etc.

Just finished “reading” my first audiobook. Thanks to all the many of you who offered suggestions for audiobook rentals and to my buddy at TPL who set me straight on the actual lending guidelines for audiobooks. Turns out I can borrow audiobooks just fine, I just can’t borrow talking books and I’m ashamed to admit that I don’t know the difference other than the format note in the catalogue. The good thing is, my local branch (in a big old house 2 mins away from us) has a small range-ful of audio titles that I have already started plumbing for my daily commute and I’m somewhat confounded when I think of the 1.65 years of commuting I’ve done without them.

The hunt for online sources has taught me a little something about the audiobook market, such as the availability of audiobooks on MP3, something I should have assumed but hadn’t. If you are a new-fiction savant, you’ll have to pony up $16-19 for a download, but if you want to get your paws on a classic or two, royalty-free means $1-4 downloads. As attractive as that sounds, and as sleek and attractive as these things are, I think I’ll continue feeding my nascent audiolit addiction with what I can cull from my local library’s collection.