At Audible, teens can discover great listens that don’t feel like homework
According to a new survey of Canadian youth reading habits by Statista, only a quarter of Canadian teens (age 15-17) read for fun. But there may be another way they can connect with the stories they’re missing out on: audiobooks.
One of the best things about audiobooks is that listening opens up many of life’s in-between moments: time spent in the car, riding the bus or getting ready in the morning. In a way, listening makes this time feel like found time, turning it into a chance to relax and not worry about how busy they are. Listening doesn’t feel like work.
If you want teens to consume more stories outside of their homework, listening will help them discover writers they’ll love.
We have some recommendations for young adult audiobooks and original stories from Canada that are perfect for teens who don’t have time to read. All available on Audible, you can find these titles in no time and share them with your teenager.
The Perfect Listen for Teens Who Don’t Have Time
Canadian teens are more likely than any of their peers in the developed world to have a part-time job, with 35% of Canadian teens working part-time. That’s in addition to balancing school, homework, volunteering and extra-curriculars.
When they have a chance to relax, teenagers are looking for fun, spirited stories that won’t feel like another school assignment. Millions of teenagers around the world have grown up with Anne of Green Gables, the charming story of an orphan girl sent to a farm on Prince Edward Island by mistake. Anne’s feisty, independent spirit has made her the role model for precocious girls the world over, and her struggle to fit in at school and with her family is one that many teens will find familiar. Anne of Green Gables is the kind of fun, touching story that keeps listeners of all ages coming back for more.
An Audiobook for Finding Out Where You Came From
Adolescence isn’t just a time when teenagers start to think about who they are, it’s also a time when they start to look at who their families are and where they came from. For teenagers asking about their family history, check out upcoming release Broken Strings by Eric Walters and Kathy Kacer.
Broken Strings is about a girl who discovers her grandfather’s old violin while practicing for her role in the school production of Fiddler on the Roof. When she shows the violin to her grandfather, he reacts with an anger that surprises the whole family, leading to the revelation of family secrets that go back to the pogroms her family fled decades earlier.
Even when they’re busy with school, volunteering, and extra-curriculars, teenagers are curious about their family history. Broken Strings is about finding out where you come from, even when the story isn’t the brightest one.
Strange Stories in Familiar Places
There’s something exhilarating about encountering stories set in a place you know. It’s a chance to see where you live through someone else’s eyes. And when it becomes the inspiration for a sci-fi or fantasy title, it’s a way to see your home transformed by the writer’s imagination.
Stories set in Canadian locations can be hard to find, especially in YA. That’s one of the things that makes Nalo Hopkinson’s Brown Girl in the Ring an excellent find for Canadian teens. Set in a post-apocalyptic Toronto where life has become dominated by a mixture of magic and criminal activity, listeners are sure to be unsettled by the way Hopkinson blends the strange with the familiar. When you hear your own hometown in a story, it’s like finding out you share a secret code with the writer. You know exactly what they’re talking about when they mention a certain street or a particular neighbourhood, and it’s a connection that gets audiences excited.
If your teenager’s a fan of Brown Girl in the Ring, explore more options for unique sci-fi and fantasy on Audible. There are whole worlds out there to discover.
Make More Time for Great Stories
Listening makes it easier to find time in a busy schedule. If your teens don’t have space in their schedule to read, give them an alternative with Audible. With a membership, it’s easy to discover new titles you’ll love to.
Great YA titles give teenagers an opportunity to see themselves and the challenges they face on a day-to-day basis represented in fiction. These titles are just the beginning. There are tons of YA titles available in our catalogue and your teenagers are bound to find something enticing.
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