Controversial opinion: audio books aren't "reading"

It's not technically reading but it's fine in terms of the colloquialism of "reading a book". I've never listened to an audiobook but I would consider it somewhat snobbish to dismiss it so quickly.

Well no, it's listening, rather than reading.

But of course it 'counts'. It's still a way of consuming the written word. Still a way of losing oneself in another world. Still a way of absorbing every detail of someone else's story.

What more do you want, really? And why would you deny someone a marvellous story, or diminish their experience of it?

I'm a former academic and librarian. Fluent in 4 languages. I'm ridiculously, boastfully well read. These days I enjoy the vast majority of books via Audible as I cook dinner for my family of five, or as I walk the dogs. I have absolutely no time to sit and read a book, but I'm buggered if that's going to stop me enjoying them!

Love reading though.

Have to admit I find long descriptive sections boring, which is probably down to the lack of mental eye.

I also don’t recall fragrances and don’t find a smell will trigger a memory and I wonder if that is linked.

A main benefit of proper reading is that you can see how words are spelt and that enables you to speak them properly. Listening doesn't tell you how they're spelt and just perpetuates mispronouncing words. You lose a huge amount of benefit if you listen rather than read.

Are you saying that someone who has consumed a novel via audiobook hasn't read that book?

What about visually impaired people? Are they not allowed to say they've read books?

If listening to a book isn't 'reading'... What's the point of reading to small children?

I prefer to read books rather than listen. But you can enjoy a book by listening to it. I suppose the difference is whether you are concentrating on it or its just background noise, like music on the radio.

Surely the whole point is to enjoy books, is it really important how you access that enjoyment.
I have a visual processing disorder and I use all the energy I have reading for work, so when I go home I enjoy stories via audio books.

I didn't know anyone classed audio books as reading!

I listen to a lot of non fiction audio books. I enjoy it. I can see that it's not as easy to refer back to a page /chapter so easily, but for fiction, that isnt important.
I dont really care if some people think it isn't reading or doesnt count!

I think it depends, playing a audio book while doing other things I wouldn't really count the same as reading, but for others who listen and concentrate as they would sit and read a book I would. I know people who are visually impaired or have issues with reading from a book eg dyslexia and I wouldn't say they haven't read the book.

Of course they aren’t.

I think audio books are as good a substitute as films/plays if not a bit purer. More accessible but not as immersive.

Audiobooks are superior for fiction as your brain uses the spare cognitive capacity to create more intense visualisations

I think they're reading, as long as you pay attention. You're consuming a book that someone has WRITTEN. You get the same information, the same story as someone who reads words on a page with their eyes.

Of course, when you're young and you read, you're also learning language, grammar, spelling, how to write etc. But at a certain point in life after you've learned all that, that isn't what reading is for.

I'm in my 30s and I've read hundreds of books (with my eyes lol). But when I listen to audiobooks now, I get the same information as I would have if I'd read a paper book.

They aren't reading in the sense of "I spend a lot of time reading" because you're generally doing something else at the same time. But they are most definitely reading in the sense of "I've read that book". I find when I listen to an audiobook I actually have a better recall of the story and other details because I can't skip around or skim-read like I do with hard copy. I also turn to audiobooks for the big weighty tomes that I find tough to get into or are hard on the eyes for some reason - most recently Barchester Towers which was dry on the page but screamingly funny on audiobook.

I remember hearing(ha!) David Blunkett's autobiography on R4 and he said he had all his papers read on tape for him when he was Home Secretary and he would listen all the time whenever he had a moment. He had to listen to everything, he couldn't fast forward the seemingly irrelevant stuff for fear of missing something. As a result he had a devastating command of details everyone else had skimmed over or not bothered to read!

I agree it's not quite the same as reading but for me audiobooks are a godsend - I was a huge reader but lack the concentration to read now due to heavy-duty medication. I'm happy that I can still access my favourite authors and chat about books with others.

Some people don't like reading.

I read a thread on here a few months ago about people who can't visualises things in their head.

So if you described an Apple say, they would know what you mean but couldn't see it In their mind. Since reading that thread I always wondered if people who can visualise in their heads like reading but people who can't don't.

Audio books are not reading no. I read a lot, esp just now as stress buster

Audio books they are an accessible route to a book one may have found impenetrable eg Finnegan Wake. I listened to that on audio as I’d never mastered it

Personally I think it’s a bit snippy to comment upon audiobook usage vs reading

Oh I think I'm with you on this. I have a family member who drops into conversation loads of books she's read however these are all listened to whilst doing the housework. To me 'reading a book' means time where you sit down and do nothing but read. So consequently I've not read half the books she's read. 🤷🏼‍♀️

We have a schism in our book group about this.
One person only listens to the books, another thinks this is cheating and the rest of us sit on the fence and laugh. 😀
I both read and listen, often to the same book. Ultimately, I’m not sure it really matters.