📚 Terrible Audiobooks (Listen then Delete)
Audiobooks should be like albums. But they’re not.
Audiobooks should blend books and albums with a track list (chapters) and tracks (chapters). However, many fracture chapters into numerous unlabeled "tracks," rendering basic navigation impossible. As such, after one listen, many audiobooks become digitally disposable.
“The medium is the message.” Marshall McLuhan
Navigation and Numbers. Audiobooks aren’t so niche these days. According to Edison Research, "the majority of U.S. adults (52%) have listened to an audiobook," and the market overall accounted for $2 billion in 2023. So what should an ideal audiobook look like? Consider the content of books in the medium of the album:
Books have tables of contents with clearly titled chapters.
Albums have track lists with songs, one song per track.
Audiobooks should blend books and albums with a track list (table of contents) and tracks (chapters). Clear labeling means finding chapters like finding songs.
So far I’ve typed truisms. I hope you’ve followed, because I’ve said nothing.
What happens when these norms fail? Try finding Chapter 2 below:
The Problem. Didja find it? Ahab may find Moby Dick, but readers can't find specific chapters. This terrible navigation fails to understand both albums (tracks) and books (chapters). Like reading Yahoo Answers or using the Cinco Midi Organizer, the incompetence here is absolutely staggering. Almost impressive.
When thinking about "bad audiobooks," delivery could fill several posts: bad voices, bad performances, and so on. However, I'm focusing purely on the design standpoint.
While some designs spell laughs, others spell frustration.
Bad Design is Everywhere. I love studying patterns and design. Dieter Rams, permaculture, books by Don Norman—all fantastic. But have you heard of Katerina Kamprani’s The Uncomfortable? Kamprani's collection mixes both beauty and bad design. What these designs lack in usefulness, they offer gorgeous disasters you can't turn your head from.
After hitting Purchase and Download, after the cat jumps out of the bag, the product accomplishes its end (listening to a book), but fails the basic test of multiple uses (listening more than once).
We should be thankful that tires don’t blow after one trip, pants don’t dissolve after one wash, and phones don’t explode after a text message.
Bad audiobooks resemble neither album nor book, but forks with chain handles, concrete umbrellas, and chairs that tilt downwards.
Yes, but. “Why does bad navigation matter if you listen while driving or cooking or working? By definition, doesn’t the experience mean little physical interaction?”
What if you want to hear a certain chapter again—but can’t find it?
If books or albums had similar navigation, or lack thereof, they’d be useless.
Books themselves may have proofreaders, but not the companies that produce their counterparts.
Basic navigation should not be unreasonable. Especially considering the price.
The Bottom Line. I’m not sure where to file complaints here, but I can’t be the only person who notices. Since audiobooks often out-price their physical counterparts, you’d at least expect a functioning table of contents. Simple rant.
Until someone addresses this, many audiobooks have one direction: Play. Listen. Then delete.
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