Thoughtful Thursday: Perfect Marriage between Book Type & Format?

Hosted by Reading Is Fun Again

I created Thoughtful Thursday, because bookish thoughts kept popping up in my mind while reading, and I wanted to explore these questions and get your opinions too!

Each week, I will post a new bookish thought that I will discuss. Everyone is welcome to join. You can do this in two different ways. (1) You can discuss your thoughts in the comment section of the Thoughtful Thursday post. OR (2) You can post your thoughts on your site. If you do option two, please link back to the Thoughtful Thursday post, use the Thoughtful Thursday graphic, and add your name/post to the Linky widget. If the Linky is closed, feel free to add to add the link in the comment section.

This Week's Topic/Question

Does the type of book (e.g., genre, demographic, page length) inspire you to read the book in a particular format (e.g., audio book, paperback, hardcover, e-book)?

My Answer:

What an interesting question. There are a lot of reasons why I might choose a particular format.

• Audiobook: Yes! If a book in the classical genre (Austen, Shakespeare), is autobiographical, or a work of nonfiction, I would definitely prefer for the audiobook. Old English, while it sounds beautiful, is often lost in translation for me. Listening to the audiobook helps; the information is easier to digest when spoken. Also, I'm less of an academic when it comes to reading so autobiographies and nonfiction are a chore to get through and audiobooks help immensely. That said, the biggest factor in me choosing audiobooks is the narrator. I am a big fan of audiobooks and the reasoning for this is top-notch, fantastic narration. I've got a long list of favorites (Wil Wheaton, James Marsters, Emma Galvin, Ray Porter, Scarlet Chase, and Angela Dawe to name a few) that continues grow and expand. When I like a narrator, I tend to listen to their entire body of work which has been awesome, as it's exposed me to new authors as well as genres I've stayed away from like horror. One more thing to point out though, is that I refuse to listen to abridged versions ... I don't get the appeal. 

• E-book: Convenience is the big factor here. I own a Nook Color, so I buy quite a few Nook Books. Also, I always have my iPhone with me, and I have three e-book apps on it - Apple's iBooks, Amazon's Kindle and a Nook app that connects me to my Nook library. With all these options, it's rare that I can't find the e-book format for the next book on my to-read list, so it's probaly the format I use the most often. Also, it saves on space since I don't have to lug around physical copies. Also, with my iPhone, I have an Audible app that connects me to my audiobook library, as well.

• Hardcover: I'm very particular when it comes to hardback purchases due to the fact that this format is the most expensive. Before e-books and audiobooks got popular, i would just sigh and buy them if I book I was itching to get my hands on wasn't available in paperback when I wanted it. But nowadays, I only purchase hardbacks from my favorite authors.  

• Paperback: There's nothing that really motivates me to grab a paperback. I'd say the only thing that would make me go out about by a paperback specifically is if I couldn't get it via audiobook or e-book. Usually, these are books I find at the library, buy second hand, get from a friend or from my perusals of bookstores. Nothing special.

After everything I've said, I guess my short answer is the type of book only matters the most when it comes to audiobooks.