Windowshoppist - Pressing Our Noses Against The Internets

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Free Public-Domain Audiobooks


If you're an audiobook fanatic, I don't have to tell you how useful they are. They can lull you to sleep, distract you pleasantly while you work out, and keep you from losing your mind on long car and plane trips. They are, though, expensive to download—but it turns out that's not true for the zillions of books in the public domain.

In the best spirit of the internet (that is, for free, and through volunteer labor), Librivox serves as a kind of audio Project Gutenberg, serving up a catalog of high-quality readings of work from Jane Austen, Mark Twain, O. Henry, PG Wodehouse, and so on. There's often a choice of more than one version, so you can even pick a reader whose voice and accent you like.

To browse the catalog or search for your favorite titles, go here.