summer reading

Great Free Summer Audiobooks

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SYNC Audio

Each year, I know that summer is near when I get the announcement of the start of Sync’s free summer audiobooks. The amazing Sync website offers an annual summer program of two free audiobook downloads each week. This summer, the program has been extended to 14 weeks with a total of 28 free audiobooks! And, summer starts early with Sync; Week 1 began yesterday, May 7, and and the program continues through August 13. Titles offered each week are always paired, featuring one contemporary YA (young adult) book and one classic on a related theme. Week 1’s books are popular YA title, Beautiful Creatures, by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, and classic Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier. Read about these selections here on the SYNC blog.

To participate, be sure to download each of the selections during the scheduled week. The books will no longer be available after the last day of each week. Each week starts on a Thursday. You don’t actually need to listen to the books during the availability week; you just need to download and install them. Once you download and install the books, they become yours and you can listen to them at any time.  You can visit the SYNC site for more information and to request text message or email alerts each week. Be sure to check this link for information about how to download titles.

So, be sure to enrich your summer with some great YA and classic literature.

Here’s the full list of YA titles:

BEAUTIFUL CREATURES by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl (Hachette Audio)

A CORNER OF WHITE by Jaclyn Moriarty (Scholastic Audiobooks)

COURAGE HAS NO COLOR: THE TRUE STORY OF THE TRIPLE NICKLES by Tanya Lee Stone (Brilliance Audio)

CROWS & CARDS by Joseph Helgerson (Brilliance Audio)

DODGER by Terry Pratchett (HarperAudio)

ECHOES OF AN ANGEL by Aquanetta Gordon (christianaudio)

THE EXPLORERS CLUB by Nell Benjamin (L.A. Theatre Works)

THE LIVING by Matt de la Pena (Brilliance Audio)

MARCH by Geraldine Brooks (Penguin Audio)

MONSTER by Walter Dean Myers (Listening Library)

THE RING AND THE CROWN by Melissa de la Cruz (Recorded Books, Inc.)

ROSE UNDER FIRE by Elizabeth Wein (Bolinda Publishing)

UNDER A WAR-TORN SKY by L.M. Elliott (Tantor Audio)

X: A NOVEL by Ilyasah Shabazz & Kekla Magoon (Brilliance Audio)

And, here’s the full selection of classics:

THE ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN by Mark Twain (Mission Audio)

ANNE FRANK REMEMBERED by Miep Gies & Alison Leslie Gold (Oasis Audio)

AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS by Jules Verne (Tantor Audio)

BUDDHA BOY by Kathe Koja (Full Cast Audio)

DRACULA by Bram Stoker (Naxos AudioBooks)

GREAT EXPECTATIONS by Charles Dickens (Naxos AudioBooks)

HERE IN HARLEM by Walter Dean Myers (Live Oak Media)

JOHN BALL’S IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT Adapted by Matt Pelfrey (L.A. Theatre Works)

LITTLE WOMEN by Louisa May Alcott (Listening Library)

LORD OF THE FLIES by William Golding (Listening Library)

THE OLD BROWN SUITCASE by Lillian Boraks-Nemetz (Post Hypnotic Press)

THE PERFECT STORM: A TRUE STORY OF MEN AGAINST THE SEA by Sebastian Junger (Recorded Books, Inc.)

REBECCA by Daphne du Maurier (Hachette Audio)

SEA HEARTS by Margo Lanagan (Bolinda Publishing)

Happy listening!

Sync audio

Enjoy Free Audiobooks All Summer – Starting Now!

janelofton Uncategorized , , ,

cropped-SYNC-header980wYes, I know it isn’t summer just yet, but we’re all starting to think about it, aren’t we? And, the folks at SYNC are ready to offer some great summer reading options with audiobooks. Each year, SYNC offers a total of 24 summer reading audiobooks free of charge. So what is SYNC? Here’s the explanation from the SYNC site:

SYNC is a program that gives away two complete audiobook downloads–a current Young Adult title paired thematically with a Classic or Required Summer Reading title–each week to listeners ages 13+ while SYNC is in session each summer.
Titles are delivered through the OverDrive Media Console.  You can prepare for the program by downloading the software to your desktop and whichever device you anticipate listening on.
SYNC is dedicated to introducing the listening experience to the young adult audience and demonstrates that Required Reading can be completed by listening.
SYNC gives away 2 FREE audiobook downloads every week each summer. In 2014, 26 titles will be given away over 13 weeks starting May 15th. 

 

And, even though it’s not summer just yet, the free give aways start this week, on May 15. Here’s the schedule:

May 15 – May 21 
WARP: THE RELUCTANT ASSASSIN by Eoin Colfer, Narrated by Maxwell Caulfield (Listening Library)
THE TIME MACHINE by H.G. Wells, Narrated by Derek Jacobi (Listening Library)

May 22 – May 28
CRUEL BEAUTY by Rosamund Hodge, Narrated by Elizabeth Knowelden (Harper Audio)
OEDIPUS THE KING by Sophocles, Performed by Michael Sheen and a full cast (Naxos AudioBooks)

May 29 – June 4
CONFESSIONS OF A MURDER SUSPECT by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro, Narrated by Emma Galvin (Hachette Audio)
THE MURDER AT THE VICARAGE by Agatha Christie, Narrated by Richard E. Grant (Harper Audio)

June 5 – June 11
ALL OUR YESTERDAYS by Cristin Terrill, Narrated by Meredith Mitchell (Tantor Audio)
JULIUS CAESAR by William Shakespeare, Performed by Richard Dreyfuss, JoBeth Williams, Stacy Keach, Kelsey Grammer, and a full cast (L.A. Theatre Works)

June 12 – June 18
*CODE NAME VERITY by Elizabeth Wein, Narrated by Morven Christie and Lucy Gaskell (Bolinda Audio)
THE HIDING PLACE by Corrie Ten Boom, John Sherrill, Elizabeth Sherrill, Narrated by Bernadette Dunne (christianaudio)

June 19 – June 25
I’D TELL YOU I LOVE YOU, BUT THEN I’D HAVE TO KILL YOU by Ally Carter, Narrated by Renée Raudman (Brilliance Audio)
ANNE OF GREEN GABLES by L.M. Montgomery, Narrated by Colleen Winton (Post Hypnotic Press)

June 26 – July 2
*FORGIVE ME, LEONARD PEACOCK by Matthew Quick, Narrated by Noah Galvin (Hachette Audio)
OCTOBER MOURNING: A Song for Matthew Shepard by Lesléa Newman, Narrated by Emily Beresford, Luke Daniels, Tom Parks, Nick Podehl, Kate Rudd, Christina Traister (Brilliance Audio)

July 3 – July 9
TORN FROM TROY by Patrick Bowman, Narrated by Gerard Doyle (Post Hypnotic Press)
PETER AND THE STARCATCHERS by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, Narrated by Jim Dale (Brilliance Audio)

July 10 – July 16
CLAUDETTE COLVIN: Twice Toward Justice by Philip Hoose, Narrated by Channie Waites (Brilliance Audio)
WHILE THE WORLD WATCHED by Carolyn Maull McKinstry with Denise George, Narrated by Felicia Bullock (Oasis Audio)

July 17 – July 23
THE CASE OF THE CRYPTIC CRINOLINE by Nancy Springer, Narrated by Katherine Kellgren (Recorded Books)
THE ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES II by Arthur Conan Doyle, Narrated by David Timson (Naxos AudioBooks)

July 24 – July 30
HEADSTRONG by Patrick Link, Performed by Deidrie Henry, Ernie Hudson, Ntare Guma Mbaho Mwine and Scott Wolf (L.A. Theatre Works)
THE STRANGE CASE OF DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE by Robert Louis Stevenson, Narrated by Scott Brick (Tantor Audio)

July 31 – August 6
*DIVIDED WE FALL by Trent Reedy, Narrated by Andrew Eiden (Scholastic Audio)
THE RED BADGE OF COURAGE by Stephen Crane, Narrated by Frank Muller (Recorded Books)

August 7 – August 13
LIVING A LIFE THAT MATTERS by Ben Lesser, Narrated by Jonathan Silverman and Ben Lesser (Remembrance Publishing)
THE SHAWL by Cynthia Ozick, Narrated by Yelena Shmulenson (HighBridge Audio)

The asterisks (*) are my indicators of books I have recently read in print and highly recommend.

A nice feature of the program is that the weekly titles are always paired with one YA (young adult) title and one more classic work on a related theme.

An important thing to know about the program is that you have to download and install the books during the week they are offered; they are only available during that time frame. So, don’t miss out; get and install the first two titles by May 21. Note that one you have the audiobooks, there is no deadline on when you listen to them, and they are yours to keep indefinitely.

To avoid missing any of the weekly offerings, you  can sign up for email and text alerts and be first to know when new titles are available to downloadat www.audiobooksync.com.

So, get out your mobile listening device, and happy listening!

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Free Summer Audiobooks from Sync

janelofton Uncategorized , , ,

Sync Audio Books

 

Want to enjoy some great, free audiobooks this summer? For the third year, the Sync website, administered by Audiofile magazine, is offering two free audiobook downloads each week, starting May 30 and continuing through August 21. Titles offered each week will be paired, featuring one contemporary book and one classic on a related theme. Here is the schedule:

May 30 – June 5, 2013
Of Poseidon by Anna Banks, read by Rebecca Gibel (AudioGO)
The Tempest by William Shakespeare, read by a Full Cast (AudioGO)

June 6 – June 12, 2013
The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, Book 1: The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood, read by Katherine Kellgren (HarperAudio)
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë, read by Wanda McCaddon (Tantor Audio)

June 13 – June 19, 2013
The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater, read by Will Patton (Scholastic Audiobooks)
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya, read by Robert Ramirez (Recorded Books)

June 20 – June 26, 2013
Once by Morris Gleitzman, read by Morris Gleitzman (Bolinda Audio)
Letter From Birmingham Jail by Martin Luther King, Jr., read by Dion Graham (christianaudio)

June 27 – July 3, 2013
Rotters by Daniel Kraus, read by Kirby Heyborne (Listening Library)
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, read by Jim Weiss (Listening Library)

July 4 – July 10, 2013
Carter Finally Gets It by Brent Crawford, read by Nick Podehl (Brilliance Audio)
She Stoops to Conquer by Oliver Goldsmith, read by a Full Cast (L.A. Theatre Works)

July 11 – July 17, 2013
The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann, read by Peter Altschuler (HarperAudio)
Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens, read by Simon Vance (Tantor Audio)

July 18 – July 24, 2013
Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers, read by Erin Moon (Recorded Books)
Hamlet by William Shakespeare, read by a Full Cast (L.A. Theatre Works)

July 25 – July 31, 2013
The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen, read by Charlie McWade (Scholastic Audiobooks)
The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain, read by Steve West (Blackstone Audio)

Aug 1 – Aug 7, 2013
Death Cloud by Andrew Lane, read by Dan Weyman (Macmillan Audio)
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle, read by Ralph Cosham (Blackstone Audio)

Aug 8 – Aug 14, 2013
Enchanted by Alethea Kontis, read by Katherine Kellgren (Brilliance Audio)
Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll, read by Miriam Margolyes (Bolinda Audio)

Aug 15 – Aug 21, 2013
Sold by Patricia McCormick, read by Justine Eyre (Tantor Audio)
Let Me Stand Alone by Rachel Corrie, read by Tavia Gilbert (Blackstone Audio)

You can click on the above links for more information about each book.

To participate, be sure to download each of the selections during the scheduled week. The books will no longer be available after the last day of each week. You can visit the Sync site for more information and to request text message or email alerts each week.

Enjoy listening!

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