Does the medium we use to read influence the way we perceive the book?
I read Wolf Hall across four mediums, according to different circumstances: in hardback, paperback, e-book, and audiobook (through the wonderful narration by Ben Miles). I tried to gauge what worked best for me, personally, and I understood just how important underlining or highlighting is for me — perhaps even fundamental. Secondly, I need to know where I am in a book, physically (which puts paperbacks at an advantage, but the progress bar on the bottom of my Kobo screen helps greatly with that), and I need to be able to see the words well (which puts e-books at an advantage, because I keep my font size pretty big on average, and being able to tailor the text to my needs is immensely helpful).
Moreover, what keeps me from listening to more audiobooks is that often, the narrator’s rhythm differs from my own: whenever I find a narrator who reads according to my natural rhythm, I can truly immerse myself in the story, making all the qualities of audiobooks shine for me. It’s happened so far with Bret Easton Ellis reading his The Shards, Chiara Leoncini reading Quaderno Proibito, and Andy Serkis reading The Fellowship of the Ring (my current audiobook).
Trying to answer my own initial question, I came across a very interesting Time article by Markham Heid, dated 06/09/2018, which I recommend reading in full. I was especially interested in the idea that the brief pause while turning a page helps the brain store or savour information.
The fact that printed text is anchored to a specific location on a page also seems to help people remember it better than screen-based text, according to more research on the spatial attributes of traditional printed media. All this may be relevant to the audiobook vs. book debate because, like digital screens, audiobooks deny users the spatial cues they would use while reading from printed text.
The self-directed rhythms associated with reading may also differentiate books from audiobooks.
“About 10 to 15% of eye movements during reading are actually regressive—meaning [the eyes are] going back and re-checking,” Willingham explains. “This happens very quickly, and it’s sort of seamlessly stitched into the process of reading a sentence.” He says this reading quirk almost certainly bolsters comprehension, and it may be roughly comparable to a listener asking for a speaker to “hold on” or repeat something. “Even as you’re asking, you’re going over in your mind’s ear what the speaker just said,” he says. Theoretically, you can also pause or jump back while listening to an audio file. “But it’s more trouble,” he adds.
Another consideration is that whether we’re reading or listening to a text, our minds occasionally wander. Seconds (or minutes) can pass before we snap out of these little mental sojourns and refocus our attention, says David Daniel, a professor of psychology at James Madison University and a member of a National Academy of Sciences project aimed at understanding how people learn.
In hindsight, I probably remember best the parts I highlighted or underlined — no shock there. The audiobook was beautifully read and acted by Ben Miles, but my preference still leans towards any medium allowing me to engage more actively with the text. It’s where the true pleasure of reading lies for me. That doesn’t mean I will be cancelling my Storytel subscription, though…
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!
Love, always,
Ari