I’m a huge fan of audiobooks. They let me stay connected to a book at the gym, grocery store, or on a long drive. Without them, I’d be stuck in my own head — and let’s be real, ain’t nobody got time for that.

And before you ask, yes. Audiobooks totally count as reading.

I mean, who are we to decide whether reading with your eyes is better than reading with your ears? We didn’t make it through the millennia with only oral history for us just to disrespect it now.

But I digress…

If you are also a fan of audiobooks or simply want to dip your toes in their wonders, I’m here for you. I’ll be your oracle for oral stories. Let’s dive in.

Audiobook Types

Over the years of listening to audiobooks, I’ve worked out that there’s a bit of a secret language to the narration style that isn’t common knowledge.

It’s something I’ve stumbled upon and learned through trial and error. But now that I know it, I won’t choose a book without good narration. So here are my secrets — a cheat sheet if you will — to the five types of audio narration.

Audiobook Type 1: Standard Narration

The first type of audiobook narration is the one you’re probably most familiar with — it’s one narrator who reads the whole book start to finish.

They’re responsible for all character voices, using voice inflection and intonation to keep it engaging. These are good, but if they’re all you know, I might just blow your mind as you keep reading.

My favorite audiobooks to recommend in the standard narration style (honestly, there are so many that I’ll only leave two):

Audiobook Type 2: Dual-POV Narration

Next, is dual-POV narration. This is super common in romance books, where the book follows two perspectives (typically a male and a female representing each love interest).

Instead of one narrator reading through the book from start to finish, a dual-POV narration splits the chapters by character. The male narrator reads the male main character (MMC)’s chapters, and the female narrator reads the female main character (FMC)’s chapters.

They read their respective chapters from start to finish, so besides there being two voices, it’s incredibly similar to the standard audiobook. Each narrator is responsible for acting out the characters in their respective chapters.

Now get ready, because we’re about to step it up a notch.

My favorite audiobooks to recommend with dual-POV narration style:

Audiobook Type 3: Duet Narration

Building on the last audiobook type (dual POV) we have duet narration. Books read in duet are similar to dual-POV in that there are two narrators (again, typically a male and a female). The major difference is in how the dialogue is handled.

An audiobook read “in duet” means that the male narrator reads all-male character dialogue, even if it’s in the female narrator’s chapters, and vice versa. It reduces the workload on each narrator (in terms of voice intonation) and makes it a lot more enjoyable for the reader because it’s immersive and believable.

I can’t even tell you how many times a good audiobook is ruined by a female narrator who sounds like she’s trying too hard to push her voice lower, or a male narrator who sounds squeaky trying to hit a higher pitch.

This is the best of both worlds.

My favorite audiobooks to recommend with duet narration style:

But we aren’t done yet! There are two more types of narration to consider.

Audiobook Type 4: Full-Cast Audiobooks

A full-cast audiobook is exactly what it sounds like — an audiobook that has 3+ narrators, giving each character their own voice.

It’s usually built similarly to the duet narration (where the main characters read the entire story), but different voices act out all dialogue. It’s incredibly immersive and so much fun to listen to.

My favorite audiobook to recommend with a full-cast narration style:

Audiobook Type 5: Dramatized Adaptation

Finally, we have dramatized adaptation (or graphic audiobooks). These build on the full-cast style of narration, but add in sound effects and music, making it feel like you’re listening to a movie.

It’s a bit confusing because they’re often referred to as “Graphic Audios” but “Graphic Audio” is a company that produces dramatized adaptations, but they’re not the only one. So it’s kind of like calling all tissues “Kleenex.”

A word of caution on dramatized adaptations:

These adaptations are more for entertainment than a full read-through, so keep the book handy to follow along or make sure you have already read the book before you dive in. They’re perfect for rereads.

Why? Because dramatized adaptations are primarily for entertainment purposes — they are not a full read-through of the book. You will miss important details if you only consume the content through a dramatized adaptation.

Another important note: Most of the dramatized adaptations are broken into two audiobooks, so you’ll need to purchase or borrow both to get the full book.

My favorite audiobook series to recommend with a dramatized adaptation narration style:

Closing Thoughts

Now that you know the secret language of audiobook narration, you’ll be a much more informed shopper. The narration style makes a huge difference in the quality of the content. It’s a huge factor in my decision to pull the trigger on a book or not, and it might now become one of yours too!

Happy reading!

Don’t read further unless you’re Audible:

Psst…if I managed a certain audiobook company *cough* Audible *cough* I’d create a whole new categorization within the app to allow us to search by narration style, because I am sold on a book SO much faster if it has duet or full-cast narration, and there’s currently no way to search the catalogs that way.