A world of audio books to choose from

PUBLISHING giant Bloomsbury have donated their entire audio book collection to the free Talking Books Library run by blind people’s charity RNIB.

The worldwide publishing house’s collection includes around 600 titles and every future Bloomsbury audio book will also be added to RNIB’s Library.

RNIB launched its online library two years ago, offering people with sight loss instant access to free books in formats they can read – including audio. It now has close to 40,000 Talking Books in its collection.

Sam Halstead, director of audio at Bloomsbury, said, “We have long admired the brilliant work of the Talking Books Library and it is great to know every audio book we publish will be available to the library’s users.”

ABEST-SELLING title by fantasy writer Ben Aaronovitch has been chosen by members of the Listening

Books charity as their book of the year.

Listening Books provides audio books to people who have an illness, disability, learning difficulty or mental health condition which makes reading print difficult or impossible.

Actor Stephen Fry, the charity’s patron, presented the 2022 Members Choice Award to Aaronovitch for his urban fantasy Rivers of London: Amongst Our Weapons.

Aaronovitch, pictured, said: “I listen to books all the time and I think it is a wonderful way to hear a story. After all, when you write you are hearing it in your head, and so having it spoken out loud is practically an extension of what you are doing!” Membership is free to those who would find cost a barrier.