The month of June is National Audiobook Month and Jen at Devourer of Books is hosting daily discussions of audiobooks all this week. I’m a huge audiobook addict and you might have noticed that many of the book reviews Jose and I do are of audiobooks. We started listening to them a few years ago to make our respective commutes to work go by faster. Since then, I’ve also started listening to them on the treadmill or while doing chores. I love them because they allow you to do two things at once and they make boring tasks a lot more fun.

In honor of Audiobook Week, I thought I’d share some of my all-time favorites:

Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
I consider David Sedaris’ audiobooks to be some of the best out there, and I think they are a great starting point for a newbie. Sedaris narrates them himself with perfect comedic timing and delivery. I picked Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim because just thinking about the southern accent he does when imitating his brother Paul (aka “The Rooster”) makes me giggle, but all his audiobooks are awesome. Check out my review of Live For Your Listening Pleasure here.

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
The Time Traveler’s Wife is one of my favorite books in general, but it works particularly well as an audiobook. William Hope (Henry) and Laurel Lefkow (Clare) narrate the unabridged version. Since the book switches back and forth between Henry and Clare’s perspectives, having a male and a female narrator works perfectly. It has been awhile since I listened to this one, but I can still hear the longing in Clare’s voice as she waits for Henry.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett
The Help audiobook was my favorite book of 2009. It’s narrated by Jenna Lamia, Bahni Turpin, Octavia Spencer, and Cassandra Campbell. Minny, who is sassy and speaks with a thick dialect, is brought to life by Bahni Turpin. Octavia Spencer (who will actually play Minny in the movie version) is the calm, thoughtful Aibileen, and I really connected to her character. These ladies deliver wonderful performances with authentic southern accents (to my Yankee ears) that made me feel like I was actually in the South during the 1960s. I can’t recommend this one highly enough. (Read my full review here.)

Twilight series by Stephenie Meyers
When I started listening to the Twilight audiobook, I was instantly captivated by Ilyana Kadushin’s rich, textured voice. She narrated Bella so perfectly that, to me, she IS Bella. If I go back and read a passage from one of the Twilight books, it’s her voice I hear in my head.

Harry Potter series by JK Rowling
I know a lot of people list the Harry Potter audiobooks among their favorites, but there’s a reason for this—they are GOOD. I’ve listened to the US version of the audiobooks, which are narrated by talented English actor Jim Dale. He created a different voice for each character, which is just amazing considered how many characters are in the series. His Hermione is a little whiny, but he captures most of the other characters perfectly. He really gets into it and delivers a performance, rather than a narration.

So have you listened to any of my picks? What are some of your favorite audiobooks?

Read Street, the book blog of the Baltimore Sun, has declared 2000-2009 the decade of Stephenie Meyer. Their reasoning for this bold declaration is that:

Meyer’s novel “Twilight,” released in October of 2005, hit the top of the bestseller lists and has hardly budged since — while being joined by others in the series.

In the comment section the author clarifies:

I’m not saying she’s the best author if the decade, but her emergence is one of the biggest trends since 2000. There’s no doubt about that.

It’s true, vampire books have been a huge trend in the past few years and Stephenie Meyer’s success has spread to other authors like L. J. Smith and Charlaine Harris. On the other hand, while recent years have been all about vampires, I would argue that J. K. Rowling dominated most of the decade. The first Harry Potter book was published in the US in 1998 and the final one in 2007, and the series has sold more than 400 million copies. In fact, the New York Times created a new bestseller list for children’s books in 2000 because Harry Potter was monopolizing its fiction bestseller list.

Another reason I think that this decade belongs to J. K. Rowling is that her success paved the way for Stephenie Meyer. The Harry Potter books sparked a renewed interest in reading among a generation of kids raised on DVDs and videogames. Through the popularity of Harry Potter, these kids became used to 700 page books and midnight release parties. The crossover appeal of the series also introduced adults to the idea that not all YA fiction is just for kids. I think all these trends influenced the success of Twilight.

Since we’re talking about book trends of this decade, I feel like I need to mention Dan Brown and The Da Vinci Code. Since The Da Vinci Code debuted in 2003, his books have also spent a lot of time on the bestseller lists. His success has prompted lots of thriller-writing imitators as well as entire books that interpret the theories presented in The Da Vinci Code. Thanks to Dan Brown, conspiracy theory thrillers rooted in historical fact became one of the biggest trends of the decade.

So who do you think is the author of the decade? Stephenie Meyer? J. K. Rowling? Dan Brown? Someone I missed? Leave your comments below!

I was completely devastated when I finished the final Harry Potter Book as it meant I had no more Potter books to look forward to. The remaining 2 movies helped lessen the blow a little bit, but what I’ve really been hankering for is a new book by Rowling. This winter, I was temporarily comforted by the release of The Tales Of Beedle The Bard. If you haven’t checked it out yet, don’t get too excited. This is not a new Potter book. It’s also not a novel, but rather a collection of short stories with some footnotes by Dumbledore, that clocks in at around 100 pages (with large print and pictures).

All that being said, it’s an excellent book. Rowling has the great ability to open up one’s imagination and create worlds where anything is possible. So, it only made sense for her to write a book of fairy tales. Just like the stories we grew up with as kids, The Tales Of Beedle The Bard will excite your imagination, teach you life lessons, and leave you yearning for more.

If you’re in “Post-Potter Depression” like me, you won’t find total relief with The Tales Of Beedle the Bard. You will however find a great book that proves to be a small distraction. My personal favorite is “The Wizard And The Hopping Pot” which is about a grumpy wizard that turns his back to those in need and gets a healthy dose of karma. I recommend this book for not only Potter fans, but for young children as well. It would make a great gift to any young child, or would be a great book to read to your kids before bedtime.

Buy The Tales of Beedle The Bard by J.K. Rowling on Amazon by clicking here.

The movie Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opens this week so if you haven’t read the book yet, now is the time. Most fans of the series read the book a few years ago, so read on for a quick refresher. If you recall, the fifth book, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, ended with the wizarding world finally becoming aware that Lord Voldemort had returned. The sixth book begins with the magical world at war and a new minister of magic taking office, now that the bumbling Cornelius Fudge has been relieved of duty. As the story of his battle with Voldemort spreads, Harry is once again everyone’s hero, the chosen one who will defeat Voldemort forever.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opens with Harry spending his summer at the Dursley’s, until Dumbledore arrives and asks him to help him persuade Horace Slughorn to become the newest professor at Hogwarts. Professor Slughorn isn’t a bad person, but he is one of those people who value others for their social connections or what they can do for him. To me he’s pretty repulsive, but a vast improvement on the hideous Dolores Umbridge. While at Hogwarts, Harry acquires an old potions textbook with writing-covered margins that once belonged to someone who called himself “The Half-Blood Prince.” Despite Hermione’s objections, Harry uses the spells in class to his benefit.

Dumbledore, whose hand is mysteriously withered, begins meeting with Harry to show him everything he has learned about Voldemort’s, aka Tom Riddle’s, life before and after Hogwarts so that Harry may better understand his enemy. Through the Pensieve, Harry sees that Riddle collected objects of importance that he later turned into horcruxes – objects that hold onto a piece of one’s soul, which ensures immortality but at the cost of fracturing the soul. Harry realizes that in order to kill Voldemort, he must first destroy the horcruxes. One thing this book really drives home is how different Harry and Riddle are, even though they were both orphans who found a home at Hogwarts. Despite being given many opportunities, Riddle chose to use his talent and charisma for evil.

Those who have read Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince will certainly remember the unforgettable ending, so I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t. But, seriously, if you haven’t read the book, what are you waiting for? I love all the Harry Potter books, but this is one of the best in the series. Dumbledore preparing Harry for defeating Voldemort is bittersweet because it needs to be done, but it’s heartbreaking to see Harry have to face such adult problems. The Half-Blood Prince is more grown-up than previous books and has adult themes, but there is also a lot of teenage romance and angst that is a reminder of how young the characters really are.

The Harry Potter movies are fantastic and I will definitely be the first in line this weekend, but I highly recommend reading the books too because they contain so much more detailed information. There’s just no way to fit all the various storylines into a 2 hour movie, so by not reading the book you really do miss some of the background that makes Rowling’s characters so enjoyable.

Buy Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by JK Rowling on Amazon by clicking here.

(You can also read a review for the movie Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince here.)