eBooks, Audio Books and More!

Since I was three years old I have been absolutely addicted to the printed word. Lately the trouble I've had with eye strain has forced me to feed my need for literary input in alternate ways. This branching out has turned out to be a good thing since I have discovered some wonderful resources online.

One of my favorite is Project Gutenberg, a library of free eBooks and audio books of out-of-copyright titles.



I can go on there and find almost any title in classic literature and have the computer read it aloud to me. Some of the books have professionally recorded audio tracks. If you have the technology, you can download the ebook to your mobile device and take a book with you. Or you can download the .mp3 file, stick it on a CD or iPod and have a new book for that long car trip. I love it!

There are other sites with free audio books if you do a Google search but so far this has been the best one I have used.

As any bibliophile will tell you, nothing replaces the smell and feel of a "real" book. But I have found that a good audio recording has a certain appeal of its own, especially when read with a crisp, British accent.

My friend/boss Debbie is teaching a Jane Austen class this spring and I have half a mind to read the Jane Austen books again to see if I have changed my mind on not liking them. I've read a couple of them and seen almost all of the movies. I keep thinking if I read them again I will learn to like them as so many others do but so far it has been a lost cause. Since I'm down to just a few unread books currently, perhaps I should add them to my list.