Incidentally, the name of this post is the name of my Excel spreadsheet of books. Speaking of which! Next Monday is my year-end of the reading year, so next Tuesday should be a look at what a reading year is like for me. But that's not what this post is about (obviously, as I still have a week to cram in some more reading). This post is about the awesomest audiobook I've ever had the pleasure of listening to. (I'll try to break down my year in audiobooks next week too. I honestly have no idea how many I've listened to, and I'm interested to count them up.)
Love Walked In is the title of the book, and I'm almost certain I almost bought it in softcover more than once at a bookstore. I think it was on the bestseller list for at least a little while, and I remember that the cover was somewhat appealing. In the end, though, I'm almost certain I didn't buy it because I didn't think it looked very appealing. And maybe it's not appealing in book form, still. But the readers of this book are so fantastic, and it makes for such a harmonious listen (I also just really like one of the two main characters), that I can't wait to get in my car and begin the drive home, so I can listen to this fantastic thing. I even considered listening at my desk, because I want to know what happens, dammit.
Most of the audiobooks I've listened to haven't been read by two or more readers. A couple, though in the last one like that, it was horribly distracting instead of an asset to the production. These voices just work well together (the story is told by two characters, in a parallel chapter style, so one narrator does one chapter, and the other will do the next, thus staying in character), and they've done a really good job of becoming the narrator in a way some readers don't ever get. They're weird things, first-person narrated books, because they demand that the reader become emotional and involved in the story, in a way that third-person narration definitely does not. In that sort of story, it's as if someone is reading the book to you, as opposed to acting out the book. And it's a HUGE leap to make, as a listener. Maybe it doesn't seem like it, but the way this book must be written--well, I imagine it might be annoying on the page. I'm not sure, because obviously I haven't read it, and I probably never will. The audiobook is just too enjoyable.
It's hard to write intelligently about this, because I haven't done a lot of thinking about why I enjoy certain audiobooks over others, and honestly, I've never thought about this first-person/third-person divide before, so I don't have any formed thoughts about it. But it occurs to me that part of the reason I'm loving this one so much is that I feel like Cornelia is reading the book. The character is reading the book, and not the author or an actor. That's NEVER happened before. Not ever, and I've listened to what I consider are a lot of enjoyable audiobooks. It's very, very odd. And I know I've listened to first-person narrated audiobooks before this, too, so it isn't as if it's just a shift in narration.
Still, though, if you're an audiobook fan, check this one out. I'm going out on a limb and actually recommending it with a big stamp of approval. So good. (And keep in mind that I'm saying this while I'm less than half the way through the audiobook. I can't WAIT to hear the ending. I don't think there's any chance I'll finish before Friday, which saddens me.)
Hey, that's when my year-end of reading is, too! And I totally stole that idea from you! So thanks! And thanks for the rec on the audiobook. I've never listened to one, but I'm driving home from DC for Xmas, and think it might be a good time to try one out. I'll put this one on the list, and any other recommendations are welcomed!
Posted by: Mavis | November 06, 2007 at 01:47 PM
I'm glad to hear you're enjoying the audiobook - I just picked up a copy of the softcover from Borders last weekend (for $3!).
Posted by: comebacknikki | November 06, 2007 at 04:46 PM