Hi, where can I download free Audio Books in english???
Do they have written text?
Here you can only bring both - Audio AND text.
Eventually you have to cut the Audio in shorter parts (not longer t´hen 10-15 minutes)
Hello
Have you tried this?
Any search in google can lead you to a world of wonders…
Cheers
I often use audio books for my learning. I do not import that sound because it takes too long, and besides most audio books are under copyright. I import the text from places like gutenberg.org.
Usually if you google audio books, or audio libros or whatever in the language you are interested in , you will find lots of sites.
Jeandavid
I looked to the link you wrote and by chance I saw “A Study in Scarlet” - it is i.e. an item we already have in the library (when I remember correctly) .
Therefore, if you bring new things here in the library you should control exactly if that is not already here in.
MissTake,
That is an amazing source of listening material. I have trouble with the concept of “free”. If these audio books are produced by artists, and usually the best audio books are, then the work of the artist is worth something. I have visited with Il Narratore in Italy and seen how many hours of preparation and editing go into each hour of recording. One of the sites on the list , Literal Systems, produced 13 audio books in 2008. These were recorded by actors and artists in their free time. There were 20 people on the site while I was, from all over the world, but mostly North America. This site is free but the ask for donations. See below a list of their donations for all of 2008 (a total of $198).
I think that they should charge for their audio books, or else charge a membership fee. The actors who contribute their time have other employment which puts bread on their table. However, that is not the case for Il Narratore who works out of very simple facilities in his house in a little village in Italy. He is just as devoted to putting Italian literature to voice and making it available. However, he discovered that the donation model does not work.
However, if the resources are there we should use them and thanks for the link.
Here is the list of folks who donated their dollars toward our further production in 2008.
Date Donation From Donated Paypal Fee What Reached Us
Dec. 18, 2008 D F R. $5.00 USD -$0.45 USD $4.55 USD
Nov. 3, 2008 Maurice D. $5.00 USD -$0.45 USD $4.55 USD
Aug. 18, 2008 Brian K. $10.00 USD -$0.59 USD $9.41 USD
Jul. 15, 2008 Jennifer E. $10.00 USD -$0.59 USD $9.41 USD
Jun. 30, 2008 Madeleine M. $20.00 USD -$1.08 USD $18.92 USD
Jun. 19, 2008 Jennifer D. $25.00 USD -$1.03 USD $23.97 USD
Jun. 11, 2008 Michael P. $3.00 USD -$0.42 USD $2.58 USD
May 18, 2008 Gaia G. $10.00 USD -$0.69 USD $9.31 USD
Apr. 13, 2008 Linda S. $15.00 USD -$0.74 USD $14.26 USD
Apr. 9, 2008 Daniel A. $5.00 USD -$0.50 USD $4.50 USD
Mar. 5, 2008 Myron A S. $25.00 USD -$1.03 USD $23.97 USD
Jan. 24, 2008 Julie E K. $15.00 USD -$0.89 USD $14.11 USD
Jan. 19, 2008 Julie E K. $15.00 USD -$0.89 USD $14.11 USD
Jan. 7, 2008 Julie E K. $15.00 USD -$0.89 USD $14.11 USD
-------------------------------------------
$198.00 USD
mybe Irene777 means that you need to cut in shorter parts because you, not all the time have the possibility to listento the whole audio because you only have 20 minutes or 30 a day for listening
the length of imported content is limited from the system too and is approximately 15 minutes.
Uau, this is amazing, MissTake! Thanks!
Steve, I totally agree with you when you say that work need to be paid. But the free is out there and it is a fact. The world will need to find more creative ways to continue making money from cultural content. Maybe they should start by fair prices… I can’t understand why artists need to make so much more money than a doctor or an engineer…
Ana,
I can assure you that people who record and produce audio books do not make very much money.
Probably you’re right in the case of audio book recorders.
But when I pay around U$25 for a book and then discover that it has sold 1 million copies, I feel myself stolen, because if we readers had paid U$5, the author, the editor and the library owner would still had made a lot of money…
And when I go to the movies, I think U$8 is too expensive, because I’m sure the owner of the cinema makes more money than me in a year, as well as the studios owners, the distribution companies owners, not to mention those artists who individually make millions out of each movie.
And yet, these people make all this money despite the fact that the very same book is easily found on the internet for free, and that in my neighborhood there is a guy selling illegal DVDs for less than U$2 on the streets.
Ana, I think you could make the same argument about athletes etc. and I often feel the same way when I see what the local hockey players make . But the people creating culture who make the kind of money you are talking about are making money that is freely spent by the marketplace. In the end (probably with some exceptions), I’d rather the marketplace dictate the price of stuff rather than a conception of fairness that I or others may not share mandated by government.
Best
Ed
I Germany they will begin to look for more control for illegal copies.
The control what you have on your PC is already sharper - and it is expensive if you are discovered with pirated copies.
It is always better to have a quiet conscience.
And (wandering off the topic slightly) I have just found this site for French books: http://www.ebooksgratuits.com/
MissTake,
Have you thought of recording some content for our French Library. Reading about our members lives,or their points of view on issues, is great content.
Ana’s Diary is easy and interesting listening in Portuguese. It would be great to have similar content in French and other languages. David has a great blog in Portuguese and recently posted on Camoes and on the origins of Portuguese in easy to read Portuguese and I am trying to encourage him to record it and put it in the Library for Portuguese.
As for the “debate”, I would be happy to record something about this. I share Ana’s dislike of the obscene earnings of the “elite” as you put it. However, the idea that we can or should just barter or provide things for free, is not an honest solution. “Come to my restaurant, enjoy yourselves and if you feel like it, make a donation to my website”. It just does not work. All of these sites on the web asking for donations do not succeed unless there are literally millions of visitors, and that again makes them “elite” situations. The rights of authors, inventors, artists etc… need to be protected for the vast majority who never achieve much success. The few who hit the jackpot are exceptional and perhaps unavoidable.
The ebooksgratuits site suggested by Helen is different since it is a just a group of volunteers organizing free of copyright content for people to enjoy.
As Japanese beginner I also prefer very short lessons. But I like when this lessons are challenging. Not too challenging, but rather challenging. Which consists different words like “because”, “therefore”, “after that” and so on. Lessons like “What is it? - It is pen.” are quite boring…
I don’t mind paying for things, but I also see that copyright law as it is now is a thing of the past and has to be changed, unless you want to fine or put every person under 25 in jail.
As far as paying for things and as far as the owner of the cinema, athletes, publishers,writers, and other business men making more money than some of us, I would refer to a great book called Atlas Shrugged…