Guest post by Kristy Brown
I’m busy. When I have downtime, my mind still goes 90 to nothing. I have to have my mind constantly stimulated.
I don’t watch TV to speak of unless it involves Calliou or SuperWhy (thanks to my almost 4 year old!). This means I do a lot of reading right? Well I used to. I love to read. Anything from medical journals and research articles to my latest book club pick. However, finding the time to read has been very hard for me lately.
I used to prefer to hold a book, feel the pages, loved the smell, etc. After having my son, I received a Kindle and thought I was in Heaven because I could keep five books going at once and still keep just the small kindle in my purse! As he gets older, I find it hard to even find time to open up the kindle.
As a traveling therapist, I spend a lot of time in the car. So most of the time I could be reading was spent with my hands on the wheel. Someone mentioned to me doing audio books in the car. But then I found that there are also times when I am grocery shopping or cooking, etc., where I could be listening to the book but the language might not be most appropriate for my son. I was telling my husband about this (who has recently become quite the avid reader) and he told me about Audible.com. I was unsure at first because I am such a visual person and really do love to hold my Kindle/ book and read. But this appealed to me because of the nature of times when I could read.
I downloaded audible.com on my phone (my husband already had an account so I just downloaded the app). So far I have had three books read to me and am LOVING it. I do miss my Kindle, but I will get back to it one day. I can’t totally abandon it as I love it dearly. But for this phase in my life, audible.com is meeting my literary needs!
If you look online, it gets scattered reviews. Maybe I am not an avid enough reader, but for me it has worked without any glitches that have been mentioned online. Here are some things I love about it:
1. 100,000 plus titles.
2. Great voices. Great inflection in narrator’s voices / best narrators/ one narrator will do all of the voices and you will never know it’s one person!
3. Easy start-up. It’s as easy as downloading the wireless app and listening.
4. Not super expensive. The first three months are around 8 dollars after that it’s about $15 a month and you can cancel at any time. This is less than it would cost me to pay back late fees. You can also earn credits toward downloading more books. We have several credits as my husband and I both use it.
5. Very user friendly. I have found it is ever easier than my kindle! When you receive a phone call, it pauses your book for you. You can use other applications while the audible.com app is in use as well.
The website states the following:
- One monthly credit good for any audiobook you choose
- Listen anytime, anywhere on your iPod®, iPhone®, Android, Kindle Fire or 500+ mp3 players
- Exclusive access to members-only sales, events, and promotions
- Never pay full price – enjoy 30% off any audiobook purchased without a credit
- Complimentary subscription to The New York Times or The Wall Street Journal delivered to your headphones daily
Kristy Brown is a Speech Language Pathologist and mother of almost 4-year-old John Lleyton Brown. After graduating with her Masters in Communication Disorders in 1999, she has worked with the Fayetteville Public Schools, a local private therapy clinic, and now co-owns Arkansas Regional Therapy Services, LLC, which provides speech therapy to the NWA community from birth to adults. Her hobbies include blogging, reading, any type of puzzle, and her job (she LOVES her job!). She lives by two very important quotes: “Never judge a book by its cover” and “This too shall pass”. Kristy met the love of her life on a blind date in 2004 and they’ve been married for six years. She believes the best paying job is being a mother. You can keep up with the Brown’s at thebrowns2012.
