Has anyone given up listening to an audiobook because of the narrator?
Has anyone given up listening to an audiobook because of the narrator?
72 Answers
You must be logged in to post a comment.
Loading Please wait
Has anyone given up listening to an audiobook because of the narrator?
Yes several times I can’t stand some narrators
So many times ?
Often.
Yes more than a couple. Audible is great about returns though.
Yep
It happens
YES! Sadly so… sometimes even accents… like what I would imagine being a a mysterious, wondrous character and then its a typical or flat accent is enough to press stop. Next!
Yes. If they are too monotoned I fall asleep so I end up just reading itn
Yep. Girl on the train.
And I’m close to quitting the Sarah j Maas series because of it. And these are the only times I’ve ever tried to audiobook. I guess it’s not for me.
The guy narrating the Belgariad put me off audiobooks forever ?
I wish Michael Kramer and Kate Reading could narrate every book I read!
Omg – i just listened to book 3 and 4 of the immortals series on audio book…. and I LOVE Tamora Pierce. It was narrated so poorly i almost didn’t finish. Then I realize at the end that it was narrated by the author! I thought it was a bot – she sounded like Alexa.?♀️ I was blown away by the lack of any inflection. Sorry Tamora- stick to your day job.
The name of the wind, tried to listen to several times … can’t, his voice annoys me.
The handmaid’s tale, I ploughed through it till the end… I really wanted to know the end … only to discover once finished, that there was a version narrated by Clare Danes which is much much better !!
@Magpie wait, what? The handmaid’s tale is awful in and of itself. Narration can’t fix that…
@Magpie there are two versions with different narrators for The Kingkiller Chronicle, maybe you could try the other one?
Yes, allthough not often. I listened to a free book of the John Milton-series on Audible, and cringed so hard at this middleaged, upper class white man who tried to be both colored people and young people. It was horrible..
Close to this on Raven Boys. The narrator isn’t baaad… I just don’t really like how he does Blue’s voice. He makes her sound silly. Luckily I have a print copy too.
Yes. Hated the voice.
I dont like audio books at all because they are narrated. It just bugs me cause when I read in my head, I create “voices” for each character and stuff and I guess someone else narrating (even when they are good) just messes with my immersion
Yes
Yes
Yup. Then I ended up buying the book in hardcopy to finish!
Yes
no
Yes. Bad narration is the literary worst. LOL
Yes, the Harry Potter narrator on Audible is awful. I had to buy The Stephen Fry versions. So much better!
Who does Audible have? Dale?
I like most of what Jim Dale does in those, but his Hermione voice is awful. “HARRYYYYYYYY!” ?
Yes. There are a couple that I just can’t struggle through, no matter the story.
yes
one time i tweeted at a narrator to tell her how awful she was, i later deleted the tweet
Yes a few times
Im struggling with The Book of M. The male narrator is monotoned.
Yep!! The powder mage books were amazing! The narrator was Christian Rodska but the same world novellas we’re done by a lady called Julie hoverson and she was putrid!!!
Yes. I recently gave up on Little, Big because of the narrator, who in this case happens to be the author of the novel. I might try to read it instead, he seems to be better at writing than narrating.
I really don’t care for Scott Brick. Which sucks because he does a lot of audiobooks I’d otherwise want to listen to.
Yes! A narrator can totally ruin a book.
Yup. Especially when they switch narrators mid-series
@Sadie that is the worst!
All the time. A poor narrator can totally ruin a book. I can’t take Dick Hill, Scott Brick, Scott Sowers. And the person narrating G.O.T. I also avoid when the authors narrate their own books, with the exception of Barry Eisler, who is good. By contrast Ray Porter is superlative. I will buy a book without listening to a sample if he’s narrating. Alexander Cendese is good too. I have no hesitation returning books if the narrator is poor.
Yeah i have
Couldn’t get through eragon! I hated saphira’s voice!!!!
YES!
Yes.
I always listen to the sample because it makes a big difference
Yes. The dark tower series.
Yes. Sometimes it really just throws off the whole books.
Oh definitely. Even if it’s a great book.
Yes
Not yet but I’ve come close
Even though it’s a great concept, I’ve never found a Librivox book I can actually listen to.
Always listen to samples first.
Yup. I have been trying to listen to Dan Brown’s latest book for over a year.
??♀️??♀️
I find ill grow used to it if i keep going
It is the storyteller who tells the story. Not the story telling the storyteller.
I have heard the same story told by four different people. 1 I cannot stand.
Yessssssssss!! Ugh.
YESSSS tons of books.
Not yet; I have Siri set to ‘male’ and he reads just fine. 🙂
Yup
Many many times ?
Yes
Yes, lots of times. I do listen to samples first but you can’t tell exactly what they’re like from that. I love Audible because you can return the books if you don’t like them.
Not yet but i have when the narrators to quiet.
Yes… It was like pulling teeth to finish Seventh Son.
Bill Bryson narrated his own ‘Thunderbolt Kid’ with surprising dullness. He’s a great, amusing writer but, no, he cannot narrate. Leave it to Kerry Shale, who sounds like Bryson ought to sound in ‘A Walk in the Woods’.
absolutely. I really wanted to listen to The Dark Witch trilogy by Nora Roberts (whom I really enjoy) and just couldn’t get past the narration. Not knocking the narrators, just saying I didn’t care for them.
Yes! I just could not keep listening to that voice!!!!
Yes. More than once.
Yes. Once I tried to read the physical copy after an awful narrator ruined the audiobook & I couldn’t do it because I heard the narrator’s voice as I read!
No, I gave up when iTunes only uploads 1/2 the book and makes you pay for all of it. ??
Ironically the worst Sherlock Holmes narrator I ever heard was Christopher Lee. He was reading Valley of Fear as fast as he could. It was almost unintelligible.