Another National Year of Reading event! The Guardian (newspaper) in the UK is running a 40 best audio books promotion. 160 books were suggested and now they have their 40 best which we can all vote on.
1. You can now vote for your favourite audio book from the list by clicking here and enter the draw to win £500 worth of National Book Tokens. Closing date for voting and to enter the competition is midnight, Friday 18th July 2008.
2. Amazon.co.uk and audible.co.uk are both offering a lot if not all of the 40 titles at a special reduced price – either up to 50% off or in the case of Audible, for £7.99 each.
3. Also Audible.co.uk is offering a free download of the unabridged version of Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte completely free! Usually retails at £19.99 and it’s 14 hours long.
Here is the list of the 40 best which are all available at a special price:
Children’s
A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond (HarperCollins)
My Completely Best Story Collection: Charlie & Lola by Lauren Child (Penguin)
Four Favourite Stories by Roald Dahl (HarperCollins)
Horrid Henry’s Stinkbomb by Francesca Simon (Orion)
The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson (Macmillan)
William’s Happy Days by Richmal Compton (CSA)
Snakehead by Anthony Horowitz (Walker)
Humour/comedy
The Wit of Cricket by Johnston, Blofeld & Bird (Hodder)
Summer Lightning by P G Wodehouse (CSA)
I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue Anniversary Special (BBC Audiobooks)
Flight of the Conchords (BBC Audiobooks)
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Primary Phase by Douglas Adams (BBC Audiobooks)
Hancock: The Very Best (BBC Audiobooks)
The Mighty Boosh (BBC Audiobooks)
Fiction/classics/crime
The Fellowship of the Ring by J R Tolkien (BBC Audiobooks)
Birdsong by Sebastian Faulks (Random House)
Curious Incident Of The Dog In the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (Random House)
The No 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith (Hachette)
The Life of Pi by Yann Martel (HarperCollins)
Flashman on the March by George MacDonald Fraser (HarperCollins)
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday (Orion)
Dissolution by C J Sansom (Macmillan)
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen (Naxos)
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens (Naxos)
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold by John le Carr?© (Hodder)
Death Message by Mark Billingham (Hachette)
Tiger in the Smoke by Margery Allingham (Hachette)
Paul Temple and the Sullivan Mystery by Francis Durbridge (BBC Audiobooks)
Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie (HarperCollins)
Exit Music by Ian Rankin (Orion)
The Broker by John Grisham (Random House)
Non-fiction/poetry/plays
Attention All Shipping by Charlie Connolly (Hachette)
History of Modern Britain by Andrew Marr (Macmillan)
Agent Zigzag by Ben MacIntyre (Orion)
A Bad Birdwatcher’s Companion by Simon Barnes (Naxos)
7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R Covey (S&S)
The Essential Dylan Thomas by Dylan Thomas (Naxos)
Talking Heads Vol 1 by Alan Bennett (BBC Audiobooks)
84 Charing Cross Road by Helen Hanff (Hachette)
Romeo and Juliet (Smart Pass)
Some excellent choices there, one of my favourite books Bird Song is in the list too. Plus the chance to win £500 worth of National Book Tokens. Can you imagine what a dent that would put in my to-be-read pile! Not to mention a completely free audio book from those nice people at Audible.co.uk. A great classic by Emily Bronte, Wuthering Heights, read by Michael Kitchen.
