Edith Kitchel hugs her dog Basil. (Photo courtesy Marnie Foucault, director of 8-18 Media)

If you have a choice between audiobooks or physical books, which would you choose?

I can help you decide:

Audio pros

• If you are busy, you can listen to an audiobook and still do your work. Like, if you are cooking dinner, or if you’re like me and listen to mystery books while making up dance routines!

• If your library is closed or doesn’t have the book you want, and neither do you, audiobooks can be the best option.

• Audiobooks can help you picture the characters and voices in your head.

• You can listen to them on a car ride or a road trip.

• If you are tired and want to listen to a story but don’t want to read a book, audiobooks are your answer. I like to listen to audiobooks when I go to sleep because I set a sleep timer and don’t have to worry about getting too wrapped up in a book and losing track of time.

Audio cons

• An annoying narrator. Like one time I had the worst narrator! He sounded like a robot with no expression at all!

• If you have a voice in your head for the characters before, audiobooks can ruin that.

• You have to have an outlet or charged device.

• You need headphones if you are in public.

• Like every device, YOU NEED WIFI!

Physical pros

• If you fall in love with a series, you can collect the books and display them.

• You can get signed books and rare volumes, unlike audiobooks.

• You can read a physical book anywhere, even with no WIFI or cell service.

• You don’t have to mess with electrical stuff because the book is right in front of you.

• You can make voices for the characters so they are just right for you.

Physical cons

• They can get easily damaged. (If your book gets water-damaged, you can put a piece of newspaper in between every single page, then stick it in the freezer; it works amazingly!)

• They take up a lot of room and storage.

• More expensive than audiobooks and ebooks in the long run.

• According to dw.com, physical books have a bigger impact per book on the environment than audiobooks.

• The bigger the physical book is, the heavier it is, unlike audiobooks and ebooks.

Facts & information

Audio books — Audiopub.org tells us that in 1932, the first test audio recordings included a chapter from Helen Keller’s “Midstream” and Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven.”

In 1934, the first recordings were made for the talking book program and included parts of the Bible, the Declaration of Independence and Shakespeare’s plays! The first audiobook was made in New York, according to Wikipedia.

Physical books — According to funkids.com, the first story ever written was “The Epic of Gilgamesh.” Search Engine Land tells us that there are 129,864,880 books that exist right now!

I hope you enjoyed reading this column and learned something new from this writing. I know I did!

Toodaloo!

Edith Kitchel is 11 years old and has written three columns with 8-18 Media. Edith’s favorite food is borscht, something served every Christmas.