Audiobook Appreciation Month

Hello and welcome to the month of June!

With summer less than a month away, I thought I'd do a post on one of my favorite things to do during this season: listen to a good audiobook. It also helps that this month is Audiobook Appreciation Month, which I thought was cool. I mean, an entire month devoted to appreciating audiobooks? Yes, please!

I will try to provide links so you can find them and listen to them yourself. Here are some of my favorites.

1. 

Eragon was one of the few books that my younger brother would read. He must have read it at least six or seven times. I was delighted to find this rendition of the story on audiobook. Gerard Doyle lends his voice to breathe fresh life into the cast of colorful characters. I have the CDs, but you can find it on Audible.com by clicking on the link. 

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  Perhaps you'd prefer listening to a classic? The Scarlet Pimpernel an intriguing tale of the Reign of Terror following the French Revolution. This was a required-read for my ninth grade literature class and one of the few books I liked. I was fortunate to find this audiobook at my local library and then purchased the audiobook CDs from Amazon.com. You can find the same audiobook with some editorial revisions on Audible.com by clicking on the link. 

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Alice in Wonderland with a political twist? A war for imagination? You're looking for Frank Beddor's The Looking Glass Wars. This is book one of three in Beddor's Looking Glass Wars series. Fantasy bleeds into Victorian England and worlds collide in this epic series. If you like Alice in Wonderland, definitely check this one out. Unfortunately, it isn't available on Audible.com. I found it through my local library, but you can find the audiobook CDs on Amazon.com by clicking on the link.

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Maybe you like history books. Maybe you (like me), also enjoy reading about pirates. (Although you may have not taken out forty books about pirates from your local library. *shrugs* Or maybe you did.) Empire of Blue Water by Stephan Talty is a book that reads like a fictional novel. It's fascinating! Most every summer, I get a few audiobooks to listen to while I work on a crochet project and I lost track of time when I was listening to this one.  This one is available on Audible.com for your listening pleasure. To find it, click the link above. 

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This is an audiobook I remember listening to in my childhood. I believe it's abridged, but Focus on the Family's Radio Theatre does a wonderful job with its production. If you're feeling nostalgic and don't care if it's unabridged or not, this may be the audiobook for you. It's available as a digital download here. 

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This audiobook is both unabridged and amplified, which I appreciate. I've listened to this classic several times and each time I get more and more out of it. Jim Pappas does a great job of making John Bunyan's characters come to life. This one is available from Audiobooks.com You can find it by clicking on the link. 

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The story of Dietrich Bonhoeffer has interested me for several years. That such an intelligent man would believe in something so strongly that he would give his life for his beliefs fascinates me and makes me want to know more. This audiobook was my introduction to his life. The audiobook is available for purchase as a digital download via this link.

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If you know me at all, you would know that I'm completely obsessed with this author. Kyle Robert Shultz's Beaumont and Beasley books and his Crockett and Crane books are some books I will buy automatically whenever they come out. His spins on fairy tales are so unique! This short story is a good sample of his work if you just want something short to listen to wet your feet before plunging headlong into the rest of his works. It's available for purchase via this link to Audible.com . 

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So, you didn't believe me when I said I'm obsessed? Perhaps this will be further proof. This was the first book of Kyle's that I read that started my obsession and I haven't looked back. My little brothers and I are listening to this audiobook on Audible.com . Almost every day, they come to me asking to listen to more of this book. I will have to get the other audiobooks Shultz has available. This audiobook is available to purchase via the link.

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So, I may have mentioned I like to read about pirates. This was the book that started that love. I read it in ninth grade and had to get everything Treasure Island: coloring books, audiobooks, etc. I found this audiobook through my local library and just listening to a sample of it today made me want to listen to it again. I found it available to purchase Recordedbooks.com

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Maybe you like sweet romance. This historical fiction book by Kim Vogel Sawyer is a wonderful book. I've listened to it twice already and want to listen to it again. It's just one of those books. It's available for purchase from Audible.com. 

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Okay, but a book featuring faith and assassins? Yes! Tricia Mingerink's The Blades of Acktar series is thrilling to listen to. I listened to most of the series on my three hour round trip to college twice a week. Sometimes I would find excuses to drive or do housework just so I could listen to this. Sometimes I had to remember to breathe because the action was so intense. If you're looking for an edge-of-the-seat listen, try Mingerink's first book in the series, Dare. 

So, this concludes my list of audiobooks I have listened to and enjoyed. Have you listened to any of them? What are some audiobooks you have enjoyed? Are there any audiobooks you're looking forward to listening to over the summer?

Chime in and let me know in the comment section below.