Denmark

Yay! We’re all on the same team. Yes. Thanks Merphy for these really thoughtful videos.

Thanks merphy. My experience of both mediums... Physical books: -My mind is able to map where things are. -Vocabulary is improved because I see how words are spelt - the challenge is to learn to pronounce -Sometimes I actively mouth the words - speech benefits. -I can stop and think about complex sections/parts that intrigue me. Some disadvantages: -It can be difficult to pick up where you left off and still remember what led up to that point (as opposed to playing 2/3 min back to catch up). -I typically can only do it in one position involving my hands, eyes and attention. Audiobooks: -I get through stories much faster. -I can do it leisurely eg on a 30min walk on a treadmill - I finish big books in a week or two. -I can still comprehend even when I'm not really listening. -It can help get through tedious tasks easily. -English is typically in British/American - I relate to British and so it's easier to comprehend. Some disadvantages: -I can't always stop and ponder complex sections. -Any trail of thought can take away from your experience of the story or sequence of things. -Risk of zoning out through bulk/boring sections -Stories are hard to retell/regurgitate - although you can still vaguely/paraphrasingly retell the main idea

I’m dyslexic I find information is much easier to digest in audiobook format. My Mum wrote a children’s book recently based on my dyslexia to encourage dyslexic kids. It’s about a dyslexic dinosaur 🦖 and we got a professional narrator and it’s now on Amazon 😊 I hope it helps people.

Reading is an Active Form of Doing. Audiobooks are a Passive Form of doing. Reading is very distinct from Listening.

This is really great info, thank you!

Thank you again for these videos! I greatly appreciate the effort you put into doing research about the benefits of reading no matter how you access the medium. As someone who has also struggled with dyslexia I often read book while having the audio playing. It helps immensely on my overall experience. I know I would not have been able to suffer through some books with text alone. As you have said we humans beings learn in various ways and sadly the most effective are the least available option.

Why are people so bothered with how other people enjoy art? We have become very judgemental in the last few years and it's always 'My way or the highway'. I prefer to live and let live. If you enjoy audiobooks, e-books or paper books, go ahead. When i was young about 100 years ago the discussion was similar between paperbacks and hardbacks. Silly, but there it is. We are too concerned with how other people do things... /rant over..sorry :-/ I love audiobooks as they leave my hands free and allow me to go on with my day while still getting my book addiction fed. However, if the narrator is 'wrong' - and that comes down to taste of course - I can't stand it. When i listened to the Malazan on audio book they swapped narrators after 3-4 books and it took me almost an entire book to be ok with it. It was ok since i've read the books several times but if i don't know the book before, the wrong narrator makes me DNF the book, regardless of how good it is.

No

It’s really interesting with the cooking dinner bit. I can’t listen if I need to read a recipe, that takes to much focus for me. But most meals aren’t from a recipe and those I do just find. So I know what meals I can and can’t listen to an audiobook. So as you said, it’s individual to the person and the practice they have ☺️ great video!

The part about "decoding becomes second nature" is so true. When I was in middle school, if my concentration broke while reading I would just stop at the line I was but now my concentration wavers a lot and I don't even realise it until I've subconsciously read a few paragraphs, it is very annoying

To answer your question: no, listening to audio books is not reading. Listening to audio books IS consuming books and that’s what’s important. I grew up using the Library of Congress’s books on tape (tape!!!!) program for reading disabilities, it never felt like reading. I think audio books are a tool for BookTubers to keep up their “reading” numbers. That’s how people suddenly read 1,000 books in a month.