Many audiobooks are abridged. This means that the story has been shortened or condensed. While books of all formats are often abridged for different reasons, such as serialization, audiobooks are often abridged to make them more of a manageable listen.
Why Are Audiobooks Abridged?
There are many reasons why audiobooks have traditionally been abridged. One of the most important reasons is the fact that people read more quickly than they speak. Therefore a page of written text is absorbed much quicker when an individual reads it to themself than when the spoken word equivalent is listened to.
Readers often skim read over passages that they find boring, which, of course is impossible to do when listening to an audiobook. Therefore a text book that can be read in a few hours may take substantially longer to listen to as an audiobook. The books are often abridged to make them more accessible.
Another reason why audiobooks have been abridged is the practicality of delivery. When audiobooks were delivered on cassette tape or, before that, vinyl records, a single unabridged audiobook would stretch over many tapes or records making them unwieldy. This also added significantly to the cost in terms of both manufacture and delivery.
How Are Audiobooks Abridged?
There are different approaches to abridging audiobooks. Some books are abridged by following a single story line, or narrowing the plot to exclude a 'back story' or lengthy summaries. This means that characters, locations or other significant features of a plot might not feature in an abridged audiobook, making comparison to the unabridged version difficult.
Many audiobooks that are abridged for play on the radio or turned into radio dramatizations start with many hours of audio that are distilled into ninety minutes of reading or drama. A skilled abridger will pull different strands from the plot and reweave them into a satisfying if reduced listen.
Abridged Versus Unabridged Spoken Word and Audiobooks
Some of the key reasons for abridging audiobooks have been negated by the advent of digital audiobooks. It is no more difficult or cumbersome to download and store an audiobook which plays for forty hours than one that plays for seven hours. The cost of delivery also remains the same. The production costs, of course, remain higher for a longer audiobook and this is often reflected in the price of the audiobook.
Skilled abridgers do not simply reduce the number of words, they carefully recraft a book to ensure that the pace of plot is maintained and ensure that there are no loose ends. This means that abridged audiobooks often compare well in terms of pace and plot with the unabridged version.
Conclusion
Whether to buy an abridged or unabridged version of an audiobook is largely down to personal preference. One listener may look forward to audibly devouring a forty hour bestseller, whereas another listener may prefer the shorter abridged version. Where and when the audiobook is to be listened to is also a major influencing factor. With audiobook retailers such as Audible.com offering audiobooks on listening plans, often unabridged versions are available on the same basis as abridged versions. This eliminates any cost differences making the decision purely down to what best suits the individual listener.
Further Reading:
- Why listen to audiobooks?
- Review of abridged version of World Without End by Ken Follett
- Review of top Audie prize winning audiobook - the Chop in Manuscript
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