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It’s official. Downloads = 52% of sales in 2010, while CDs = 43%, as reported in the newest industry survey conducted by the Audio Publishers Association. That leaves 5% for other formats such as cassettes (yes there are still a few produced) or Playaways. Yet the statistics also show that the shift doesn’t necessarily mean more dollars for audio publishers – there’s more revenue from physical media. But the shift to digital has also triggered a huge jump in the industry’s growth – 2010 had twice as many audiobooks published than just three years before. You’ll see the survey highlights below, but only members of the Audio Publishers Association can see the full survey results – and librarians are welcome to join
These statistics mirror the reactions from five industry insiders I recently interviewed for my upcoming January “Voices in My Head” column titled “Digital Shift Happens,” which will include the abridged version of fascinating insights into the changing world of audiobook creation. I’ll be featuring my complete interviews here on Audiobooker over the next few weeks, so stay tuned for more on the subject from Johnny Heller, Paul Gagne, Tavia Gilbert, Barbara Rosenblat, and Paul Ruben.
2011 Industry Sales Survey Report reflecting sales data from the 2010 calendar year
Survey Highlights:
Unit sales were up nearly 10% in the past year, showing continued consumer interest in audiobooks.
Based on the companies who reported (representing 61% of the industry), total net sales (after returns) are up by 2 million units and $2 million.
The total number of audiobooks being published doubled in the past three years, from 3,073 in 2007 to 6,200 in 2010.
Audiobook downloads continued on a growth trend representing 36% of dollar volume (up from 29% in 2009) and 52% of unit sales (up from 48% in 2009).
In the past five years, downloading has grown 300% by dollar volume (from 9% in 2005) and 150% in terms of units (from 21% in 2005).
The CD format still represents the largest single source of dollars but showed slight declines overall in 2010 – 58% of revenue (down from 65%) and 43% of unit sales (down from 46%).
Unabridged editions (89% of the market by dollars; 85% of the market by units) continue to lead in sales.
Returns are down for the third straight year.
There has been an increase in the number of companies with sales over $10 million.
0 Comments on Digital download of audiobooks tops physical CDs as of 1/1/1900
20 kid’s audiobooks for 99 cents – Tales2Go Happy Holidays app from iTunes has over 30 hours of winter-themed listening goodness, from traditional tales such as The Brave Tin Soldier and The Story of Hanukkah to favorite characters Clifford and Clementine available here for Apple iOS gadets. This stand-alone audio app is a great way to sample Tales2Go’s unlimited access, single fee subscription, which recently added a single-month option. Plus, Tales2Go now allows five devices tied to a single account – toddlers can use mom’s iPhone, preschoolers dad’s iPod Touch, and tween can have the iPad. Instant back seat bliss! Tales2Go has baby books to chapter books, with original storyteller fare – from Diary of a Wimpy Kid to favorite songs from Bill Harley. There’s even school pricing. Check out the Tales2Go web site for more: http://tales2go.com/
0 Comments on Holiday Audio Bargain as of 1/1/1900
Read into the Nook’s microphone , and add your own narration to kid’s picture books. There’s plenty of press on today’s announcement of the newest competitor in the eReader wars, but the unique addition of an on-board mic really caught my eye. The promo video highlights the “Read and Record” ability, which allows a child or adult record the text for later playback – a do-it-yourself audiobook + narration. Details are few right now, but I can see this as a fantastic literacy tool in the classroom to foster fluency, or as wonderful cross-generational storytime sharing. But that’s just one of the very attractive features of Nook Tablet. So yes, I did just pre-order the Nook Tablet. Which should arrive 4 days after my Kindle Fire. To add to the drawer with the Nook Simple Touch, Kindle Keyboard, Nook Color, and (now antique) original Sony Reader. Promise you won’t tell my family members.
1 Comments on Nook Tablet = do-it-yourself audiobooks, last added: 11/8/2011
Thanks for this insight, Mary. Both ideas – literacy tool and storytime sharing are fantastic! I wonder how easy it is to transfer or send your narrated story to a loved one?
I do love and recommend your blog to friends and colleagues!
The Princess and the Pea & transliteracy. Naxos Audio’s free MP3 file can be played on your computer, or dragged & dropped on any player (just scroll down, right-click link & save). Perfect for your little princess! And perfect timing for me. I’m developing a transliteracy unit for gifted 6th graders, examining the concept of theme in folk & fairy tales, looking at how different formats affect the message and address personal learning styles. This audio will be a perfect addition to the traditional picture books, retold modern versions, graphic novel adaptations, poetry, short novelizations, reader’s theater, novels in verse, video, and long-form literature. A short audio listen-aloud is a wonderful addition to the classroom (or family room!), no matter the students’ age.
Pass out some 11×17 blank paper, fold into frames, turn out the lights and press play. Encourage the kids to visualize as they listen. At predetermined plot points, press pause and have the students illustrate the audio segments in sequential frames focusing on a particular literary element such as setting, character, mood. Later, cut apart the frames and create posters that have the enlarged text of the audio selection as a heading, with all of the different visual interpretations below. Voila! Instant concrete example of transliteracy
0 Comments on Free Audio in the Transliterate Classroom as of 1/1/1900
A big thanks to everyone who joined us last night at the Housing Works Bookstore to enjoy the "Changing World of the Foreign Correspondent" panel moderated by The Paris Correspondent author Alan S. Cowell. Joining the panel to discuss the rapidly changing world of journalism in the digital age were Chrystia Freeland, global editor-at-large of Reuters News; John Darnton, award-winning journalist and bestselling author of Almost a Family and Black and White and Dead All Over; and Peter Godwin, author of Mukiwa: A White Boy in Africa and When a Crocodile Eats the Sun.
How does the job of the foreign correspondent change over time? Will on the ground foreign correspondence be necessary in the future? Does the rapid pace of web journalism compromise credibility in foreign reporting? Last night's panelists tackled these big questions about the state of global journalism in the age of Twitter and shared stories from their backgrounds as pioneers in the field of digital media.
0 Comments on The Changing World of the Foreign Correspondent Recap as of 1/1/1900
Kindle compatibility = audiobook audience. Eager new library download patrons are storming the gates to grab free titles for their Kindle. Last August, I gave you the month that Kindle downloads would go live via OverDrive Media. The rumors started flying earlier this week and OverDrive’s press release yesterday made it official: the Kindle digital deluge has begun! I just downloaded my first free library title to my Kindle in 45 seconds. Sweet! Learn how in the video below.
This new wave of digital download patrons will be prime customers for your audiobook collection. In my “Voices in My Head” column in the Sept. 15 Booklist, I mention that OverDrive’s “Get from Kindle” download button will only allow instant e-book downloads, not audiobooks, which will most likely prompt questions from patrons who currently purchase audiobooks through the Kindle store, and might expect instant audiobook downloads to the Kindle now as well. Librarians can remind patrons that downloaded MP3 audiobooks can be drag-n’-dropped onto the Kindle – or any other media device. This is a great opportunity to promote your entire digital collection to the deluge of new patrons – perhaps with an in-house flyer or video that shows how to download & transfer a title from your MP3 audiobook collection onto the Kindle. Why not pair an always-available classic audio title with an always-available Kindle ebook, showing your users how to toggle back and forth between formats?
Grab the free audio short story “Chosen,” in which bestselling author George Pelecanos first explored the character of Iraq War veteran Spero Lucas, hero of his newest novel, The Cut. Best of all, the audio is read by actor Dion Graham, who appears in TV’s The Wire – a series that includes Pelecanos as a writer. Audiobook fans know that Graham is one the very best narrators, from award-winning adult titles to Odyssey-honored youth & YA titles. Good to know that Dion Graham will be voicing the whole Lucas series, beginning with The Cut. If you’ve never heard Graham work his magic, download “Chosen” for free and see what you’ve been missing! Just visit the Hachette Audio web site, scroll all the way to the bottom, find the “Online Exclusive” on the bottom right of the page, right-click the blue Chosen link, and save the MP3 file to your computer. Then drag and drop onto to your player or cell phone. Or you can visit Hachette Audio’s Facebook page and listen to the story on their Lit Amp online player – no download required. Enjoy this 1 hour 15 minute free treat!
0 Comments on Fan of Pelecanos’ The Cut? as of 1/1/1900
Download or promote free SYNC audiobooks? Show the impact of teen audiobooks to publishers by taking time to fill out the quick surveys below. SYNC provided two free paired audiobooks each week – one a current hot YA release, one a classic – to promote audiobook listening by tweens & teens (and the many adults who are YA lit fans). The initiative is supported by the generous donation of the completely-free, yours-to-keep-forever, MP3 audiobooks by the top audiobook publishers and AudioFile Magazine. The results from the surveys will provide valuable statistics to show the impact of SYNC. If you promoted the program on your library website, as I did, please post the link to the “Listeners” survey, and fill out the “Librarian & Educators” survey yourself – you’ll get a nice reward at the end of the survey
Let’s keep this great program going, and make it even better next summer!
Now Nook Simple Touch owners can follow easy 10-minute directions provided by The Ebook Reader Blog in layman’s terms plus how-to video, showing the steps needed root the eInk tablet. Once the Nook is rooted, owners can switch back & forth from the standard Nook Simple Touch operation to an Android desktop that can include extras such as an internet browser, Gmail, and even the Kindle app. The ability of the Nook Simple Touch to connect via wifi to the internet isn’t touted by Barnes & Noble, but the work of XDA Developers group to open up the Simple Touch’s Android system will certainly lead to more buyers. My only quibble with the Simple Touch is that it has no audio – so you can’t drag-n-drop MP3 audiobooks onto it as you can the Nook Color or Kindle, nor add audiobooks via Audible as you can with the Kindle or play audiobooks using the Audible or OverDrive app as you can on the rooted Nook Color.
Now please excuse me while I go play with my newly rooted Simple Touch
0 Comments on Nook Simple Touch as Kindle Reader? as of 1/1/1900
Kindle library download date? OverDrive delivered a clear but cryptic clue at Digipalooza, a user’s group meeting of 450 librarians chomping at the bit to find out when the largest provider of digital content to public libraries would integrate the Kindle into the list of compatible consumer devices. But even though the conversations revolved around the theme of “Managing the eBook Explosion,” there was plenty of audiobook news you can use. Here are some top take-aways:
In most of the statistics shared by librarians representing systems large & small, audiobook downloads still exceed eBook downloads.
Audiobook patrons have already dealt with the dead/disappearing format syndrome – cassette to CD to downloads in WMA to MP3 formats – and are the library patrons most comfortable with consuming content in various containers.
In the publisher’s panel, the message was that CDs are still strong, with the majority of current sales in physical format, and will continue to be produced as long as there are cars with CD players.
Librarians want audio publishers to provide Advance Listening Copies so that reviews of audiobooks appear closer to release date, alongside print reviews (and I can attest that this is already happening – my last two reviews for Booklist were of ALC titles)
Questions about availability of titles in physical vs. digital formats were answered by publishers with the repeated refrain that rights management is Very Complicated – backlist titles must have contracts re-negotiated prior to digital release (in both eBook or downloadable audio format), occasionally the voice actor will have additional contractual rights, audio is a sub-right that can be sold to a different publisher than print or eBook, world rights depend on country copyright law, etc.
OverDrive will be focused on a move to providing the least restrictive format of each download – Open EPUB for eBooks, MP3 for audiobooks – working with publishers to maintain rights protection while satisfying ease of use for patrons.
OverDrive wants the library’s web presence as the first stop for patrons looking for digital content – the new OverDrive WIN platform will consolidate formats as just “eBook” or “audiobook” – no more list of all possible digital variations. Patrons will use a device wizard to have the compatible content downloaded.
The WIN platform will also allow patrons to see ALL copyrighted digital formats available through OverDrive, and allow patron suggestions for purchase.
If the patron does not find the desired item available through their library while browsing WIN, they may purchase the item though affiliate vendors, with libraries receiving a small payment from each sale.
OverDrive will have a Children’s/Young Adult specific Content Wire new release alert newsletter soon.
Patrons will search via the library’s OverDrive platform, with all of the library’s existing purchased eBook content (no matter what format) available for Kindle download. Any Kindle user may access this content, whether on the device or through a Kindle app. The patron will click a &ldqu
1 Comments on News You Can Use, last added: 8/4/2011
Blackstone Audio offers simultaneous download of digital MP3 audiobooks without waiting lists or holds through their Max Access collection of best-selling titles available through OverDrive. Keep up with what’s new from Blackstone on their blog here. I’ll be hearing more about this feature and plenty more at OverDrive’s Digipalooza, their International User Group Conference, later this week. Watch for more News You Can Use!
Chiming in to Fuse #8 Production blog today. Just had to add my two cent’s worth about audiobooks to the questions raised in Betsy Bird’s post below:
Say you’re a children’s librarian. Your office is directly connected to the picture book room and due to the layout of the space the walls of your space do not reach the ceiling. This means that anyone in the attached room can be heard with crystal clear clarity. Maybe that’s not so great when you’re eating your ham sandwich for lunch and can hear five five-year-olds running hell-for-leather around the space while their parents gab, but generally it’s charming. Particularly when you get to overhear parents reading to their children. One day you might hear a stirring rendition of The Lonely Doll. The next, you’re getting ideas for storytime due to how a British dad reads The Terrible Plop.
But what if the parental reader is an awful reader? This is often the case, after all. Sometimes, for whatever reason, a parent isn’t particularly good at reading a book aloud. This might be because they are unaccustomed to the activity, or it could be because English is not their first language. Maybe they’re embarrassed to be heard giving voice to a smarmy pigeon or a truculent pig. Or perhaps they always speak in a monotone anyway, and reading a book is never going to be any different.
Whatever the case, it got me to thinking. We all know that it is incredibly important for parents to read to their children from a very young age. With that in mind, what I’m about to ask is akin to near treason in the children’s librarian world. Still, it’s something that has been floating about in my brain. I had a chance to hash it out with another librarian recently, and I feel no closer to an answer. Maybe you have an idea about the following then:
When a poor reader reads aloud to a child, can that person do more harm than good in instilling a love of reading?
My instinct is to say no, of course not. A great book can survive even the worst reading. But if a bad reader has been reading poorly to a child from day one, does that mean that the kid is ruined for books from Day One onwards? I shouldn’t think so, but I wonder if any studies have been done on the subject. I suppose not since defining a “good” reader sounds like a fairly subjective supposition to start from. Still, have studies been done about reading with a single tone versus reading to children with a tone that jumps and jives? Should there be such studies? What could possibly be done if such a study took place anyway? Would parents suddenly be inclined to “train” to learn how to read aloud to their children? Does such a state of affairs already exist? And, if not, wouldn’t the person who taps into parental fears and insecurities make a tidy bundle if they advertised classes meant to teach parents how to read to their kids “the right way”?
The librarian I mentioned all this too argued that if a parent reads poorly and doesn’t give any context to the reading (saying something angrily when a character is angry, for example) then they aren’t teaching their children properly and the kid loses out. I dunno. Sort of sounds right.
Your thoughts on the matter?
and about this bit in a comment on the post:
I believe *adults* are more apt to be influenced by a person’s voice. We recently borrowed an audio book from the library that I absolutely refused to listen to because of the reader’s voice (it was a recent newbery too!) I had to blast other noise over top of it whenever the kids listened to it in the other room, it was so awful. But that’s the thing… the kids listened to it. Constantly. They love story, reg
1 Comments on Ponderable: Do Bad Readers Affect a Love of Books?, last added: 7/10/2011
This is why I love storytime, and why I insist on parents attending storytime, not leaving their little dears while they go off to chat– the parents are learning as much from the trained librarian as the children are– they hear good readings of books, hopefully this modeling rubs off and they try some of that at home. I have developed a training session for parents and child care providers on how to read well to children because we all know it does not always happen naturally. Great discussion!
Digital times, they are a-changin’ Toddlers now tap & swipe to see & hear books on parents’ iPad and grandma’s Nook Color. What was once a book + tape readalong set is now a digital download of interactive ebook + audio. But they more things change, the more they stay the same. Top sellers on iPhones & Android? Oceanhouse Media’s good old Dr. Seuss. Now Harper is dusting off the trusty “I Can Read” series and adding some interactive bells & whistles to titles like Frog and Toad. You can check out the changing times for free on Barnes & Noble’s Color Nook Kids “I Can Read” page or on iTunes for iPhone & iPad with an offer of Dixie, the first book in a series by Grace Gilman. And be sure that Nook Color has the original operating system – this grandma’s Nook-Color-turned-into-Android-Table won’t run these ebook downloads
0 Comments on You say eBook, I say audiobook readalong as of 1/1/1900
Today & tomorrow SYNC has downloads of great dystopian fiction – perfect for a Hunger Games listen-alike or classic summer reading requirement. Grab Little Brother by Cory Doctorowand The Trial by Franz Kafka now, as two more titles, Where the Streets Had a Name by Randa Abdel-Fattah and A Passage to India by E. M. Forster will be available July 7 – July 13. Each week this summer you can download two FREE titles from SYNC at no cost, in a easy MP3 download that can be played on just about any cell phone, media player, ereader, or computer.There’s a full press kit herewith downloadable bookmarks, posters, newsletters, logos and more. We spoke about SYNC during the audiobook panel that I was on at ALA Annual, and people couldn’t believe that Yes, these are totally free and that Yes, they are yours to keep forever – absolutely no strings attached. The panel moderator, President of the Audiobook Publishers Association Michele Cobb, told everyone that publishers are happy to give these great titles to teens & adults to encourage new audiobook listeners and to allow fans to begin a personal audiobook collection.
Participants must become a member of the Audiobook Community and join the SYNC group within the community – members must be ages 13+, but parents can be encouraged to download for their children. During the summer, the Sync group will host discussions and chats about the downloaded titles – a ready-made online audiobook club for your patrons! Terrific for teachers, students, families, teens, never-before audiobook listeners, or audiobook addicts looking for great new titles. Plus, the downloads are managed by OverDrive, so Sync group members can become acquainted with your public library’s download provider. Each pair of titles is available for just one week. If you’re afraid you’ll forget to download, just text syncya to 25827 to receive text alert reminders!
Available July 7 – July 13<br>
<strong><a href=”http://www.bolindalibrary.com/usa/search/results.aspx?/1/-/10/0/1/1/1/1/1/23/Where%20the%20Streets%20Had%20a%20Name%20″>Where the Streets Had a Name by Randa Abdel-Fattah</a></strong><br>
<strong><a href=”http://www.bbcaudiobooksamerica.com/Library/productdetails.cfm?PC=2162″>A Passage to India by E. M. Forster</a></strong>
0 Comments on Little Brother by Doctorow + Kafka’s The Trial audiobooks FREE as of 1/1/1900
Classics paired with hot YA literature – FREE downloads all summer! Feature this promotion on your library website, in your school summer reading materials, for your book club members, and pass along to your social media connections. You just can’t get any better than Sync – sixteen terrific titles at no cost, in a easy MP3 download that can be played on just about any cell phone, media player, ereader, or computer.There’s a full press kit herewith downloadable bookmarks, posters, newsletters, logos and more.
Participants must become a member of the Audiobook Community and join the SYNC group within the community – members must be ages 13+, but parents can be encouraged to download for their children. During the summer, the Sync group will host discussions and chats about the downloaded titles – a ready-made online audiobook club for your patrons! Terrific for teachers, students, families, teens, never-before audiobook listeners, or audiobook addicts looking for great new titles. Plus, the downloads are managed by OverDrive, so Sync group members can become acquainted with your public library’s download provider. Each pair of titles is available for just one week. If you’re afraid you’ll forget to download, just text syncya to 25827 to receive text alert reminders!
Thanks to audiobook publishers AudioGO, Blackstone Audio, Bolinda Audio, Brilliance Audio, Harper Audio, Listen & Live, Listening Library/BOT, Naxos Audio, Oasis Audio, Scholastic Audio, Tantor Audio and the Audiobook Community for promoting audio literature.
Yay! Check out library ebooks for your Kindle or Kindle app later this year! The long-awaited announcement that Amazon and OverDrive, who manages digital checkouts for many libraries, have reached an agreement to allow download of library eBooks is finally here! Details will be forthcoming, but according to this story in today’s Publishers Weekly, we can expect the availablity of titles later in the year on all Kindle eBook readers, as well as via the Kindle app. Perhaps this will encourage library holdouts Macmillan and Simon & Shuster to licence downloads through OverDrive – and will continue the re-evaluation of Harper 26-circulations limit.
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Dr. Seuss’ classic turned into a game for iPhone, iPad or Android, free this Friday, April 22.. Download the app from iTunes or the Android Marketplace to get an idea of how transmedia is changing the world of literature for today’s techie toddlers – and for you. Heck, even Jennifer Egan’s Pulitzer Prize winner, A Visit from the Goon Squad, has received the enhanced app treatment, as reported in this Audiobooker post on Digital Synchronicity. Seuss app publisher Oceanhouse Media has sold over one million downloads, complete with narration and interactive features, featuring favorite Seuss titles, the Berenstain Bears, Little Critter, and now Smithsonian Soundprints. You’ll find other free apps on their website, where you can learn more about the Lorax Garden game.
Take a look at the game here:
0 Comments on The Lorax game app – FREE on Earth Day as of 1/1/1900
On-the-go download of FREE audiobooks & ebooks from your public library for iPhone, Android, iPad, iPod, Macs, PC and now BlackBerry. OverDrive Media, the largest provider of digital content to libraries, announces another resource for savvy consumers – an addition to the variety of FREE software and apps that allow users to check out digital titles from their public library straight to computers as well as mobile devices, totally tether-free – no need for a USB plug-in.
I just updated the OverDrive app on my Android phone and was glad to see fewer steps to click through, plus a much-desired “Show only available titles” check box in the Search function (wish that option was in the Browse function, too). I’m impressed with the continuing upgrades that are making the digital download experience quicker & easier, especially as the current controversy over library eBook limitations turns the public’s attention on library downloads. It would be interesting to grab a bunch of stats on downloads from before and after the story about HarperCollins’ 26-loan limit first hit the news. I suspect it’s a case of any-publicity-is-good. I do wish digital audiobooks were mentioned in the continuing discussions on crafting equable access to materials, including the remarks by ALA President Stevens. But I am glad that librarians are getting into the game & making their voices heard – the theme in my last “Voices in My Head” column, Digital Synchronicity.
Here’s OverDrive’s complete press release:
Cleveland, April 6, 2011 – Public, school, and college libraries now provide direct EPUB eBook downloads on BlackBerry® mobile devices with the free OverDrive® Media Console™ app for BlackBerry. Users at more than 13,000 libraries worldwide can wirelessly download and enjoy EPUB eBooks, as well as MP3 audiobooks, on their BlackBerry devices. Libraries offer best-selling titles, such as “The Social Animal” by David Brooks and “The Help” by Kathryn Stockett, which can be borrowed and enjoyed using OverDrive’s app for BlackBerry. Popular business eBooks and audiobooks, as well as titles in virtually any subject, are also available from the library using the BlackBerry app.
The OverDrive app for BlackBerry is available from OverDrive’s website and the MobiHand Superstore. The app will also appear in BlackBerry App World™ in the coming weeks. To see if your library is a member of the OverDrive network, visit OverDrive Search.
OverDrive’s BlackBerry app provides untethered access to EPUB eBooks and MP3 audiobooks from the library. The app’s “Get Books” feature makes it easy to find a local library, and then brow
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Ever wonder if pricey batteries make a difference in your hand-held device? A recent study conducted at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute was reported on the dealnews blog by Mitch Lipka, with results that cheapskates like me have often suspected: the expensive batteries aren’t worth the bucks. There is one exception. The Energizer Advanced Lithium battery does last longer – but also has an initial voltage surge that could be problematic. So if you circulate devices in your library or school (or have teens who devour batteries like potato chips), save some money and buy big quantities of bargain brands.
I keep a batch of portable CD players & cassette players (yes, they still exist) for student checkout in my school library – otherwise, most of these iPod generation kids have no devices to play our huge collection of audiobooks. I did try to use rechargables for awhile, but when the charge ran out at home, the kids would toss the rechargable & replace with their own AAs. Ouch $$ ! So now I use the cheapest I can find, and assuage my conscience a bit by having a BatteriesPlus recycling bucket under the checkout desk.
If you’d like to try a cool project for your techie patrons or teen groups, check out the MintyBoost! – Small battery-powered USB charger by ladyada on the Instructables website (pictured above). A great way to pack some extra power in a mini Altoids tin
0 Comments on Power to the Player! as of 4/6/2011 9:01:00 AM
Audiobooks + poetry = perfect partners. There’s no better way to experience the literary form created for oral expression than through listening to a great recitation. Audiobooks are a fantastic way to carry a poem in your pocket on Thursday, April 14, 2011 (National Poem in Your Pocket Day) or any day during National Poetry Month.
Most major audiobook publishers have poetry in their catalog, but a few companies have extensive, excellent collections: Naxos Audiobooks’ classic poetry, Harper Audio’s Caedmon Essentials collection, Sourcebooks‘ print + audio CD titles, Live Oak Media‘s youth & teen titles. It’s hard to track down audiobook poetry, as publisher catalogs may list poetry in various location – nonfiction, classics, even drama. The annual Audies award doesn’t include a separate poetry category, but you’ll find poetry sprinkled among each year’s nominees and winners. The Grammy Award spoken word categories often include poetry. ALA recognizes audiobook poetry in the Notable Children’s Recordings list, the Amazing Audiobooks list, and the Odyssey Award for Excellence in Audiobook Production. And BooklistOnline’s advance search function allows users to narrow search results to poetry available in both audio and video formats. Plus, you’ll often find poetry featured on BooklistOnline’s Review of the Day (like my starred review of Walter Dean Myers’ Here in Harlem), or free email newsletters – remember, tons of Booklist reviews are available on our free online resources, greatly expanding the number in the print magazine! And Book Link’s Everyday Poetry column by Sylvia Vardell is an absolute must-read for poetry lovers.
Audio clips of poetry abound on the web: the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation’s Poetry Out Loud project’s website site that contains lesson plans and activities for teachers and librarians eager to assist students in
0 Comments on Listen up! It’s National Poetry Month as of 1/1/1900
HarperAudio’s spring release list contains 150 titles with just two as physical CD audiobooks. The rest are download-only, a serious shift in format by one of the major audiobook producers. Publishers Weekly has an excellent story by Rachel Deahl, Harper Changes the Audio Equation, that investigates the issue, included changes in HarperAudio’s contract language covering audio rights. This shift has been gaining momentum, as digital downloads become the lion’s share of both print and audio sales. For libraries, this is a huge issue, as most professional review journals are just beginning to even think about include downloadable-only material reviews to help librarians select the best new releases. Plus, budgets that are set to purchase physical materials may need to migrate funds to purchases made through the library’s digital download provider. Other audiobook publishers are still stocking their catalogs with plenty of physical-format CDs, heck some even still release cassette tapes! But Harper’sAudio’s radical move to a near-complete digital revolution in new releases is a clear signal that shift happens – and we librarians better be letting publishers, vendors, digital suppliers, and our professional journals hear our voices, before we are left stuck behind in a big pile of shift.
0 Comments on I think I hear the point tipping… as of 1/1/1900
Shhh! I know a place that you can ask any question and receive a professionally-researched answer. There’s even a 24/7 online chat function on their website. Or if you don’t have access to a computer, you can meet the researcher face-to-face. If you need accessibility features for print disabled, the professionals will guide you to spoken-word or video resources. Best yet, it’s tax-supported and FREE for all ages! I can’t imagine how the NYT missed adding the Public Library to the article The Answers Are Out There, and New Q. and A. Sites Dig Them Up
0 Comments on Libraries – no need to reinvent the wheel as of 1/1/1900
Are libraries being left behind in the shift to digital media? Much of the buzz at ALA Midwinter concerned eBooks, as highlighted in the AL Inside Scoop “Capacity Crowd Talks Ebooks” blog post by Greg Landgraf, which includes this quote from Sue Polanka: “The market is going very fast, and it’s leaving us behind.”
In my “Voices In My Head: Digital Synchronicity” column in the January issue of Booklist , I interviewed movers and shakers in today’s publishing field about the shift to app-based audiobook content, and audiobook innovations available to consumers but not libraries. There are plenty of cool changes occurring, ranging from downloadable enhanced toddler read-along apps to subtle changes in the standard adult audiobook CD. Check out Blackstone Audio’s Studio Director & narrator extraordinaire Grover Gardner’s blog post about his production of The 13½ Lives of Captain Bluebear that reads, in part:
Would it be possible, he asked, to use electronic means to help create some of the characters and effects? Under ordinary circumstances, the answer would have been a firm, “No!” Voice alteration tricks have always been frowned upon in the audiobook business, since they are bound to call attention to themselves and distract the listener from the story. It’s also seen as “cheating”—if the narrator doesn’t have what it takes to perform the book as written, what is he doing in the studio?…Yet, yet…times are changing! Enhanced audio productions are a growing part of the audiobook experience. Some publishers are using sound effects and mood music to “sweeten” their top-selling romances and thrillers. A younger generation of listeners is more comfortable with multiple readers, dramatizations, and special effects.
Libraries have a spectrum of digital decisions in the AV department – whether you’re debating the use of in-studio electronic effects in the CDs that you purchase for your audiobook collection, adding streaming Disney content via OverDrive Media, or considering Playaway’s new product, the Playaway View video player pre-loaded with toddler-friendly storybook classics. Let’s continue to lobby digital content providers and publishers to be sure that libraries have access to the new transmedia world that blurs the line between book and audio. The shift to digital media is no longer just the AV department’s headache – it’s a life or death question for the entire library community.
1 Comments on Digital Synchronicity through enhanced audiobooks, last added: 1/26/2011
Tweets that mention Audiobook Blog – Audiobooker said, on 1/26/2011 1:23:00 PM
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by ALA_Booklist Pubs, mary burkey. mary burkey said: Digital Synchronicity through enhanced audiobooks: Are libraries being left behind in the shift to digital media?… http://dlvr.it/F8YSv [...]
One week left to grab Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Pronzini’s tale of The Nameless Detective and his quest to solve a mystery involving an antiquarian bookstore and purloined rare volumes. Download the story from AudioGo before the end of January, and enjoy Nick Sullivan’s voicing of the every-man sleuth. Be sure to check in with AudioGo in Feburary, when they’ll be giving away another FREE Pronzini Nameless Dectective tale. My favorite thing about this give-away? No sign-up or forms to fill in, just a super-easy MP3 download – easy to drag onto any audio player, even my phone!
1 Comments on Free audiobook: Bill Pronzini’s Booktaker, last added: 1/25/2011
Tweets that mention Audiobook Blog – Audiobooker said, on 1/25/2011 2:52:00 PM
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by ALA_Booklist Pubs, mary burkey. mary burkey said: Free audiobook: Bill Pronzini’s Booktaker: One week left to grab Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Pronzini’s… http://dlvr.it/F4ZLQ [...]
Public domain titles such as Oprah’s A Tale of Two Cities & Great Expectations make for perfect do-it-yourself enhanced ebooks – as detailed in this post on combining free audiobooks from LibriVox & free ebooks – whether from OverDrive’s no-cost additions to your library download center, or from the treasure trove released by Google Books today.
And speaking of Google Books – the Adobe EPUB format used by Google is an important addition to the evaluation list for new ebook reader purchases. If you were glad to see OverDrive’s ebook reader Cheat Sheet for libraries, you’ll want to check out the new everybody (patrons included) version of the same. Library patrons looking for devices compatible with OverDrive’s EPUB will be glad to know that Google Books will be ideal for buying items for readers such as the Nook, Kobo, & Sony Reader.
0 Comments on Oprah’s new picks, Google Books, & ebook reader shopping as of 1/1/1900
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Thanks for this insight, Mary. Both ideas – literacy tool and storytime sharing are fantastic! I wonder how easy it is to transfer or send your narrated story to a loved one?
I do love and recommend your blog to friends and colleagues!
Thank you again,
Andrea