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These days, I sound pretty boring. Ever since I moved out to Los Angeles six years ago, I've lost most of my New York accent. And I'm not just talking about simple pronunciation of vowels, it's my cadence and volume. In my first few weeks here, I noticed that my expressive yet monotone way of speaking came off as aggressive or angry to Angelenos. So I had to adapt, consciously reeling myself back when I got excited while talking, softening up my voice where I could. Now, the sound of my voice would probably put me to sleep. 

It's precisely because of this accent change that I've discovered the wonderful world of audiobooks. Since then, I've felt almost... ashamed (?) when I haven't found a direct reason for me to read a book in my head with a regional accent. Books are entertaining on their own, but listening to a professional read it in the specific accent of the main character? Perfection. 

Audiobooks all of us to experience a story within the regional accent of the characters. 

Take, for instance, Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito. I listened to the entire audiobook narrated by Anna Burnett in one day. Since I am neither English, nor Victorian, nor a psycho, Feito's text on the page wouldn't have come as alive as it did for me when I listened to Burnett reading the words in an appropriate accent. Because, obviously, Burnett's voice isn't my own, I paid more attention than I would if I were reading, perhaps out of politeness for this unseen speaker. Of course, Victorian Psycho is written from the first-person perspective of a governess with a powerful impulse to commit acts of violence on the annoying people around her, so I really didn't want her to get the sense that I wasn't taking her seriously. 

Burnett's delivery of Feito's text brought a level of intrigue to each word that was almost seductive. This character was coming to life and stepping into my world, or at least into the world of my headphones, and it brought a level of immediacy that you don't quite get when you're reading on the page. For me, at least, when I read a book, the characters can easily get assimilated into my boring California cadence. When listening to an audiobook, they escape this fate. 

Listening to audiobooks has given me a new dimension to appreciate literature in

Another audiobook that showed me the wonders of the form was Stephen Graham Jones's I Was A Teenage Slasher, narrated by Michael Crouch. This one I wasn't as sure about when I started listening, because I love Jones's writing, and like to spend extra time re-reading his sentences and unpacking how he constructs his paragraphs. Relinquishing my ability to analyze his craft on the page was a big ask for me. 

But after a couple of minutes listening to Michael Crouch's narration, I realized how much of a blessing it was. I Was A Teenage Slasher, like Victorian Psycho, is a first-person story told by a killer. In this case, that was a teenager from Texas named Tolly Driver. Crouch's delivery leans into the Texas drawl that Tolly would have spoken with if he were real, the impressionistic effect of Jones's writing taking on new life in my ears. And I don't say impressionistic to sound pretentious. Jones will write a murder scene in such a way that the violence brought onto the bodies of the victims comes off as almost disembodied - it's incredible. In listening to an audiobook of I Was A Teenage Slasher, I felt like I was getting the "full" experience of the time, place, and backgrounds of the characters, beyond what my limited coastal brain could imagine. 

If you're unsure if you're ready to fully board the audiobook train, fear not. If you have a library card, chances are you have access to an app called Libby. Libby is where I can check out all my eBooks and audiobooks to read or listen to on my phone, iPad, or computer. And it's free! What's better than that? 

I don't believe in peer pressuring people I can't see, but I'll say that I've already started peer pressuring my friends into listening to audiobooks. And they've been enjoying them! So maybe you will too?

Just like yourself, the Popverse staff spends a whole lot of time with our respective noses in respective books. It's why we've come up with stuff like:

• The hottest upcoming fiction
• Queer romance to add to your reading list
• A reading guide to Cassandar Clare's Shadowhunter Chronicles

...and a whole lot more. Join our metaphorical library, won't you? There are no late fees and you can be as loud as you want, so long as the people you live with are OK with it.