Spotify has decided to enter the world of audiobooks and is starting with nine books that you may have heard of, narrated by some names you may recognize. If you’re running out of music and podcasts to listen to, it may not be a bad idea to get a better understanding of some of the classics in literature.
These nine audiobooks are in the public domain, but these original recordings are exclusive to Spotify. The company is using these nine to assess whether or not this would be a plausible addition to the service. Each audiobook comes with a 10-15 minute chapter “Sitting with the classics on Spotify” with Harvard professor Glenda Carpio, who covers the story, narratives and themes. Here are the titles on offer:
- Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, narrated by David Dobrik
- Frederick Douglass Life Story by Frederick Douglass, narrated by Forest Whitaker
- The awakening by Kate Chopin, narrated by Hilary Swank
- Persuasion by Jane Austen, narrated by Cynthia Erivo
- Walking stick by Jean Toomer, narrated by Audra McDonald
- Great expectations by Charles Dickens, narrated by James Langton
- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, narrated, by Sarah Coombs
- Passage by Nella Larsen, narrated by Bahni Turpin
- Red Courage Badge by Stephen Crane, narrated by Santino Fontana
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Spotify’s CEO, Daniel Ek, first thought of adding audiobooks to the portfolio when he saw its popularity among German users. A few months ago, Spotify posted a job vacancy for head of audiobooks, signaling even more interest in the market. The company has experimented with audiobooks before, bringing the first Harry Potter book to the platform last year with narration from celebrities like Daniel Radcliffe, David Beckham and Dakota Fanning, but we haven’t heard anything since.
You can listen to these audiobooks now on Spotify globally for free. They should be appearing very close to the top of the Home tab, so they should be easy to find.
