The Advantages of Audio Books

By Bob Branco

With technology changing rapidly, there are more and more resources for audio books. As we all know, many people can’t read printed text for various reasons, yet they still might want to sit back, relax, and enjoy their favorite book in audio format. As a blind person, I do that quite often.

In Massachusetts, we have our own Braille and talking book library located on the campus of Perkins School. This library has an excellent collection of audio books which are made available on digital cartridges. You would have to get the appropriate player for these cartridges, but the player is easy to operate. If you want a print copy of a particular book recorded on audio CD, this library, as well as other resources, have recording studios where readers spent many hours making your book accessible for you. BARD and Book Share are two other avenues for people to listen to books. Once you sign up, all you have to do is go online and follow the appropriate instructions. If you have devices such as the Kindle, the Victor Stream or your own smart phone, you can download audio material onto these devices and enjoy the same reading pleasure as those who read print in this fashion.

I would also like to mention the talking Bible, which can be purchased at different companies that sell adaptive products for the blind. We all know that the Bible contains lots of information, but with modern technology, this information can be stored audibly and digitally in a small device the size of a transistor radio, which you can put in your pocket. I own such a Bible.

Years ago, audio books were available on vinyl disc and on cassette tape, but with all the new resources at our disposal today, these formats are gradually being phased out. Also, it is very easy to travel long distances while reading audio books. Just make sure that you have the proper equipment so that you don’t disturb anybody else on the trip. After all, if you have to listen to a book, others will also hear it. Whereas if you are reading printed text, you can do it without disturbing anybody else.

In closing, I want to thank those agencies, companies and other services for providing numerous resources to help people who either can’t see or who are unable to read print for other reasons. These alternative options open many doors.

(Originally published in Word Matters, www.ernestdempsey.com)

About the Author

Bob Branco resides in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and is a self-published author of four books. He is a community organizer, tutors persons with visual impairments, and has written columns for local and international organizations. Bob’s web site is