Audio books

Parent Cafe
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<p>The only time I listed to audio books are when we go on vacation and I really enjoy them for those long car rides. My criteria is the book has to be so good that I want to drive longer then needed just so I can hear more. I just came back from a two hour car ride and found myself sitting in my car in my driveway so I could hear a bit more. The book? Outcasts United by Warren St. John. [Amazon.com:</a> Outcasts United: A Refugee Team, an American Town: Warren St. John: Books](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Outcasts-United-Refugee-Team-American/dp/0385522037/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246806956&sr=8-1]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/Outcasts-United-Refugee-Team-American/dp/0385522037/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246806956&sr=8-1) </p>

<p>Here’s a snippet from a review, "Warren St. John tells the incredible stories of an entire program of immigrant soccer players in Clarkston, GA. The incredible part is how these players (“The Fugees”) arrived in this Southern town. The players are all refugees from various countries. Each player’s family has an amazing survival story from war-torn and politically oppressed areas of the planet. That the team consists of Liberians, Somalis, Sudanese, Kosovars, Iraqis, and other nationalities makes no difference to the players - they just want to play. "</p>

<p>Another book we listened to on the way to and from Florida was Bill Bryson’s , “A Walk in the Woods” about hiking the Appalachian Trail. I like Bryson’s humorous style of writing and had read a few of his books before. <a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Walk-Woods-Rediscovering-America-Appalachian/dp/0307279464/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246807121&sr=1-1[/url]”>http://www.amazon.com/Walk-Woods-Rediscovering-America-Appalachian/dp/0307279464/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1246807121&sr=1-1&lt;/a&gt; This was fun to listen to as we drove past some of the areas’ that he talked about. The only thing slightly off-putting was knowing that Bryson himself is English but the book is read by someone clearly from America.</p>

<p>Anyone else have road trip audio books to recommend?</p>

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<p>Try this recent thread on recorded books for the car. Some great suggestions.</p>

<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/733333-recorded-books-car.html?highlight=rosenblatt[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parent-cafe/733333-recorded-books-car.html?highlight=rosenblatt&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Oh! well, never mind. :)</p>

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<p>And like you, I think it makes long car trips much more pleasant. I generally find that any book I might enjoy reading will be rewarding in an audio format.</p>

<p>However, I have a wonderful suggestion of an audiobook (1996) that fairly young children as well as adults can find fascinating. It is called “Raptor Red”, by Robert T. Bakker. It is sort of a year-in-the-life of a dinosaur. I checked this audiobook out of the library when I was making a long trip with an 8-year old boy, thinking he would find it interesting and I possibly could tolerate it. To my surprise, both of us were mesmerized by its unsentimental but gripping plot. </p>

<p>I also just got back from a trip during which I listened to “The Savage Garden,” by Mark Mills. Very entertaining. I like well-developed characters, and I liked these people.</p>

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<p>Um, kathiep- Bill Bryson was born in Des Moines, Iowa. His book, The Thunderbolt Kid is about his life growing up in the Midwest.</p>

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<p>I guess I thought of him as English because he sometimes calls sweaters jumpers and he wrote a book about touring in England and did so as someone that lived there. Ah, here’s the wikipedia scoop on him: [Bill</a> Bryson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Bryson]Bill”>Bill Bryson - Wikipedia) “He was a resident of North Yorkshire, England for most of his professional life before moving back to the US in 1995. He has lived in Norfolk, England since 2003.”</p>

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<p>I love audio books because they remind me of the time when I was a kid where we lived in a place without English TV. There was a radio station that would broadcast radio dramas (in English). Absolutely gripping, with sound effects and everything! </p>

<p>That sort of thing has gone out of style…</p>