Downloadable Audio Books

My post on the Wiki blog was about audio books and I found it interesting that not only is this new media taking over, but it is evolving in itself. Books are going digital in a number of ways, and people are getting too lazy or too spoiled to read. People today need visual stimulation, which is why so many books are written after the movies are made. These Audio Books picked up because they are easy to use. They began by helping with learning disabilities but now are being abused by a society who is too "busy" to read.

The thing that amazes me is that people are no longer going to stores and buying these Audio Books. Now you can go online and download all genres of books and short stories. iTunes even has an Audio Book section. It makes me think if this move to digital from books will really contribute not only to the death of books but a more unlearned society. People are not getting the same understanding of the structure of books and the delicate choices authors make while writing. Not having the text in front of you can take away from the whole experience of the novel and the short story. If poetry moves to Audio collections an even greater deal may be lost.

Are we too obsessed with being in a fast-paced society that does not stop to appreciate fine literature? Will future generations barely read because other forms are more accessible? It concerns me that so many people (like shown in Jeff Jarvis' article on stats) do not read another book after they graduate high school or college. Although the Audio Book was intended for good, it may end up doing more damage than we could have imagined.