Audiobooks vs. E-Books vs. Physical Books

This is not a post about what the best way of reading is. I can't stand the people who act like audio books are not "proper" reading and don't count as books. Honestly, go get a papyrus roll for reading, Susan.
This post is supposed to show the advantages or disadvantages of the different options offered to you. It's supposed to show you aspects of those medias that you might not have thought of or maybe forgot about. Or it might just remind your inner critic to stop beating yourself up for listening to audiobooks. 

Physical Books
The classic, the old school, the physical book. It's no secret that a lot of people like to hold a physical book in their hands to read, the enjoy the cover art, the collection aspect, the smell, everything about it. And I agree with all of those things. For me, sitting down with a book and flipping pages is relaxing and grounding, calming me down and forcing me to focus on the task at hand. I#m also super into pretty covers, so I love to find cool editions with fun covers that feel interestingly or have fun effects, which you won't find in digital books. 
However, I've also recognised a few disadvantages about physical books over the years. First, at least for me, is the aspect of space. I don't have a lot of space in my flat. I also don't have access to a library at the moment and once I buy a book I can struggle with giving it away when I read it. So getting new books quickly becomes an issue of space for me. My bookshelf is full, my window sill is full, the drawers under my bed are full. Second, it's usually more expensive. Unless you're lucky to find cheap books while thrifting, physical books are more expensive than e-books for example. Which makes sense, there's a higher production cost for a physical book, but still something to keep in mind. Third, reading a book physically is not always convenient or even possible. There are two issues with this. One, it is not always convenient to have your face hidden in a book. You might have other tasks at hand that demand your active attention or you might be on the move and can't take your eyes away from what's ahead. 
Two, it is an issue of Ableism to devalue forms of reading that don't involve a physical book as not reading. Some people have difficulty reading the small print (which can be enlarged in e-books) or aren't able to read a physical book at all (because of sight or mobility impairments, so physical reading can be substituted with an audiobook). 
So don't say the only right way to read is with a physical book. 

E-Books
The modern, the space saviour, the e-book. 
Reading on your phone, your tablet, your e-reader or whatever other devises there are (idk, can you read on your apple watches yet?), reading has never been this digital and flexibel. 
As mentioned above, e-books have huge advantages when it comes to customisation (i.g. size of the font), price and availability. Especially for someone who lives is Germany but reads English books, access to Kindle and Scribd with seemingly unlimited options of English books is incredible. The aspect of saving space (hundreds of books within one app on your phone) and mobility, so reading whatever I want wherever I  go, makes me a big fan of e-books.
But since I own Scribd I've noticed a few downsides to the e-book thing. One, the unlimitlessness. Now, you might roll your eyes at this, but for me, unlimited options is not always a good thing. I get very easily overwhelmed by having to chose, let alone having to chose from the 250 books in my e-library (yes, I checked, it is actually around 250). It stresses me out, more than it should. Two, the strain on the eyes. Again, that might just be me (then again, I'm writing this post, so I guess it's fine) but reading on the tiny screen of my phone is super straining on the eyes and even my tablet is sometimes still too much. I do a lot of stuff on my laptop and phone throughout the day (uni, social media, writing etc.) and so to have my entertainment on a screen as well is super hard for me. Three, the easy distraction. I know I could buy myself an e-reader and avoid this, but if it wasn't obvious so far, I don't really want to spend money I don't have to spend. And while I have a working tablet, I'll read on there. But it also means that Netflix and other distracting apps are always in reach when I'm reading and way easier to switch to than if I read a physical book. My mind is sometimes very fast and twirling, so I often find myself canceling my reading app and go to any other place on the internet. It's an issue, I'm working on it. 

Audiobooks
The new comer, the edgy, the audiobook. 
Maybe it's just me, but I feel like audiobooks have gained such incredible popularity over the last few years. Or they have just gained popularity for me over the last few years. Audiobooks add a layer to the reading experience. Someone else gives the words meaning, depth and intonation that you normally don't really get when reading yourself. You can plug in an audiobook while tidying up, cooking and your morning commute and use moments where you don't occupy your mind as much with reading a great story. In previous months I was only able to read as much as I did because I listened to audiobooks when I went for a walk, tidied my flat or painted (or did other crafts). They are a way for people who struggle to read physically to enjoy stories and with apps like Scribd (honestly, so much better than audible) they are super accessible. 
There are a few disadvantages for them as well, however and I don't want to brush over those.
One, it can be time consuming. I'm an incredibly fast reader (at least I would call myself one) and sometimes audiobooks drive me mad in how much time they take. If I see an audiobook takes more than 10 hours I'm usually apprehensive. I have to listen to them on at least 1,5 speed just so I don't go mad and even then I sometimes feel like I could get through the story quicker on my own. I'm working on that impatient side of myself and try to teach myself to enjoy the experience, but it is a journey.
Two, the focus it takes. I'm not an auditory person. I don't learn well when I only hear things and I struggle to retain information that I only hear once. So listening to audiobooks actually takes a lot out of me sometimes. As stated above, my mind travels off so easily that I sometimes forget to listen to the audiobook and then I have to rewind everything I missed. For example I can't listen to audiobooks on trains because I get distracted by other people on the train or the view and then I stop listening. Again, a problem I'm working on.
Three, the price point. I can only speak from experience here in Germany, but audiobooks are insanely expensive when you get them in a shop. And even with things like audible, you only get two audiobooks for your monthly subscribtion fee (unless they changed that from when I used it). So unless you use Scribd (have I mentioned I love Scribd? They don't pay me to say this, just saying) and get them unlimited, you really have to pay a lot for audiobooks. 

So, there you have it. The pros and cons of all of these options. I feel like this comes to show that each of these three is perfect for a different circumstance and adds something to the reading experience. I also know that I mentioned a lot of negatives for each of them, but I always want to be honest and when comparing things you can't just compare the good things.
I personally enjoy all three of these and I'd love to know what your favourite way of reading is, let me know :)

Now, if you want to try out Scribd for 60 days, you can use this link to sign up: https://www.scribd.com/g/83ttpf
Again, I'm not affiliated with Scribd, I don't get paid or anything, but they have this feature built in, where you can get 60 days for free and I get 30 days for free. So a win-win-win (you read for free, I read for free, Scribd gets free advertisment)

I'll be back next week, because for some reason I'm a reliable, weekly blogger now o.0
I hope you're having a lovely day. 
As always, take care, stay healthy and read on. 
Lena 

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