How the market works
Notes
The reviews are about books. These are about the machinery underneath them: why one recording is listed at five different lengths, what a label on a product page does and does not promise, and which field to check before you spend a credit.
Nothing here scores a book or tells you what to read next. That is what the shelf is for.
22 notes
How It Works
Why Audiobook Lengths Differ Between Shops, and Which Is True
Audiobook lengths can differ by minutes or hours between shops. Here is why the numbers change, what is counted in them and how to check your edition.
By The Numbers
Why Audiobooks Change Narrator Mid-Series and How to Check First
Why audiobooks change narrator partway through a series, named examples with sources, and how to read the credit on the last book before you commit.
By The Numbers
Audiobook Different Versions: Why One Book Has Two Recordings
Audiobook different versions explained: why one book has two recordings, from regional rights to anniversaries, and the listing fields that show which to buy.
How It Works
How to Tell if an Audiobook Is AI Narrated: Read the Listing
Is the audiobook AI narrated? Check the narrator field and the store label. See the exact wording Audible, Apple, Google, Libro.fm and Hoopla use.
How It Works
Narrator Pseudonyms: Why One Narrator Has Two Names
Two narrator names, one voice? Learn why narrator pseudonyms exist, which named pairs are documented, and how to confirm it before you buy an audiobook.
Books And Series
Dark Tower Audiobook Narrators: Who Reads Which Book
Dark Tower audiobook narrators by book: Frank Muller, George Guidall and Stephen King, why the voice changes, and which Gunslinger is the revised one.
How It Works
Audible Performance Rating vs Story Rating: What Each Star Means
Audible shows Overall, Performance and Story stars. Here is what each measures, how counts work, and how to use the performance rating to pick a recording.
How It Works
How Many Pages Is a 10-Hour Audiobook? The Plain Conversion
A 10-hour audiobook is roughly 250 to 320 trade paperback pages. See the math, six named books by pages per hour, and the time at 1.25x, 1.5x and 2x.
How It Works
Revised Edition on an Audiobook: What Changed, and How to Tell
A revised edition audiobook may carry new text, a new narrator, or both. Check the narrator, release date, runtime and description to see what changed.
How It Works
Full Cast vs Dramatized Audiobook: What Each Label Means
A full cast audiobook can read the whole book, while a dramatization adapts it into a script. See how the labels differ, with runtimes for named titles.
How It Works
Dual vs Duet Narration: What Each Means and Where to Check
Dual vs duet narration explained: how chapters, characters and voices split, where a listing hints at it, and a one-minute sample test before you buy.
How It Works
Audible UK vs US: Why Narrators, Prices and Titles Differ
Audible UK vs US: why the same audiobook shows a different narrator, price or availability by country, with Harry Potter and Tolkien examples to check.
How It Works
What Speed to Listen to Audiobooks: What the Studies Show
Which speed to listen to audiobooks should you pick? Named comprehension studies from 1.5x to 2.5x, Audible's own figures and the hours each speed saves.
Books And Series
Lord of the Rings Audiobook: Inglis vs Serkis Facts
Two complete Lord of the Rings audiobook recordings exist, by Rob Inglis and Andy Serkis. See year, runtime, publisher, songs and labels side by side.
Books And Series
Andy Weir Books in Order: Reading and Listening Guide
Andy Weir books in order: The Martian, Artemis and Project Hail Mary are stand-alone, so start anywhere. Publication dates plus every audiobook narrator.
Books And Series
Harry Potter Audiobooks Total Length: Dale, Fry and Full Cast
Harry Potter audiobooks total length for all seven books: Jim Dale 116 hrs 21 mins, Stephen Fry 124 hrs 36 mins, Audible full cast 114 hrs 36 mins.
How It Works
How to Get Into Audiobooks When Your Mind Keeps Drifting
Want to get into audiobooks but your mind drifts? Start short, play a sample, adjust the speed and use a library card with Libby or a Playaway to try it free.
How It Works
Why Audible Books Disappear From Your Library, and What to Check
Why Audible books disappear from your library: hidden, filtered, another marketplace or a membership rotation. Check in this order, with Audible's own terms.
How It Works
LibriVox vs Audible: Free Volunteer Reads and Paid Audiobooks
LibriVox vs Audible: who records LibriVox's free public-domain audiobooks, how the copyright works, and what a paid Audible plan adds. Five classics compared.
How It Works
Audiobook ASIN: What It Is and Where to Find It
Your audiobook ASIN is the 10-character code in an Amazon link. Learn where to find it and why the same link can open a different narrator or edition.
Appreciation
Dolly Parton Put a Book in the Post Every Month for Thirty Years
Dolly Parton has died at 80. She spent thirty years posting a free book a month to any child who asked for one, and it now reaches one in six American under-fives.
How It Works
What Unabridged Actually Means on an Audiobook
Unabridged is a promise about one thing only, and it is not the thing most shoppers read it as. Here is what the word covers, what it does not, and the sentence that catches people out.