Would you listen to stories/books that you wouldn't dream of reading? Which is harder/easier reading or listening?

Nope. I prefer to read and not listen to audio books or stories. I love reading so I feel I usually give books chance.

no, id rather read thenn

  As a general rule, I simply cannot stand it when someone reads something to me; I prefer to read it for myself. That being said, I'm only referring to a sentence or two, or a paragraph or two. This usually happens at work wherein someone will say, "Listen to this and tell me what you think," or "I wrote this and I'd like to run it by you to see if it sounds right." In order for me to fully and properly absorb the passage, I have to read it myself. It's even worse if the person is not a good reader, or stumbles through it. Fingernails on the chalkboard tI me. 
Now, switching gears a bit, your question refers to entire stories or entire books. I haven't had a story read to me since I was a little kid, so I have no recent frame of reference for answering. As will most likely be of no surprise to you, I'm a bit of a prude when it comes to how a person reads (aloud), pronounces words, uses diction, pitch, inflection, tone, etc. I can hear it better in my inner ear if I read it myself.
  When I read, especially fiction, I develope a mind-picture of the people involved, and of the scene or the setting, right down to the most intricate of detail. Somehow that doesn't translate well when someone's voice outside my head is dictating it.
  Lastly, more than fifteen years ago, I had a long commute driving back and forth to work, more than an hour in each direction, so I thought I'd give audio books a try (they were on cassette tapes back then) as a way to keep up on my "reading" and to help me stay alert. It didn't take. Many of the narrators were the books' authors or celebrities, which wasn't so bad in itself, but I couldn't get into men reading women's dialog and vice-versa, or adults reading children's parts. I didn't even like it that one voice represented every character, with no attempt to change the manner of speaking to match the person or the situation. It all sounded too flat to me, too wooden, just rote reading for the sake of saying each word as it appeared on the page, no emotion. I never finished even one chapter of any of the audio books I bought.
~

Listening is easier, provided the speaker reads well; the meaning is heard almost instantaneously.

Most people's reading speed is much slower than their ability to comprehend the spoken word.

In reading, the brain is (usually) translating the visual code into an inward silent hearing.




This post was edited by inky at September 30, 2018 12:09 AM MDT