Audio Books | Books & Reading | Classifieds.co.uk :

An increasing number of people are buying audio books nowadays. This is a quick and easy way of reading a book without any of the effort! It is, of course, also something of a lifeline for many visually impaired people. The fact is that you can buy audio books on all kinds of subjects and to suit all tastes -- they make the perfect present and many people simply like to buy them for themselves either as occasional purchases or as part of a collection.

An introduction to audio books
One of the big advantages of audio books is that they are so versatile. You can buy them on CD or tape and you can listen to them just about anywhere. For example, some people will download audio books to their MP3 players, some will listen at home and some will listen in the car. You can even buy audio book downloads online nowadays.

In terms of subject matter audio books are just like any other book -- you can find audio books to suit all tastes. For example, you can buy fiction, humour, documentary, non-fiction, TV tie-ins and kids audio books. The chances are -- whatever your tastes -- that there will be an audio book out there to suit you.

Audio books also make life a lot easier for people with a visual disability or problem. This way they can still enjoy their favourite authors despite the fact that they may not find reading books that easy.

Things to think about before buying new audio books
If you are looking to buy audio books on the high street then your best bet will be a book shop. Even small book sellers will probably have an audio book section although larger retailers often have quite a comprehensive selection so you may get more choice there. Bear in mind that it is nowadays easier to find audio books on CD -- books on tape are not so commonly found new.

You may also like to think about looking online for your audio books -- an Internet book site will probably give you more choice than a high street book shop and may be able to order specific or obscure titles for you. Alternatively, you can look to sign up with an audio books download service. These sites can be used to make a one-off purchase, to buy on an occasional basis or on a subscription basis.

If you do download audio books from a website then do make sure that your computer and internet connection will be able to cope with the download which will probably be quite large.

Things to think about before buying audio books second hand
If you are looking for audio books second hand in a shop then you need to take some time to check on the quality of the CD or the tape. There is no point in buying an audio book that you cannot listen to if you discover that the CD is scratched or the tape broken when you try to play it. So, hold a CD up to the light to work out if it is scratched and damaged. Expect some scratches here but if they look particularly deep and go beyond the surface then the CD may not play properly. Bear in mind that you can always ask if the store has a CD player so you can try it out before you buy.

Obviously you cannot see an audio book CD or tape if you buy second hand online so you'll need to take other measures to assess the condition of the item. Make sure to ask the seller plenty of questions and ask to see a digital photo of the disc or tape. This won't tell you exactly what its condition is like -- but it will give you some idea.

Ask the seller if the disc or tape are damaged in any way. Ask if it still plays OK all the way through -- do bear in mind, however, that some sellers will be getting rid of audio books on tape and may no longer have access to a tape player so may not be able to answer your questions here -- you may have to take the risk and just buy the audio book!

It's also a good idea to ask the seller why they are selling the audio book -- sometimes this can give you an idea as to quality. For example, if a seller is getting rid of an unwanted gift then it may be 'as new' as it may never have been used. Similarly, if the seller tells you that they listened to the audio book once and now simply want to free up space and won't listen to it again then you know that it hasn't been used much.

Finally, ask the seller about their refund system -- just in case there is a problem with the audio book when you get it.