Are Audiobooks REALLY Reading?
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
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Me who listens to the audiobook while I'm reading it: " I'm playing both sides, that way I always *WIN!* "
Smart 🧠
I do that too!
That's good for getting the correct pronunciations of names and places especially in fantasy.
@@neondemon5137 definitely
The problem of doing that is that usually the audio is too slow compared to how fast i read...
Audio Books:
1: I believe it was Stephe King who talks about how originally stories were told around a fire. The tribe would listen to a storyteller verbally tell them a story, and audiobooks are a return to that type of storytelling.
2: When I drive to the VA, an hour each way, I can't exactly read a book. But I can listen to a book
3: With an audiobook, I am more likely to get the names right. (Unless the reader mispronounces them)
4: I am a slow reader, but with audiobooks, I can comfortably turn the speed up from 1.3x to 1.7x and within a minute of acclimation still feel relaxed listening to it and no longer even think about how it is a faster speed (For others they can do 2x or even 3x) The practical effect of this is, when I read a book that would be a 10-hour audiobook it will probably take me 15 hours to read, but if I listen to it at a moderately faster speed I can listen to it in 7 or so hours.
5: The older I get the worse my eyes are, When I read it is almost exclusively on Kindle nowadays because the print in books is just so blurry, But listening to books is far more comfortable for me.
Well there used to be people poets and bards and who else whose job was mostly if not all to tell stories, to well being media. And like theatre is nothing but doing that, with some acting and effcts,
There are also sacred traditions of sharing stories and myth in a circle, which ca,pfir stories arent too dissimilar.
Saying audiobooks are infirior is nothing but snobbery, its more taste and what people prefer.
Yes to all of your points, completely agree.
Indeed. And you are listening. Not reading.
@desertrosereads He did say that he reads quite slowly. He said that if an audiobook is 10 hours, he'd read it through in 15, but he could speed the audiobook up to get through it in 7
@@ArielSubotzky Yeah, it's bad, I just like to relax and read
Having ADHD, reading the text while listening to the audiobook has allowed me to read 30+ books a year where before it'd be a good year if i read 5
I have ADHD, this "I read and listen at the same time" makes no sense to me. I can't for the life of my focus on an audiobook. I'll lose the voice in 3 minutes and start day dreaming. But, if I *first* read the book. Then I can listen to the audiobook on the background and I will never really lose the plot. Just be reminded of all the scenes in my head. And if I ever lose focus it's not a big deal.
P.s. I will also constantly lose focus while reading. Dream off etc. But it's not as big of an issue. Like you don't lose 10 minutes of audio time and then try to find where you started dreaming off. You know exactly where you left off with a book. The pages don't just keep going while you start wondering if Isaac Asimov's psycho-history is based on mass data and if that concept even existed back then.
Just started to do this after realizing it took me a year to get halfway through dune lmaoo
It’s pricey to buy audio and physical copies but darn it it’s worth it 😆
@@YusefOmalley33 library +youtube audiobooks my friend 👍🏼
Reading while listening is an interesting idea. I’ll try it but not all books are available on audio and it is more expensive.
Audio books are pretty amazing, also they mean that ppl who are blind or with severe vision impairments, can experience the joy of a great story.
Makes me wonder how brail comprehension compares to reading and audiobooks.
@@AethelhartPretty sure it's the same, just much slower
@@Atrulion I've heard people who read brail a lot and get into reading with both hands at once can read very fast. But I've never seen comparisons in speed and comprehension.
@@Aethelhart Kinda makes me want to learn braille 😅
@@Atrulion right!? I felt the same way when I heard that for the first time. Also, Amazon says full immersion is reading along as you listen to the audiobook, but imagine reading, listening, AND feeling all at the same time? If reading and listening at the same time boost comprehension and retention, like studies show it does, then I can imagine adding braille to the mix would only improve that.
Personally, the biggest benefit to listening is that i'm not a native English speaker, so listening to audiobooks help-me comprehend better the language.
This is really interesting because for me it's far easier to read in Spanish than to listen.
@@alexjames7144 me too. I learned to read English before I've learned to listen or speak. I guess this process is really common after all.
In another note, we share our first names, even though we're probably from different countries lol.
@@alexsantos-hc4io I love that Alex is fairly common in so many languages, Alex supremacy!
@pit lord Ok, so try to guess the pronunciation of this words only by reading them, then go to google translate and see if you got it.
Language: Portuguese.
Lagartixa
Exceção
Amanhã
Cabeleireiro
Ferreiro
If you got everything i will give you a bolacha.
Thats interesting mate... As someone who only learned English on my teens, and who constantly gets asked the best way to learn it, the ability to process the words being said to you quickly enough to hold a conversation is probably the biggest barrier to fluency...
Being able to form a sentence a sentence in real time hold a conversation is also a big barrier, but I would say that the listening is more challeging and more anxiety inducing so you're doing the right thing by listening to audiobooks!!!!
I am a visual person, I love reading physical books, and when I listen to audio books I have to “reread” passages way more often. My younger sister is the exact opposite. She can look at a school instruction a dozen times and not understand it until it is read aloud to her. I think a major factor in audio vs visual books is how your brain best processes input information.
You mean relisten not reread passages.
@@alphasuperior100 That's why it's in quotations.
You are a sensory person who prefers visual sensory components to input things into your brain. You can just listen more and get better at audio learning. I dislike it when people put themselves in these bubbles. Just because you're right dominant doesn't mean you can't learn with your nondominant hand. Put all these sensory components together and your brain will love you consciously.
Great video! One difference you didn't touch on is that an audiobook is (in my opinion) one extra layer removed from the author's story, because you're getting it through the lens of the narrator's interpretation. Audiobook narration is an art form and different narrators will interpret and deliver a story differently, that's why people are able to have discussions about their favourite and least favourite narrators. This can be either a pro or a con depending on your subjective opinion. A good narrator can really elevate a story! But in the same way a bad narrator can make it difficult to listen to. The worst is when a series switches narrators midway through and the narrators pronounce some names differently!
Reading a physical book is faster, but with audiobooks, you can work or drive simultaneously
One thing I never really considered until recently about audiobooks is how much influence the narrator has on creating the characters they read. I recently listened to a very popular book that everyone seems to love, and I *hated* the main character. In retrospect, I began to wonder if it was at least partly due to the way the narrator interpreted her personality, and whether I might have interpreted her differently in my own head if I had read the print version. When we read, we're building the vision ourselves, but with audiobooks, we have some help (or hindrance?) in that area.
YEs I have had this trouble and it seems some readers work for me and others spoil the book
there's absolutely something there... but I feel like (in fiction), the audio narration is the actually intended final product of the book. Like the difference between the script and the movie (not the same level, but the same in essence).
When we read we are going to imagine a voice narrating the text, more or less. But we are not necessarily going to do it better than a professional... Good quality narrations add a whole new layer to the book for me... I love the Sally Darling narration of To Kill a Mockingbird, and I'm listening to It (Stephen King's novel) by Steven Weber and omg, that guy is insane!
The discussion of processing and comprehension is very interesting as a educator. Also personally I have a processing delay so I will listen and read along as it allows for better comprehension. From a educator and personal standpoint I would consider someone saying audiobooks don’t count as reading to be ableist.
I'm so glad you brought up how useful audiobooks can be for people with disabilities like dyslexia that make physical reading difficult! I have a sister with a different disability that has made physical reading extremely challenging and slow for her since high school. It stopped her from being the avid reader she once was, and audiobooks are what has allowed her to love reading again! I can't imagine trying to tell her that somehow none of the many series she's finished count because they were in audio format. I've always been a visual person more than an auditory person, so I have a strong preference for physical reading, but that doesn't invalidate audiobooks! Let people read in the way that works for them. Any reading is good reading!
I work in special education and it grinds my gears when people don't consider audiobooks as reading because they're stuck on the definition of the word (I hear that excuse way too often). They are forgetting that people with varying levels of abilities exist for a variety of reasons (e.g. visual impairment, post-stroke, learning disability, illiteracy) and should be allowed to access books in a format that works for them.
I came here for this comment.
I feel like it's a good thing to train our mind and train our visual capacities, as well as our listening capacities. It's two different things, but both useful :)
I work a lot on the computer and my eyes can be sore at the end of the day. An audiobook doesn't require me to stare at something for a long time when I am already tired. Reading isn't a competition. Just a hobby we all share
Yes!
yep!
I drive an hour to work, work 8 hours, then drive and hour home and my book addiction needs to compete with my video game and manga addiction but I can't read manga or play videogames at work or while driving so when I can read a 700 page book in 1 day when It used to take me months that's pretty cool
Same. I drive half an hour to work, work 10 hours walking around pretty much the whole time (I work in a warehouse), drive half an hour back home while needing to squeeze in working out and writing (goal to be a writer). Kinda need audiobooks for this
I've never read a physical book (except as a child) but i love audiobooks especially at work
Audiobooks were super useful to me, when I had to drive for over an hour, multiple times a week. So good.
Yes. The answer is yes. (Although I personally love to reread physical books via audiobooks whenever I can. Fifth time listening/reading Dune is a spice trip :D )
Wonderful discussion, Merphy! One thing that makes me nervous about audiobooks is when authors don’t have input or agree with the way their books are read. I listened to an audiobook that I loved and later heard the author say the way the narrator portrayed a certain character wasn’t right. Hearing that made me feel like I didn’t experience the story the right way. I still enjoy audiobooks from time-to-time, and yes to letting people experience how they want to experience a book! 🙌🏼
That's actually an interesting thought. Certainly how the narrator portrays a character-the voice he chooses to use for that character, the tone, etc., can affect your thoughts about them, or enhance/hurt the story. But at the same time, we as readers of books make certain interpretations about things all the time. In our heads we may have used some inflection or tone or image in regards to certain characters or passages, and that may not be the same intent that the author had either. Depending on the language used, we may see exactly what the author intends, or something a bit different. But I guess in regards to the author, that only affects the person reading it, whereas the narration can affect the story for a larger audience.I guess that's the joy of reading.
This is a really interesting point! However, you might not have read that character the "right" way either, even if you had read the physical book. It's part of what makes books such an interesting story telling medium. We can all read the same story and still see things differently
@@AVMCC1 I have definitely found that the narrator can affect my thoughts about a character. The tone of the voice can affect the tone interpretation of the story. Doing that internally through visual reading can evoke different interpretations in individual readers, but I suspect one audiobook narrator would evoke a much more homogenized interpretation in a reading audience. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
@@readingwithrebeccanicole That is true, and yet, I wonder how much the narrator influences my interpretation of a story. Would it be completely different if I had read the book visually? It's impossible to know for sure, but I do appreciate that we have audiobooks as an option regardless!
@@Johanna_reads That's an interesting point I hadn't thought of! I guess I always assumed the author would choose the narrator but I imagine some publishing companies just make the decisions on their own without the author involved, I really hadn't thought of that. One thing I've noticed with myself is the narrator can make or break a book for me. Like the Harry Potter books for instance, something about the way Jim Dale reads the books just transports me there and makes me love the series more than I did before(which I wouldn't have thought was possible honestly.) But I've noticed sometimes I turn on an audiobook and within a half hour I find myself turned off by the way the narrator reads or the tone of their voice and I have a hard time finishing.
Thanks for this, Merphy. As someone who's been called a cheater for reading audiobooks several times this is validating.
Also, as someone with ADHD, I've noticed significant improvement to my attention span since I've started listening. I also fall asleep while reading less😂
I like to listen while I read physically. It helps my adhd brain stay focused 😄
Also, I think preference differs so much between people with different processing abilities and learning styles, so it’s important to consider that before judging how someone reads.
I'm an adult, with a career, with kids, home, etc...
Plenty of responsabilities and not enough free time.
I love reading but for the longest time I would read like a book a year for entertainment and everything else I read was related to my field or because I read to my kids.
After audiobooks and putting commuting time towards stuff that I love, I have been listening to so many more books... I've already "read" over 100 books just this year.
Books I found time to physically read? About 1 for entertainment purposes...
Audiobooks have also allowed me to read in English and in German since where I live it's not really that easy to get them.
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
Thats amazing mate!!! I also dread ever being so busy that I cant sit down to read a book for at least 40 bloody minutes in a day 😭 Having kids is brutal...
You cant read while taking a shit instead of being on the phone? Everybody has time to read; that’s just an excuse. And “reading” 100 books doesn’t mean you understood them. You more than likely only have a superficial understanding of what books you consumed, especially since you passively interacted with them.
@@Bell_Matt I really don't know how your bowel movement works but I don't spend hours at the bathroom. I go in and out pretty fast. I don't have to do anything else there or have any time for it either...
I also love when people think they know more about my life than myself and come in their high horse talking about what I can and can't do just because in their own life they can do it and have free time for it.
Reminds me of the time I was doing my Master's while working and had already had my eldest ... other responsabilities like cooking, cleaning and doing laundry were also on me but I still had these type of "all knowing people" telling me I could go to the gym if I *really wanted to*. Please tell me how you get more than 24hours in a day because that's what I'm working with...
I really "like" your condescending tone btw... Just because YOU can't do more than one thing at the same time, doesn't mean other's can't too.
I always had it easier to understand anything by having someone talk about it ( even just once). When I was reading or studying I always had the need to have music or something else going at the same time because otherwise I couldn't concentrate... So, to me, it's usually the other way around, my mind wanders more if there's nothing else to do.
With audiobooks, I'm doing something that's pretty much "brain dead" while hearing, I don't need to think about what I'm doing while cleaning, cooking, doing laundry, taking a walk with the dog, cycling, etc... I also need to put them talking faster ( like someone would irl or even faster) because that way I'm fully there. If I don't listen or something happens, you can go back, like you could with a physical book.
And if YOU can't do more than one thing or wouldn't be able to concentrate on the story, that's a YOU problem. It's you that lacks the skill... It's not because it is impossible.
I wonder if you think blind people don't read because they hear audiobooks...
( I'm out of patience for people like you by now tbh... If you want to mingle in my life and try to tell me how I have free time "If YoU REaLlY wANtEd to" , I'd like to accept payments of my bills first)
@@carpediem4091 You read for hours at a time? Look at this guy, I guess he can't read for 5-10 mins at a time.
In spirit, audiobooks "count" as having read a book. Semantics is another story. 😊
Thanks for the research and breakdown!
Fun fact about retention : I am French and I like reading books in their native language (if I can) . Most of it is english since a big piece of the SF/Fantasy well known catalog was written in this language.
I feel no difficulty reading in French and English. I can watch TV show, whatever without subs.
However I feel audio books in foreign language is very hard. I usually have my mind wandering while audio booking and the language barrier makes it worst. Fact retention wise it is very complicated and I had to drop it.
Voilà, just sharing my experience if you find it interesting :D
This topic seems to surface every 30 days. I think both sides can have it there way and those who feel really emotional about either side, can just agree to disagree with the other side. If someone says, "have you read Children of Time," and you listened to the audiobook. Then, I think "yes I have" is an appropriate answer. If the person grills you on it and questions the legitimacy of your comment because of it, then that other person sounds insufferable. Speaking practically, if my kids teacher says, "I'd really like Junior to read more, every study tells us reading x hours a day is important to build children's vocabulary, cognition, spelling, grammar, etc." The teacher is talking about physical reading. I think a lot of the "argument" about audio vs physical comes from a competition that makes no sense. Both styles of consuming a story have value in different ways. If you are consuming books for pure enjoyment, then it makes no difference how you consume the story. Both sides win :)
I so agree with this. On the subject of kids and reading.
When I was a kid I had the books on tape that came with the book and a cassette tape. As a small child listening while reading taught me so much independent of my mom having to sit down and physically read to me. We still did that all the time (she loved books!), but while she was doing things like Laundry or cooking, if there were words I didn't know or would have struggled to pronounce just pushing my way through the book, the audio portion of the audio version filled that in. If a kid is struggling with reading, I do think there is some merit it to the read along style of combining both audiobooks and physical books.
@@TheDawnofVanlife definitely, and while physical reading builds vocabulary, grammar, spelling, and does have a different reaction to the brain than listening does, ...listening has similar and different benefits. Listening helps build vocabulary as well for sure, it improves or teaches pronunciation, and like Merphy said, some people retain information more hearing vs seeing. Listening is more passive and reading more active and I think both have their merits. I think the vocal physical-books-only crowd cling to that as a source of honor because they actively accomplished something at feel threatened somehow because someone who passively listened to something shouldn't get the same "credit," I think thats silly and I think probably, I hope this is true, that the super-vocal read only activity crowd is just a really really small group. I think most people just really don't care to judge and have a to-each-their-own attitude.
@@FIT2BREAD Absolutely, but I also think for adult readers it's not as passive as people assume. Music is very passive, but when the brain is engaging with text that is important or a say murder mystery where assembling clues is involved it's behaving different. Before TV people engaged in all types of story, such as detective stories, through radio programs. The brain is constantly engaging and reacting to story and trying to figure things out, so I just don't see it as passive by default of not holding a tome in your hand. I personally have dialed out physically reading and had to go back a few pages. Technically my eyes were on the page, it actually looked at all the words and turned pages, and literally retained nothing. And I have, on the flip side, retained a ton by being read-to. It's funny she brought up the cooking example because when I am physically doing things that's when audiobooks are the most fun for me and when I most engage (driving, walking, exercising, doing household task, etc.) I am doing things and not thinking about them because they are continuous repetitive action and only require the passive presence of my body. The one non-passive thing my brain is doing is engaging with story beats as they progress. I think the idea audiobooks are passive is based is the idea of someone just sitting in a chair listening as oppose to holding a physical book and turning pages. But for a blind person, this might be the ONLY way they read a book and an entirely normal way of absorbing information (my personal mind would wander in said situation). I think the picture of passivity some have with audiobooks is just based in the idea of siting around "not making effort" when that is untrue. Cause even as a kid, I was reading along with the audio format not dialing out. I used it as a way to match words and sounds. But once I knew the book, it was just for the fun of listening and like hearing Jungle Sounds while reading the jungle book. So while it's perceived as passive, for those who find the format fulfilling, I just think that it's not so. And, like all things, it's not for everyone.
@@TheDawnofVanlife thats such a good point especially when you say "not making an effort." Its so judgemental. Why does one need to, or care, if someone is "making an effort" when they are enjoying a book?? It all falls into the, "I want credit for the esteemed efforts I put into being a well read blah blah blah" and, "I'm not gonna give you credit because you cheated.." you also point out adult readers. I think thats also an important distinction. Why do I care if an adult is seeing or hearing the book? Our brains are much more fully formed and so much of the distinction we care about for childhood learning is irrelevant. Another think I think is fun with an audiobook is that if I read a physical book and loved it, it would be neat to listen to an audio version and hear what the speaker .ages each character sound like...
@@TheDawnofVanlife oh and I also like what you say about hearing the jungle sound. I can def see the value of listening and physical reading at the same time, You get grammer, spelling, pronunciation, and more
One of my best friends is legally blind. He can't read anymore. Thank goodness for audio books or he couldn't consume a story at all. For me audio books are with me on my daily hikes with my dog.
I absolutely love audiobooks. I was that kid who brought books to school and read them in class(even though I'm dyslexic so I often had to reread whole lines/pages out of confusion), and as I got older the book became a Kindle my dad had got me for Christmas one year. I read so much my teachers started taking my kindle at the start of class so I wasn't distracted lol. I used the Kindle Text to voice thing when I found out it existed, it cured the problem of needing to reread because my dyslexia didn't affect it anymore. Then Kindle changed and no longer allowed the text to voice because they had audiobooks now so they wanted you to pay lol.. At first I wasn't a huge fan of it, I'd actually grown accustomed the robotic lady voice for a couple years lol. But now I listen to an audiobook for minimum 7 hours a day, and some days it's closer to 15 hours. I've stayed up all night before because I got so into the audiobook I just had to finish before I could sleep! I have a vivid imagination and so when I listen to audiobooks it's like my mind creates a movie of it in my head. Sorry for the rant, I just felt like divulging some of my love of audiobooks lol.
I don't have dyslexia but I find myself rereading paragraphs a lot because I get distracted while reading and have no idea what just happened. And I have come to just LOVE audiobooks so much, I've been an audiobooks reader for close to 8 years now I think, and I completely relate to your experience with staying up all night to finish a book, I've repeatedly done that, and I'm not even going to pretend that I regret it.
When I was in middle school, I was banned from silently reading in class because my teachers thought it was negatively impacting my grades (plot twist: it wasn't, I just refused to do homework that only totaled 10- 15% of my grade) so I feel you
What are some of your favourite audiobooks? I’m new to listening
@@irena7777777 My all-time favorite would be the Harry Potter series, the narrator Jim Dale does an amazing job and really makes the books come to life. Another few favorites, a book called Sea of Rust, the book Redemption at Hacksaw Ridge is an amazing read, the Cirque du Freak series, the Game of Thrones books are super long but they're good too(although I suggest buying them with your monthly Credits as they're pretty pricey otherwise), the Hobbit and Lord of The Rings books are great too, I could keep going forever honestly lol but those are some really good books and I think the narrators are all pretty pretty 😊
@@irena7777777 Oops I have to add one more, it's similar to the Redemption at Hacksaw Ridge as they're both true and war stories, the book Unbroken. A really amazing book
Great video! I'm an audiobook listener, I read 1 to 2 books a year and listen to around 30. A.P. Canavan said something the other day that I hadn't considered. The main difference between between reading and listening is that when listening you don't get to make choices about character voices.
I read and listen at the same time. It makes you concentrate more, fly through so many books, and it’s perfect for those of us who have TOO MANY books to get through haha
I think the biggest problem with audiobooks (at least for me) is that it's way easier to zone out than it is when physically reading. So often, I miss key moments, leading to confusion in later moments, leading to me misunderstanding the book.
you can zone out while reading as well, at least people like me with ADD. you just need to re-read the paragraph or sentence. with an audiobook you just need to rewind
The parallel you made between:
biking vs taking a car
To
reading vs audiobooks
was very interesting.
I don’t think the debate is about how we both got to the ending but it’s what we tell people HOW we got to it. For example If I went on a beautiful ten mile hike and then someone biked it, drove it on a motorcycle, looked up the trail on the internet, or just anything that had to do with that trail other than HIKE it and then proceeded to say “oh I hiked that trail too” then I think that’s where the actual problem is with this debate.
Just because we enjoyed the same trail in different ways doesn’t mean we can’t discuss the beauty of the trail together. It’s just we have to be ok with the fact that we appreciated the trail in different ways.
I disagree when people say listening to an audiobook is “cheating”. I think people can enjoy a story regardless if they read or listened to it. But the actual definition of “reading” is: the action or skill of reading WRITTEN or PRINTED matter.
So I think when someone listens to an audiobook they actually should say “I listened to it”. Not “oh I read that book”, because they technically didn’t read it. Look at it this way, when I was a kid my dad would read me books before I went to bed. I would never wake up the next morning and tell my mom that I read that book last night…. Because I didn’t…my dad did. But did we both get the same information and can we have a discussion about it? Yes and that’s awesome!
So I guess to answer the question from your title: I think audiobooks are not reading. It’s listening. But it doesn’t mean you get any less enjoyment from all the great books out there! People just need to be ok that reading isn’t the only way to enjoy a book, and listening to a book isn’t reading it. But in the end, they are both enjoying the same story :)
Just want to say thanks for all your great content!
Thank you for all the information on audiobooks. I solely listen to audiobooks. I grew up with a learning disability and audiobooks helps so much. This helps my son as well with his dyslexia. I hate when people say it’s not reading so again thanks for the facts!
I like having certain series for audiobooks, looking at you stormlight archive, so I don't have to carry a tome around with me. I've been carrying Asimov's foundation books around with me cause I can quickly pull them out a read a chapter when I feel like it. Plus doing basic tasks like cleaning, washing up, folding sheets and walking home from work are perfect listening. However I can start to zone out if I'm doing anything more complex like drawing, thank God for the 30 second rewind button!
Holy cow I thought a was a weirdo for switching between the two.
My favorite way to consume a story is to be in a quiet place and read a physical book.
The issue is that I have two children, a full time job, and a puppy!
I get less than an hour of physical reading in a day, but I get to continue the story if I have audible going while cleaning, driving, and exercising.
Actually, learning styles like you described aren’t really a thing. Veritasium has a video on it.
They're really preferred styles, nothing more.
Thank you Merphy! I appreciate the stellar research you've done to better all our comprehension on this matter! 👍
Amen. "Audiobook listening isn't reading" is so incredibly ableist. If you wouldn't tell a blind person without access to braille books that they cannot read, don't say that listening to audiobooks is "cheating".
I don’t think it’s ableist. It’s just semantics, they literally don’t mean the same thing. Which is NOT to say that you didn’t consume the same information, that the _way_ in which you got that information is any less valid or that the experience is better or worse, or that one is a bigger accomplishment than the other. They just aren’t the same. In the same vein that sending a letter and calling someone aren’t the same thing, even if you convey the same information in the two different mediums.
@@MarinaMeoli The distinction I would argue is that a phone call is interactive, so the chances are info will not be delivered the same way as a letter, even if they are acted upon with the same intent to deliver the same information, it is likely to vary because both parties will be speaking. A more accurate comparison to the letter is either to record the same information and deliver it in audio form or leave a voicemail. In this situation, the info received is more likely to be identical as there is no secondary voice to act upon it. Which is more the case with physical books vs. audiobooks. The actual delivery of text is likely identical in that case. It's just the receptors (eyes vs. ears) that change.
@@TheDawnofVanlife true! It’s a comparison, so not perfect. Maybe a better example would be a letter vs a voice message? Even if you literally read out loud what you would have sent in the mail, the two mediums aren’t the same.
Reading a book and watching an adaptation are two vastly different things; and reading a book and listening to a book being read out loud are significantly less different, in the sense that in the end, the consumer is getting the same information. But the _way_ the information was received is still not the same. There’s things in audiobooks that if you only read that book, you definitely don’t get (different - literal, auditory - voices for different characters, the layer of information that the way the narrator him/herself reads adds to the experience of the story, to name a few) and vice versa. To use Merphy’s example, someone who biked to a destination got to that destination just the same as someone who drove there. But that doesn’t mean that driving is the same as biking.
Edit: I somehow missed that you used the voice mail comparison in your comment! Sorry, I read too fast hahahaha
That's so true. From a massive c reader who is also blind. Audio books have revolutionised the way I read
@@MarinaMeoli Absolutely, different "muscles" were used in the process of the driving vs. biking example. And I think it comes back to what was the goal. If the goal was to "get there" how you got there is irrelevant, you both got there. And maybe the guy who biked there got some extra benefits, but maybe those extra benefits just don't matter to the person who drove there. He just wanted to see the place where they both arrived and that's all that mattered. As was excellently stated in the video, sometimes we assume our goals are everyone's goals and our value system is everyone's value system. So they need to value the "how you got there" the same way we do and unless we both signed on to "ride bikes" or "ride cars" to get to the same destination, it honestly doesn't matter how we arrived at the destination. The only stipulation was the destination.
I usually change the pace of my reading, like on detailed descriptions I read slower and on fights I read faster. I know you can change the speed on audible but it just happens naturally while reading, I don’t even think about it, I don’t like pressing the buttons all the time, that’s why I preffer reading
In audiobooks, one is consuming stories, learning pronunciation by "Listening". So it's not reading but listening and as long as one is learning things it's fine but whoever calls it reading is wrong. It's just another medium of consuming things.
Great video!
I personally prefer listening over reading, mostly because it's easier to find time for it while doing something else (e.g. cooking), but also because the narrator can really add so much to a story. A good narrator (at least for me) helps me to immerse myself / can really help to carry the humor or drama of a scene.
But at the same time a bad narrator can bore you even with a really interesting story. So I think the statement "both people (reader & listener) experience the same story" is under the assumption that the narrator did a decent job (which 99% of the narrators I've listened to have done).
Plus for me, listening to English audiobooks (not my mother language) helped me SO much in learning the language, especially the pronounciation!
And lastly: How in the world is listening to an audiobook cheating?! If anything, listening to an audiobook is _slower_ than reading it (at least for me, because reading the words is waaay faster than listening to someone read it, esp. on 1x speed, which is my fav).
So even IF there was a competition, I'd be in a disadvantage.
"I'm a big reader, if you didn't know" -Merphy
I finished university this year and I can say that having online classes and lecture recordings to watch when studying caused me to retain a lot less than when we just had lecture slides to read. I could tell you stuff I read from first year but nothing from last semester
This was a phenomenal video! Your arguments have won the day. If anyone ever brings this topic up to me again, I plan to direct them to this video. Great coincidence, I just told one of my colleagues a day ago that I listen to audio books while cooking. Maybe I just cook the same stuff over and over and thus it doesn't require much thought, but I think it's very easy to multitask with audio books. I also clean and, sometimes, even organize stuff, which you would think would take some brain capacity. :)
Thank you so much for this video! Loved it! I am legally blind and, audiobooks have brought me so much joy over the years. As a kid, I hated reading mostly because, I began learning braille a few years later than blind students usually start learning it. Braille is the system of reading and writing for the blind made up of dots, that we read By feeling the dots with our fingers. The code has around 250 character combinations and, a bunch of rules for when and how to use these characters. As a result, I was never able to read at my grade level with braille. I depended on audiobooks for textbooks in school because, they were simply the most efficient option at the time. I didn’t start reading for pleasure until my junior year in high school. When I started reading through audio for fun, I read 8 Books in 4 weeks and, I have never looked back. Now, many years later, I have significantly improved my skills in braille And, I have mastered the symbols and rules for the code. I am just working on improving my reading speed. So, I still predominately read through audio.
I love both acts of physical books and audio. For me its a time management experience, it allows me to combine my two hobbies sewing and reading... Sewing and quilting 🪡🧵is my day job, long hours of standing watching a machine stich out patterns lol...so if l am working l can also read at the same time...l also use audio books in combination with a physical books for correct pronunciation...l generally start and end my day with a physical book and during the day listen to an audio book...depending on the audio book...l will take physical notes...l also like thay it also gives my husband and me something to chat about...he is exclusive audio as he drives for a living and he consumes more books than me lol...thank you for doing this video and sharing your opinions with us.
Audiobooks are great. I can "read" more with Audiobooks and I also read physically but slower, much slower than listening. Thanks for making this positively affirmative video on Audiobooks 👍
The blade itself by Joe Abra Comby is a really good example of why you might want to try out audiobooks. The narrator is incredible and he really brings the story to life in a way I suspect I would not have if I would’ve just read it visually
Yes. I use audiobooks when I read in English since it is my second language so I simultaneously read the book and listen to the audiobook. It has helped me to know how a word I don't know is pronounced and improved my reading comprehension in this language.
You had me at "Well, that's individual." Great (and fair) video.
I've listened to some amazing audiobooks that were game changers. I have ADD, slow literary fiction kills me, but I RELISHED Tom Hanks narration of The Dutch House. It added dimension, irony, rhythm and kept me totally engaged while I had stopped reading the print version after chapter 1. I read almost exclusively on-screen but I also work on computer all day, so my eyes get tired. Just sitting there listening quietly to an audiobook rests my eyes and stimulates my brain. And don't get me started about listening to them in the car, it's the best. I just did the whole Winternight Trilogy that way, best time ever.
i want to read much more than i do, i game often and a fair amount is just mindless grinding and i always think i should just throw an audiobook on while i play but always in the back of my mind i think "am i actually really reading??" . So i usually post pone reading until i can read the book and listen to the audio book at the same time, which results in very slow progress.
i am glad to hear from many that listening to audiobooks is generally accepted. i think i will try listening more often as there are many many amazing stories in the world of books i want to experience!!
Never really faced this problem! Mostly read books on kindle, but also listen to audiobooks frequently. Sometimes, listening to a good soundtrack really transports you to a magical place.
Audiobooks are cheating ?
I didn't even know I was playing a game D:
Downloaded my first audiobook today for a change of pace as I have been reading physical books for a few weeks now. I think it's nice to have an audio book as a way to listen to the story.
I love how everyone talks about whether audiobooks “count” or are “cheating”. Is there a test or game somewhere for how many books you “read”? Do I get a prize for reading? 😁
The prize we get for reading is understanding ourselves and others and becoming a better person
@@mimibelta259 The same thing can be achieved through listening to audiobooks...
@@LunaticTheCat I was answering the question the person above asked which is do I get a prize for reading? And I was say the the prize for either reading a physical book or audiobook is getting to understand you and other people better I wasn’t saying audiobooks are different then reading physical books and I actually love audiobooks so I see the benefits of both types of books ,now I have heard people say that people who are able to physically see should only use physical books because audiobooks are meant for the visually impaired people (those who are partially or fully blind or those with dyslexia ( mostly from my mom who needs glasses and uses ebooks)
As a major Audible listener, this makes so much sense to me! Thanks!
Been trying to get into audiobooks, might help me stop skim reading novels and actually listen to the details more carefully.
With the audiobooks are cheating thing. I was part of a readathon which was a competition. Some participants were listening to audiobooks on highspeed while working, doing chores, cooking dinner, etc while the other participants had to take time out of their day to read. You got points for how many pages you read. Those who listened instead of read got a ton more points because it didn't take extra time out of their day to listen/read vs those who actually sat down and read books after work, chores, dinner etc.
I’m dyslexic I find information is much easier to digest in audiobook format.
My Mum wrote a children’s book recently based on my dyslexia to encourage dyslexic kids.
It’s about a dyslexic dinosaur 🦖 and we got a professional narrator and it’s now on Amazon 😊 I hope it helps people.
It sometimes depends on how invested I am in a story. If I really like it, I could read it in book form in one sitting. If I don't like it or I just want to listen to a story while I am busy with something else, listening to the book is the better option. Honestly, I appreciate it that there are so many free audiobooks in general that help me read and understand tough books.
I love audiobooks! I used to be a snob about but i think somewhere in 2018 i started doing audiobooks. And i have gone through more than 60 books or even more since then. I dont have the time to sit and read a 900 pg book. I completed the entire HP series in 2 or 3 months just by audiobook. When im doing something on my phone or writing down on to do list, i listen to an audiobook
I'm dyslexic and losing my eye sight. Auidobooks are how I've been able to continue to enjoy books. So in my opinion the argument between audio vs physical is moot.
When I was younger, I couldn't do audiobooks. In school I was a reader, I'd read ahead in class only paying partial attention to what the teacher was saying. I had trouble processing them (audiobooks) in my mind. I couldn't pay attention to them and would have to keep going back to catch what I'd missed, so I put them aside.
Last year, during the beginning of the pandemic, I started walking - a lot. So, I picked up audiobooks again, to try. I started with books that I'd already read, so I wouldn't get lost as easily. Over the last year and a half, I have bumped my audio speed from 1.0x to 1.5, and I will listen to three or four a week, while walking and doing chores. I still read physical books, and e-books. I find that having all three going at once, it is easier to keep the stories separate in my mind - the different formats help to do that.
Even if science did say "audiobooks are worse " I'd still listen to them. They fit better into my life and I'm a really good auditory learner, so I'll muddle along.
New subscriber! Your videos are great and so informative! For me, I read and listen to audiobooks because I don’t always have the time to physically sit and read. I retain the story the same way and sometimes I even do both at the same time if I’m reading a story with names I readily can’t pronounce and want the right way to say it 🤓.
Someone came to me and used that same thing “listening isn’t really reading” and that’s foolish because as you mentioned we both got to the end, we just chose a different path or different means to get there.
Again, thanks so much for the video! Blessings!
I started to listen to audiobook in the beginning of this year, and now every book I pic to read, I tried to listen the audiobook together, because I love it!
Yea until you did that video on dyslexia a while back, I had no idea that it could be a good days/bad days type of thing. It's interesting that it can operate like that, since it doesn't seem to be that kind of disorder. There have to be some underlying triggers for it.
What an apropos topic! When I was young, I did not own a TV and read many, many books. (Often Greek tragedies or fantasy & science fiction.) I moved to Staten Island NYC and started reading books while commuting on the Staten Island Ferry. (The Ferry is the most civilized way to commute and gave me a half hour each morning & evening to read! I worked my way through night school studying on the Ferry. ) I am dyslexic. It's work for me to read. The extra effort helps me to have a 90% reading comprehension & memory. As I've gotten older, with various eye problems, real books with a fixed typed font are difficult for me unless I have a very bright light on the book. (I sometimes read while wearing a campers flashlight on my forehead.)
I discovered Kindle books. That I can make the type any size & backlight a bright screen is great! There are certain things I prefer over real books to Kindle books. (I can do a physical count of the number of pages to an end of a chapter, or the book easier in a physical book.) I prefer real physical books, but Kindle has so many advantages! I think I have higher comprehension & memory with a real book. Kindle is maybe 80%. If I wish to study a topic, I am much better off with a physical book. Right now I am stuck reading a long, drearily written history of the Peninsula War. It's something I "need" to study and am really frustrated. Most of my notes are about how much I detest the writing style. I sometimes get stubborn, "I am gonna read this to the end and ENJOY IT no matter how much I HATE IT!" (The task is going slow. Same author also wrote a history of the Peninsular War and it's impact on Spanish women: I need to read that too. More dreary tedium, I guess.)
Meanwhile, I've discovered Audible Books. Not sure if it was you or Sarra Cannon who turned me onto Audible Books. I've been "ripping" through the books on Audible! Sarra Cannon, Jenna Moreci, The Sharpe's Rifles series (by Bernard Cornwell), a biography of Napoleon, the Dresden Files, by Jim Butcher (OMG! Great Books!), A Great Courses history of the Ancient Mayas. I find my overall comprehension and memory is lower, probably 70%, unless I really concentrate on the narration. Still, I can put an Audible book on while I cook or do the dishes! I am "reading" more books, faster on Audible Books! AND I don't have a clutter of books all over my house. I moved in 2018 and gave books away to my Church, the Salvation Army, a veterans charity, and others until they all blocked me from donating more books! I still have about a dozen milk crates of "Must Keep" books! (Curiously, I tend to read a book only once. "Ringworld" by Larry Niven was one of the few books I've read twice. But I get fondly attached to the books!)
Why are people so bothered with how other people enjoy art? We have become very judgemental in the last few years and it's always 'My way or the highway'. I prefer to live and let live. If you enjoy audiobooks, e-books or paper books, go ahead. When i was young about 100 years ago the discussion was similar between paperbacks and hardbacks. Silly, but there it is. We are too concerned with how other people do things... /rant over..sorry :-/
I love audiobooks as they leave my hands free and allow me to go on with my day while still getting my book addiction fed. However, if the narrator is 'wrong' - and that comes down to taste of course - I can't stand it. When i listened to the Malazan on audio book they swapped narrators after 3-4 books and it took me almost an entire book to be ok with it. It was ok since i've read the books several times but if i don't know the book before, the wrong narrator makes me DNF the book, regardless of how good it is.
Yes, 100%. Why would it matter how I take in my books. I have been having trouble with my eyes the last couple of years, so audiobooks have allowed me to continue to read books without putting strain on my eyes. Does that mean I’m doing it wrong?
@@christenegoodger2548 Surely the important part is to let your imagination fly free? HOW you do that is completely up to you, as long as you're not hurting anybody else and how can consuming literature harm others? :-))
I don't think we became more judgmental recently. I think we just started to see judgmental people more because of Internet. Similar to how people say wars have increased but the world is the most stable it's ever been. It's just that we can heae the news from faraway lands easier.
@@batuhan_a_kocak Point well made
BTW: Thank you for one of your recent comments about NOT liking to document what you read on Good Reads and similar. I was starting to do that, nd found it a chore and stopped. Ten felt guilty about it! But Guilt No More! Thank you, Merphy!
I love both. I use audiobooks when driving to/from work, and physical books when at home
I prefer the audiobooks as I "read" way more books this way. In our busy lives it is really nice to listen to audiobooks while driving, cooking, doing laundry, mowing the grass, commuting, working out and I could go on an on. I started audiobooks years ago and haven't looked back. Don't get me wrong, like to read a good paper book from time to time but at this point in my life I have more time to listen to books. So, audiobooks are not reading of course. But reading or listening to a book is the consumption of a story and that is the same to me. :P
I love audio books. I listen while doing housework, commuting to work/home, or walking. I used Audible for this, but there is now good competition with real flatrates at a fixed price - perfect for those who listen a lot.
It’s really interesting with the cooking dinner bit. I can’t listen if I need to read a recipe, that takes to much focus for me. But most meals aren’t from a recipe and those I do just find. So I know what meals I can and can’t listen to an audiobook. So as you said, it’s individual to the person and the practice they have ☺️ great video!
I can’t do audiobooks, I can’t imagine things that I’m hearing as beautifully and explicitly when reading myself! Just can’t beat reading a book yourself.
Strong disagree. As someone who can't read physical anymore thanks to vision loss, I've found audiobooks to be just as good if not better then the physicals. Many Stephen King books for instant. Just gotta find a good narrator. I imagine stuff just as well as I used to. I guess to each their own though, of course.
Hey Merph! Great video. I wanted to let you know as an educational professional that the idea of learning styles is pretty well debunked these days. Generally the way people tend to learn best is dependent on the material rather than an innate style. We do have style preferences, but it doesn't tend to be measurable and catering to them can often do more harm than good. It's one of those learning myths that refuses to die!
Love you channel! Keep up the great work!
Audiobooks changed my life in such a positive way!! I read 70 books last year and most of them were audiobooks. I have severe chronic pain and holding a book or looking at a screen ebook can hurt terribly so this helps me immensely. And if I zone out at all, I go back to the spot I zoned out so that I don’t miss anything from the book, same as one would do when they zone out while reading a physical copy
I personally have terrible comprehension with audiobooks and podcasts. 😅 I love the experience of listening to them, and feel like I understand what's going on as I do it, but after what feels like only a few days i barely remember what was going on except the major points.
I also hate if I get distracted and miss something. I understand that you can stop and rewind audio, but it is more difficult to know exactly how far back to go (since there are no visual cues) and also, like many people, I use audio when my hands are busy, so having to stop and pull out my phone to rewind a few seconds just doesn't seem worth it to me most of the time. For these reasons, I only really use audio for more lighthearted, conversational, casual types of things. Things where it's not so important if I miss a point or two.
HOWEVER. This is just my personal experience. :) Audiobooks are a wonderful thing, and I am so glad that they exist! My husband speaks English as his second language, so he likes to listen and read simultaneously. As you said, it is so personal to every person. :) Both are great for their own reasons, but both bring you the same content. D
So who cares what medium carries those words to your brain? 😊
I didn’t know you had dyslexia! I struggle with reading comprehension and audiobooks have been life changing for me. Maybe it’s because I’m a musician, but auditory is so much easier for me to get. When I read a physical book, I read it way too fast and miss basic information.
I watched mushoku tensei (a Japanese anime adapted from a series of Japanese light novels) and since the fist season only covered the first 2 light novels I binge listened to the other 22 light novels because I was hooked by the story, now I have dyslexia and sometimes find it hard to get through a large novel with in a week or two, but I managed to get through 22 novels within 2 weeks and then went back to listen to the first 2 novels just to see the difference between the light novels and the anima adaptation so personally for me I can see the benefits in audio books.
Edit: wrote the above before I got to the part of the video were you mentioned your dyslexia, good to know you understand the struggle and I find it really impressive that you're such an avid reader even with your dyslexia 👍🏻
My 3 children were raised listening to audio books. As kids are in school they all had various testing. Their compression and vocabulary levels were always quite high. Their reading speeds were always listed as a little slow when younger but as they got older by high school all were testing significantly higher then other students. My son has ADHD as well as having some dyslexia and bad dysgraphia, I was told my various therapist that his audiobook listening helped him avoid some of the usual reading hesitation issues that can be prevalent at younger ages with the difficulties that come these different learners.
My favorite part about audiobook vs physical reading is when my friend and I discuss a book I listened to and he read is how I know how to say all the character names and he knows how to spell them but we don’t know vice versa
As someone with dyslexia and adhd, I struggle to read for leisure, I could try and force myself to read but it just becomes a chore when I’d rather escape and enjoy it. It becomes about the act of reading which turns into a distraction from the chance to relax and lose myself in the story. I missed out on so many stories growing up because I was told that audiobooks are cheating or that I’m stupid for needing them, and that inhibited me from reading at all. But now I’m just embracing audiobooks and it’s changed my life, I don’t care what people think anymore, I’ve got such a huge reading list to get through and I’m so excited.
I’m currently working on developing my drawing skills and like to take what I listen to and draw it. But then I realized that it actually, although subconscious, is slightly more work (for better or worse) when physically reading since you the reader are determining what characters sound like, the inflections in their voice, and ultimately providing all of the background context to each situation via your imagination whereas with audiobooks your relying on the narrator to deliver all that. So from my perspective, I’ve decided to read physical and audiobooks in effort to “exercise” my subconscious context building for the sake of my drawing. Overall though, that’s an extremely minor detail, and at the end of the day, every reader regardless of format is taking in the same story. Great video!
As an avid audiobook reader, I really love your car vs bike analogy.
When I read the title I thought you were going to gatekeep reading, thank you Merphy for not being an elitist
We live in a world where we can enjoy both. Sometimes if I want to have a more immersive experience I'll put on the audiobook while reading the physical copy. I'd recommend Dune for this with a coffee and cinnamon pastry! :D
Have you ever read The Read Aloud Family by Sarah McKenzie? She discusses the importance of reading aloud(or having audio books read aloud) to your kids. I have found that listening to NF on audio has been like building a muscle-I couldn’t retain anything at first and now I can at least retain most of what I’m listening too. Loved this video!
It does make a lot of sense as to it not mattering a whole lot. It really does boil down on engagement level with the title you are reading/listening to.
I partly still prefer the idea of physically reading a book even though I was an incredibly slow reader once upon a time before vision loss happened.
Now I’m just glad that I can use a screen reader on kindle books and having the ability to listen to proper audio books that have a smaller chance of mispronouncing names.
Can definitely see why people like audiobooks on the basis of being able to multitask, it’s just a shame I am really bad at doing such.
You have to take into account individual differences too. Our brains are all both really similar but are also more different in more subtle ways as contradictory as that sounds. People can be wired a bit differently and some will absorb information better through physical or auditory reading. Also like you said, you can train your brain to get more used to whichever as well ,and what you are used to plays a part. Edit: You touch on this point more later in the video.
I have absolutely no problem with audio books as a form of enjoying the material. The only thing that I don't like is calling it reading as opposed to listening. It just bothers me personally because of how I'm wired. You read a physical or electronic book and you listen to an audio book. Reading an audio book just won't ever sound right to me. Again, it's not the manner in which it's consumed for me. I want everyone to experience the material in the way that they enjoy it most.
As someone who used to read way more as a kid, audiobooks got me back into “reading”. I don’t care if it counts or not in other people’s eyes, when I finish an audiobook, I count it as a book. I’m far more engaged while listening to things than reading them. I usually buy a physical copy as well but audio is they way I prefer experiencing books now
Audiobooks are a perfectly fine medium to consume a story, but is not "reading" . It is listening, different adjectives.
You don't say to someone to 'read' a song.
Audiobooks are great, but do not fit in the realm of reading, they only share source material.
Audiobook retention is not reading-retention, but a form of auditory-retention.
I’m envious of your relationship with your dad. Sounds like it’s great to discuss what you read together.
I read a lot and at least 2/3 of my reading is audiobooks. A good chunk of my day is spent getting ready, commuting, doing boring data-entry, or doing chores. And during the times I could be physically reading I have a husband and family that would like to spend time communicating with me. Audio books give me the ability to enjoy the stories I love (and honestly need for my mental health to stay intact) during the times my brain would otherwise be on autopilot. Since I started listening to audiobooks 2 years ago I have noticed a HUGE change in my mental health. Only thing I hate about it is that I didn't start doing it earlier...like in college getting my English degree. All the time I could have saved while multitasking 😔
It comes down to being able to have access to the story. Whether you read or listen to it, you'll receive the same information. I'm a huge fan of audiobooks and use audible and content on UA-cam a lot. I've had a love/hate relationship with reading, mainly b/c in grade school tested lower and was put into "basic skill" classes and was given the lower tier readers and would purposely do the higher ones and ace them to show the teacher I was better than what the tests show. Without going further into how our education system needs improvement, when I did actually read for "fun" I actually did enjoy it. I was a huge fan, in high school of Robert R McCammon, Dean Koontz, and Stephen King. In college, I was a history major, and since then have been a non-fiction reader. Political, economic, and social histories have been my main focus. I'm switching it up now, in the last few weeks and have gotten into some sci-fi and fantasy. In the last 3 or 4 days have completed - 4 novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the first 3 in the Tarzan series and the first John Carter book. When I could get ahold of the books, and had the time to read along, I did. I listened to all of them on audio though. I think it's just getting the person into the genre, or story that matters most. We all have our abilities and I don't see the harm - or even a disgrace in audiobooks. I think it could actually help someone to love "reading" and stories more as audiobook are easier to come by these days. Especially, when I was growing up in the 80s/90s when it was very limited in the audiobook world.
I think reading = listening = consuming. I prefer my paperbacks/Kindle though. I read faster than I can listen, I feel like I can comprehend better, and I can remember the stories better. However, I think the listening experience can sometimes be better, and that's when the narrators are excellent. They can push a good book from being great to something that will haunt my dreams.
Case in point, I just finished listening to the 2nd book in the Luna series. I liked the book ok, but Merphy's performance made me love it! I still can't start the third book to catch my breath, I'm still welling up when I remember the way the 2nd book ended, and I'm still craving a yellow dress...
I’ve been doing audiobooks exclusively for the past 4 years or so. It’s such a blessing, I just never have time to sit down and read, and when I do, it’s so much harder to get the same level of comprehension. I need silence (or like background instrumental music) and nothing happening around me, that’s just been too difficult of an environment for me to create for a meaningful amount of time.
Listening is NOT reading. They're two completely separate activities that engage separate parts of the brain. There's nothing wrong with audiobooks, just don't equate them as the same.
I used to think that audiobooks were cheating but after struggling with my mental health and finding it easier to listen than read physically, I gave it enough of a chance to realize it’s basically the same.
Whether audiobooks count as reading or not depends only on a single thing: your definition of "reading".
If someone asks you if you have read a specific book, they are only interested in whether you have experienced the verbal content of the book. Perhaps they want to talk about a certain character, or plot point, or how mind-boggling the ending was. They are not usually interested in whether you read it in hardback or paperback, what the paper quality or binding glue was like, or indeed if the printing ink was of sufficiently black colour. Those are qualities of the delivery medium of the book (the verbal content), also confusingly referred to as a book (the physical object), even if those are two entirely different and very much separable things.
Perhaps we should reappropriate the word "codex" to avoid confusion?
And so, except in discussions on whether audio books are reading or not, the most common definition is actually one that already includes audio books.
Myself, I read audio books when I go for walks and read books on paper when I stop for a coffee in a café, in the evenings, or in bed just before going to sleep.