The Guardian and its Sunday sister newspaper the Observer have offered free audiobooks to UK residents from September 4 to September 11, 2010. The audiobook for September 9, 2010 is set to be Rapid French Volume 1 by Earworms, and the free audiobook for September 11, 2010 is going to be Danny Wallace's Yes Man. To get the books, follow the same procedure: register for The Guardian's audiobook promotion, then follow the links to Audible.co.uk.
Details of the Audiobooks Available from the Guardian
Although the Guardian.co.uk says that, "The Guardian and Observer have teamed up with Audible to give away a free audiobook download all this week" the downloads are available longer than just one day.
- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson was made available on Saturday, September 4. It can be downloaded at no cost until Sunday, September 12.
- Charm Offensive by Armando Iannucci is actually a collection from the BBC Radio 4 program of the same title. The Observer made the promotion link was made available on Sunday, September 5. It can be downloaded as part of the sale until Monday, September 13.
- Matter by Iain M. Banks was made available on Monday, September 6. Science fiction fans can get the book for free from Audible until Tuesday, September 14.
- Sir Charlie Stinky Socks and the Really Big Adventure by Kristina Stephenson is a children's audiobook and a playful addition to the offerings. The book joined the promotion on September 7 and can be accessed until Wednesday, September 15.
- Down and Out in Paris and London became a popular download on September 8 because of the man performing the book: Jeremy Northam. His devoted admirers at the Jeremy Northam Chat fan club were excited to listen to the George Orwell's autiobiography as read by the star, who also read Brideshead Revisited. The book will be available until Thursday, September 16.
If Rapid French and Yes Man follow the pattern of the previous titles, they will be included in the offer until September 17, 2010 and September 18, 2010, respectively.
All of the currently available books are available in formats 4 and E. Be sure to check your device before downloading: older nanos need formats 1-3, and newer Audible ready devices, including GPS and sat navs that play audiobooks in cars, need formats 4 and E. When registering for the books, the promo page says it is a contest, but it is a contest that everyone in the UK wins simply by following the links. If the books aren't available any more, they can always be rented from an online audiobook rental site.
Sources:
Information about Guardian's audiobook promotions came from the newspaper's "Life and Style" promotion page for each book giveaway day. Information about future books came from "Free Audiobooks Available This Week" fromFunny Old Life: I Look so I Can Hear, which was accessed September 8, 2010. The same information was also found on Amazon's Kindle Forum thread " Free Audio Book in The Guardian," which was accessed September 8, 2010.
Alex Sharp - Alex Sharp is a teacher who has been keeping Suite101 readers up to date with the latest in audio- and e-book gadgetry since 2008.
