# Audio Book for 17 hour car ride - Need Answer Fast **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 9, 2013, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808 "2013-08-09T15:15:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![PacifistPorcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PacifistPorcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PacifistPorcupine)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2013, 2:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/21 "2013-08-11T02:53:17Z")
I’m currently listening to Judas Unchained, the sequel to Pandora’s Star. They are both hefty reads (30+ hours each) and I found them fantastic sci-fi. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2013, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/22 "2013-08-11T03:51:18Z")
We borrowed Dave Barry’s “Dave Barry Turns 50” from the library for a car trip, and almost drove off the road, we were laughing so hard. I’m not sure if that’s a great recommendation or not. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![AnthonyElite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b487fb/32.png) [@AnthonyElite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AnthonyElite)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/23 "2013-08-16T13:38:03Z")
> [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](#): > > I thought the default answer was _The Dresden Files_. Should keep you going for quite a while. Just thought I’d update everyone - I listened to The Dresden Files while driving to and from Georgia and Rhode Island. As a HUGE bonus; it was narrated by James Marsters! Overall the main character, Harry Dresden, can be a bit bone-headed in terms of planning, and he tends to blame everything on himself, but it works well for the series and I found it brilliant. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/24 "2013-08-16T13:47:27Z")
The books get better as the series progresses. You’d better start planning that road trip to Alaska 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/25 "2013-08-16T13:50:16Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > A clarification, in case one is needed: > > There exist two different audio dramatizations of The Lord of the Rings: a British version from the BBC, and an American version that was broadcast on NPR. I haven’t listened to either of them, but judging by the reviews at [Audible.com](http://Audible.com), the BBC version is easily the better of the two. > > There are also straight readings of the books, narrated by Rob Inglis, which are good. There was an American one? Definitely the BBC one! ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/26 "2013-08-16T13:56:05Z")
> [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](#): > > I thought the default answer was _The Dresden Files_. Should keep you going for quite a while. I thought the default answer was Tim Curry reading the Lemony Snickett books. The amount of hidden adult humor in those books is wonderful. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/27 "2013-08-16T14:00:36Z")
A couple of free audiobooks that are professional-quality: _**[Bleak House](http://archive.org/details/bleak_house_1203_librivox)**_ by Charles Dickens _**[Nicholas Nickleby](http://archive.org/details/nicholasnickleby_1107_librivox)**_ by Charles Dickens edit: Now I notice the thread is a week old, and the drive already happened. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/28 "2013-08-16T14:06:30Z")
> [@stpauler](#): > > I thought the default answer was Tim Curry reading the Lemony Snickett books. The amount of hidden adult humor in those books is wonderful. Nitpick: Daniel (“Lemony Snicket”) Handler reads books 3-5. Curry reads the rest. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/29 "2013-08-16T14:06:51Z")
I’m apparently a member of the minority who didn’t enjoy James Marsters’s reading of the Dresden books. I listened to the first few and then switched to reading them the old fashioned way. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/30 "2013-08-16T14:19:11Z")
Audio books I have loved… Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Both the BBC dramatization and and unabridged reading by Stephen Fry. Undaunted Courage by Stephem Ambrose. The Myron Bolitar series by Harlen Coben. Airframe by Michael Crichton. Fun to listen to on the transoceanic flights. 😃 Faster by James Gleick. Beginning to get a little dated because the world continues to get _faster_ but still fascinating. Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer. Absolutely thrilling. My Alistair Maclean collection of pot boilers: HMS Ulysses, The Guns Of Navarone, Night Without End, Dark Crusader (the Black Shrike), Fear Is The Key, The Golden Rendezvous, Ice Station Zebra, When Eight Bells Toll, Where Eagles Dare. Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry. Pulitzer winner and one of my favorite novels of all time. A Christmas Story by Jean Shepard. The best part of the movie was the amusing deadpan narration of the stories. An adult looking back on his childhood from a different perspective. This is more of the same but at four hours, it’s quite a bit more. Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien. At 55 hours, you only break out this one for really, really long [del]trips[/del] quests. ---
**Author:** ![Keweenaw](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Keweenaw](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keweenaw)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/31 "2013-08-16T14:26:48Z")
Dunk and Egg tales are worth the read. Another vote for Dresden Another for Reamde, although I liked Anathem more Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is also excellent. ---
**Author:** ![GrizzRich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7ba0ec/32.png) [@GrizzRich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrizzRich)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/32 "2013-08-16T16:30:47Z")
Anything written and read by David Sedaris. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Knig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@Typo\_Knig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Knig)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/33 "2013-08-16T16:35:14Z")
World War Z [World War Z - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_Z#Audiobook) The Star Wars radio play is also great for driving. I’ve heard the first one, I’ll have to get the other two. ---
**Author:** ![oft\_wears\_hats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7993a0/32.png) [@oft\_wears\_hats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oft_wears_hats)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/34 "2013-08-16T17:11:49Z")
I rather enjoyed the American Gods full cast production. ---
**Author:** ![adhemar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@adhemar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adhemar)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2013, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808/35 "2013-08-16T17:36:19Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > I recently did Dan Brown’s latest, Inferno. It was a page turner. So to speak. Do not try The History of Salt. Do consider something from The Teaching Company, usually available to borrow from your local library. I liked the History of Salt, I have listened to it several times. My recommendation is any of the harry Potter books, I got them from the library as they were not available on Audible. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/audio-book-for-17-hour-car-ride-need-answer-fast/665808.md?page=1)