HELP ME CHOOSE!

The_Ink_Goddess · Jul 13, 2011

So I got a 3.99 membership to Audible.

Good news: one free book! Yay!

Bad news: only one free book.

There are three I'm looking at right now:

JELLICOE ROAD by Melina Marchetta
CRACKED UP TO BE by Courtney Summers
THE MARBURY LENS by Andrew Smith.

I wanted Jellicoe Road the most, but I hear it's quite complex? Does that mean it's better to read than listen to?

thebloodfiend · Jul 13, 2011

Ah. So difficult. I've never read The Marbury Lens, but I've heard that it's kind of gory and creepy. I, personally, would go for that.

Cracked Up to Be is alright, but not my favorite CS book.

Jellicoe is confusing no matter what medium. It might be best to read it in print because there are certain parts that you have to read again and go back on. You can't do that with audio as easily.

Kitty Pryde · Jul 13, 2011

Jellicoe Road! I don't think it's complex at all. Some people may have found it confusing, but I'm sure you'll be like me and know exactly what's going on long before the Big Dramatic Reveal.

Marbury Lens is good but Jellicoe Road is crazy good. Marbury Lens is awfully creepy and gorey and has some horror-style sexual assault which is distressing.

strawberryblondie · Jul 13, 2011

Yeah I wasn't confused by Jellicoe Road at all either. I was actually a bit disappointed that I figured everything out so quickly, but I still loved it.

Sage · Jul 13, 2011

I'm pretty picky about my audiobooks. My suggestion is to listen to the samples (which are usually pretty long) on Audible and see if you can stand to listen to the reader. There are some awful ones and then there are some brilliant ones.

I actually think I concentrate more on audiobooks than when I'm reading these days. I listen while I'm working and doing mindless things like picking bugs out of debris under a microscope, so I'm held pretty captive while listening to these books. But the reader is so important.

Full-cast audiobooks are my personal favorites (those tend to be fantasy, I think). Other than full-cast, my favorite ones have been Paranormalcy and the Dresden Files books.

ETA: Also, I had heard how complex JR was before reading it too, and I thought it was well done, but not surprising.

thebloodfiend · Jul 13, 2011

I will probably be attacked by hoards of MM fans, but I want to clarify what I said. JR was confusing to me because I found the first 100pg boring. There were too many names and way too much exposition IMO. I skimmed. The book is not confusing, but I could not get into it. A few of my friends say that it's worth re-reading bits to get into it, but I don't really see the point of having a beginning that doesn't become clear until a good 1/4th of the novel.

I liked the last 200 pages and skipped anything that Taylor wasn't in. But I don't like anything of MM's except for Alibrandi. I, however, am very much in the minority with her. But I'd follow Sage's advice. Listen a bit first and see if the narrator is good because a boring narrator could put you to sleep with a book like this.

Shady Lane · Jul 13, 2011

I love love love love love love Jellicoe, but I think because of the competing narratives, it's better to do print. That being said, I've never listened to an audiobook so I really have no basis for anything.

thebloodfiend · Jul 13, 2011

Shady Lane said:
I love love love love love love Jellicoe, but I think because of the competing narratives, it's better to do print. That being said, I've never listened to an audiobook so I really have no basis for anything.

How can you have lived through elementary school and never listened to an audiobook? Ever? Not once?

Eh, anyway. If I was to get an audiobook, I'd get something by Neil Gaiman because he narrates his own books and he's supposed to be good at it. Once, I got an audio book of Eldest by Christopher Paolini when I was twelve. The narrator read all the females horribly wrong. Horribly, horribly wrong. Imagine a wrestler imitating an elf.

Lpapercranes · Jul 13, 2011

I read Jellicoe Road as an audiobook and I was able to follow it. It's a little jarring at the beginning, before you understand what's going on, but it would be like that as a regular book, too. I haven't read the other two, but I vote Jellicoe. The narrator was excellent. And I loved the book.

Becca C. · Jul 13, 2011

thebloodfiend said:
How can you have lived through elementary school and never listened to an audiobook? Ever? Not once?

Eh, anyway. If I was to get an audiobook, I'd get something by Neil Gaiman because he narrates his own books and he's supposed to be good at it. Once, I got an audio book of Eldest by Christopher Paolini when I was twelve. The narrator read all the females horribly wrong. Horribly, horribly wrong. Imagine a wrestler imitating an elf.

I haven't listened to it, but I've heard that the voice for the dragon, Saphira or whatever her name is, is so bad it's hilarious.

Shady Lane · Jul 13, 2011

thebloodfiend said:
How can you have lived through elementary school and never listened to an audiobook? Ever? Not once?

I was reading at a 6th grade level when I was 6 years old. I'm not the slightest bit auditory. I couldn't follow a storyline in an audiobook.

thebloodfiend · Jul 13, 2011

Shady Lane said:
I was reading at a 6th grade level when I was 6 years old. I'm not the slightest bit auditory. I couldn't follow a storyline in an audiobook.

Hello fellow child genius...

My prodigyness is slowly leaving me as I age. When I turn 18, I doubt anyone will care how smart I am as opposed to in k-5. It's sad... Almost makes me feel like Colin in An Abundance of Katherines. Almost.

Anyway, Becca. Sapphira's voice was horrible. Terribly, horribly, sucky, bad, horrible. And don't get me started on Arya. Thank god I had the Chocolate War on audio to wash that away.

I will go with the majority. While I think the marbury lens is a good second choice, if you've been dying to read JR, go for it.

The_Ink_Goddess · Jul 14, 2011

Shady Lane said:
I was reading at a 6th grade level when I was 6 years old. I'm not the slightest bit auditory. I couldn't follow a storyline in an audiobook.

See, that's kind of my problem. I'm not a ZOMG PRODIGEE by any stretch of the imagination, *but* reading was something I did pretty early. And I'm not remotely auditory, either.

Shady Lane · Jul 15, 2011

ugh, i didn't mean to sound like i was bragging, sorry. trust me, burning out after two months in the ivy league will take anyone's ego away

The_Ink_Goddess · Jul 16, 2011

No, no, I didn't mean it to sound like you were, Shades.

It's just a subject I feel uncomfortable with in general, so I counter it with hyperbole/sarcasm. My problem, not yours.

HELP ME CHOOSE!

The_Ink_Goddess

we're gonna make it out of the fire

thebloodfiend

Cory

Kitty Pryde

i luv you giant bear statue

strawberryblondie

Sage

Our Lady of Parentheticals

thebloodfiend

Cory

Shady Lane

my name is hannah

thebloodfiend

Cory

Lpapercranes

Becca C.

Shady Lane

my name is hannah

thebloodfiend

Cory

The_Ink_Goddess

we're gonna make it out of the fire

Shady Lane

my name is hannah

The_Ink_Goddess

we're gonna make it out of the fire