Audiobooks aren’t cheating! A recent study at UC Berkeley scanned the brains of participants as they both read and listened to stories. The surprise result was that the brain reacted almost identically when listening to audio as when it read the actual text.

But audiobook listeners have had that idea for years. There's something about listening to a narrator infuse life into a well-written book that lets you really get into the story, not to mention that you can listen to them just about anywhere!

Maybe you first encountered Harry Potter as Jim Dale read it with perfectly magical voices for each character. Or you got chills as Neil Gaiman read his own creepy children’s tale The Graveyard Book. On one roadtrip, I started listening to Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins, author of The Hunger Games. By the end of the trip, I had downloaded and listened to all 5 books!

Or maybe you can’t get enough of your favorite actor’s voice. Try The Wizards of Once, narrated by David Tennant. Or go back to the classics with D’Aulaire’s Book of Greek Myths, narrated by the likes of Sidney Poitier, Matthew Broderick, Paul Newman, and Kathleen Turner. Or dabble in a bit of book-based magic as Kate Winslet reads Matilda. Even Samuel L. Jackson has gotten into the narration action, reading John Henry.

Speaking of The Wizards of Once and Matilda both were finalists for the Odyssey Award, voted on every year by a group of librarians and other reading professionals. The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson was on 2019’s short list, and is available for download on Hoopla!

You’re not just limited to one source of audiobooks either. If you have a smartphone, tablet, computer or other smart device, you can access many audiobooks through the Overdrive or its app, Libby (iOS, Android, and Windows 10 apps), or browse the catalog. And check out even more audiobooks on Hoopla, another one of BCLS’s e-resources. Of course, you can still come into the library and pick up one of our many titles for kids, teens, and adults on CD or Playaway.

Whether you’ve never listened to an audiobook before, have a favorite narrator, or want to try out a few new favorites, Bay County Libraries have you covered. Light up your brain with stories while you listen!