18 April 2015

Audiobooks Pt2 ~ High School Listens via Audible

Along with reading lots of lovely books, we also listen to many audiobooks, and since I just enjoy lists .... I'm onsharing a list of titles we've collected in the audible sales during our NZ High School years so far.  (I'll try and update this with titles we keep adding as we go along) 
The option of downloading many of these titles via an online library system is currently not an option here in NZ..... maybe one day.
Audiobooks Part 2
With some of the titles beneath, the most economical option is to purchase the whispersync kindle first, and then get the audio at a special price.  Having the kindle option is handy for when the children want to read at a quicker pace and drop the audio:

High School Scheduled Listens:
 
Classics
Pilgrims Progress ~ Bunyan   (We’re very familiar with the dramatised version of this book but had never been through the unabridged version.  The intro starts out a little ponderous & dry, stick with it though as it get better.)
Don Quixote ~ Cervantes   (fun listen. Part 2 has some content issues that needed discussion, for our family)
Lorna Doone ~ Blackmore (content issues; see our review elsewhere on our blog)
Gulliver's Travels ~ Swift (recommend you be aware of the content in story before giving to your student!)
Persuasion ~ Austin (for me, because I didn't want to make time to read it )
Rob Roy by Walter Scott  (quick listen through for me before I tackle the unabridged as a read aloud)
Where Love Is, There God Is Also by Leo Tolstoy (short story)
How Much Land Does a Man Need? by Leo Tolstoy  (short story)
Great Expectations  one of our favourite SL books! ('purchase' the $0.00 kindle edition first) we'd have preferred this Anton Lester audio edition, if it had been available.
Idylls of the King ~ Tennyson (not the best reader out there, but still good value)
Sir Gawain & the Green Knight 
Moby Dick ~ Melville   ('purchase' the $0.00 kindle edition first)
A Tale of Two Cities ~ Dickens  ('purchase' the $0.00 kindle edition first)
Wuthering Heights ~ Bronte I purchased this for me to go through ('purchase' the $0.00 kindle edition first)
Pride & Prejudice ~ Austen  P & P is a favourite book that has been read and read, but it's nice to have an audio option on hand too ('purchase' the $0.00 kindle edition first)
Persuasion  ~ Austen ('purchase' the $0.00 kindle edition first)
The Three Musketeers ~ Dumas ('purchase' the $0.00 kindle edition first)   One of Jay's favourite listens!

High School Extras
The Year 1000 ~ Lacey (Dn ended up listening through this twice. Very interesting book!  Does have some very raw language useage.)
Gengis Khan and the Making of the Modern World ~ Weathford  (ds really enjoyed this. Does have a few content issues)

Plays:
The Crucible by Arthur Miller

Speeches:
Churchill Confidential by Whistledown Productions  (Modern Times)
Going Solo by Roald Dahl (SL)

Anytime Listens:
Death Comes as The End ~ Christie (Ancient Egypt tie-in)
Greenmantle ~ Buchan (enjoyable, car time,  series)
Carry On, Jeeves ~ Wodehouse (humour. Recommend pre-listening.  We skipped some of the content.)

And during the latest sale I purchase some of the dramatised editions of Charles Dicken's works for Daisy to listen through, before she hits the printed version later in the year.
Bleak House (Dramatised)  (Dramatised) by Charles Dickens
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens's Our Mutual Friend (Woman's Hour Drama) by Charles Dickens (this was quite hard to follow, think we'll just go straight to the unabridged)
David Copperfield (Dramatised) by Charles Dickens (very well done!  I now want to go through the unabridged edition)

Craft or Car Time Listens:
Boy by Roald Dahl
Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates  (SL)
The Poets' Corner: The One-and-Only Poetry Book for the Whole Family by John Lithgow  (Lithgow throws in some recommendations and comments that needed editing out or skipping for our family.  The title says the book is for the Whole Family .... I guess it depends on the world view your family holds :)  Recommending this one be pre-listened to before just playing it on the spur of the moment - contains content issues, for our family)

Mystery (for term break, or wintery Saturday listens):
A Blunt Instrument by Georgette Heyer  
the reader takes a little getting used to with this series, but she is okay once I got my head around the long pauses mid sentence. 
ie: Instead of reading a spoken piece as;
"Don't place your hat there", said Sally. 
The narrator reads it as; 
"Don't place your hat there".    Said Sally.

A Case for Paul Temple by Francis Durbridge
Paul Temple and Steve by Francis Durbridge
(we've listened through as many of these as we could get via audible - makes for lite easy, predictable ;) listening)

For Jay:
Radio Crimes: Cadfael: Monk's Hood by Ellis Peters  (I prefer the audio’s more than the books, as many of the content issues have been taken out)
Masterman Ready by Captain Marryat
Mr. Midshipman Easy by Frederick Marryat

For Daisy:
Just William's Luck by Richmal Crompton
The Tale of Despereaux ~ DiCamillo   (for me actually, as I’ve often want to know what this story was about and, again, don’t want to take the time to read the book… my reading basket is already full to the brim!) 

Audiobooks Pt1 ~ My Wishlist at Audible

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