Does anyone else struggle with audiobook narrators, or does it improve?

[PaperFlyingFucks]

I've recently got an audible subscription and have listened to a few books whilst getting on in the house, car, commute etc. However, I really struggle to get on with the narrators - does any one else have this problem? As it's new will it pass with time? I don't think I can choose a narrator. It's amazing the difference it makes!

I really like Joanne Froggatt as a narrator. I choose books purely by narrator now. Can't listen to American either

Just catching up on here.

I think unfortunately some women are not great at doing male voices; I think it’s probably the fact they concentrate on sounding deep as if to equal masculine. I saw people recommend The Three Dahlias somewhere on here and i thought I would listen to thd audiobook but the female narrator doing a male character was like a caricature of a man and I had to give up immediately.

i tried to listen to the Peter Dinklage as Poirot full cast audiobook and I couldn’t listen because I found his portrayal of Poirot slightly sexy sounding 🤨😬😁.

I love Anna Massey reading Rebecca and have listened many times. She absolutely nails the male voices and also that of The Girl.

One of my pet peeves on audiobooks is narraters doing bad accents. In particular narrators who multifunction “celt” accent meanders between Glasgow, Edinburgh, Belfast and some strange hinterland of Sydney. If they can’t do the proper accent then I’d rather they just did not attempt it. Ditto narrators voicing the New York PI with some sort of generic West Coast accent. My top hate is the voicing of children as some sort of caricature Violet Beauregard and overdoing every statement. Have these narrators never met an actual 3/4 year old?

There are some matches made in heaven - Kobna Holdbrook-Smith has ruined me for any other RoL narrator so I hope he never stops narrating. A good narrator can absolutely make an audiobook, I’m always surprised when people undervalue professional narrators.

Hard agree. I’d add that imo just because someone is an actor doesn’t mean they can read prose. Like Miriam Margolise and Richard Armitage.

But an actor who can read prose is usually a joy. My best narrators are Timothy and Samuel West.

I can’t stand it when women narrate the male character, especially in romance books. It just comes across as really creepy.

@C8H10N4O2absolutely. If the actor can’t do the accent, just cast a local. 99% of the time for accents of Scotland and Northern Ireland, this is the only answer.

Thanks for the Dungeon Crawler Carl recommendatuin, started it today and enjoying it already.

Tom Lake read by Meryl Streep is beautiful. I have no idea if I would have enjoyed the story as a book, but I could listen to Meryl whatever she was reading.

I really enjoyed so thrilled for you too, with 4 different narrators.

I can't listen to a male narrator, definitely prefer a female narrator, which really surprised me.
But even with female narrators, I struggle with many.
When I find a narrator I like I often search by narrator rather than book.

I started listening to the John and Paul Beatles new book, but that’s narrated by Chris Addison who I don’t like and sounds wrong and isn’t reading it very well (imo). Too much sixth form drama student with dramatic pauses. I’ve had to stop listening.

My absolute favourite is Robert Glenister in the Cormoran Strike books. Also love Lee Ingleby in Cara Hunter Books, Juliet Stevenson is amazing in anything as is Nicola Walker - I'm loving Janine Birkett in the Vera books at the moment and the Irish Writer DoL Ryan is brilliant with his own books - I listen to at least three books a week from audible or the library - I'll often stop if the narration is poor.

Just started The Romanovs by Simon Sebag-Montefiore read by Simon Russell Beale.

Great story and writing; not sure how I feel about SRB's narration.

Going against the grain, I like Robert Glenister doing the Strike books, but not as Strike. He gets Robin's accent right, but Strike is a bit too "Arrgh Jim Lad" for me. I always think his accent would be slightly softened by his years in London and the army.

I love Sean Barret - does the Slow Horses books. Find them brilliantly read.

I love them too. Thanks for name checking him. Didn't think to check what else he reads. I'm watching the TV show before listening to the books so patiently waiting just now!

I try to listen to the sample segment because like you, I can’t get on with an irritating narrator. I hesitate to say this but there are American narrators and there are American narrators and some are awful, so always beat to listen to a sample if you can. On the other hand, some narrators are amazing! And I love a biography read by the author. I read Bonnie Tyler’s autobiography a few years ago and it’s fab. And of course anything D Attenborough.

Completely agree with this. I love books where the narrator is talking in the first person as the book is written. If that makes sense? Some amazing audiobooks i've read are the correspondant -brilliant
And nesting also really good.
I felt like i lost a friend when the books ended