All Things Audiobooks - Mix & Match Mama

Happy Wednesday, friends!

Okay, we are taking a little detour today because BEFORE my September Book Review next week, I wanted to take a minute and give space to…

…ALL THINGS AUDIOBOOKS.

Because I have thoughts.

And opinions.

And I would love to know yours BEFORE I proceed any further down this rabbit hole.

I have mentioned many times before that there are certainly things I’VE CHANGED MY MIND ABOUT in life.

You know, like how many children I would have.

Or being a working mom.

I never thought I’d have four dogs.

I used to swear we weren’t “Disney Cruise” people.

And here’s one more…YOU GUYS, IT TURNS OUT THAT I REALLY DO LOVE AUDIOBOOKS!

What? What?

I am NOT an audiobook person.

Except, I think I totally am now.

It’s fun being 45 and still surprising yourself 😉 .

So, here’s the deal, this month (September), I have listened to not one but TWO and honestly, I can’t wait to start my third. I wanted to hash out this audiobook business though BEFORE my book review next week so that I can spend that time actually discussing the book and not my new love of audiobooks.

If you’ll recall, up until July, I had NEVER listened to an audiobook and then…

…BOOK CLUB #29 was The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett which became difficult for me to read.

I go into depth in the blog post, but I was going to quit the book just because I found reading it so boring. I had never quit a book club book before, but I just didn’t know how I was ever going to get through this very long book that I just could not get geared up to read. BUT I didn’t want to quit, so after chatting with a friend, I decided to try listening to the book instead. Y’all…it rocked my world.

I LOVED listening to this book.

I loved it so much that when a blog reader suggested perhaps I listen to one audiobook a month, I immediately agreed which meant…

…in August, I listened to Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser.

And like I mentioned before, I have already listened to two this month as well.

So, that’s how we got here.

Here are my initial thoughts and questions for YOU…

Thought #1:

I don’t know why, but I used to think listening to audiobooks would REPLACE reading books. I now see that, at least for me, that’s silly. All the audiobooks do is give me MORE opportunities to read/hear stories from authors. I’m still reading the exact same amount of time. I have not replaced that time (early mornings, in snippets throughout the day, at night) with listening. Sitting down and opening a book and tuning the world out is still my favorite pastime. That hasn’t changed at all. What has changed is that now when I drive alone in the car, walk the dogs, unload the dishwasher, fold laundry…I can listen to a book. I’m getting EXTRA books into my life. I love books, so this is only adding value to my day and not taking anything away.

Thought #2:

I tend to really love to read chick lit especially before I go to bed. It’s light, it’s easy, it won’t get me worked up and nervous right before I try to go to sleep. I tend to shy away from books that are a little dark/seem heavy because they’re not ideal for my evening reading. Enter the audiobook. I have already realized that listening to these books while I’m out and about in my car and/or doing chores around my house/at the gym makes these stories more palatable to me.

Thought #3:

I’m behind on my podcasts, y’all. I saw that Acquired just dropped a new episode on Home Depot, but I haven’t even started it yet because I’ve been wrapped up in my audiobooks. I have replaced my podcast time with audiobook time.

Thought #4:

I’ve only listened to four audiobooks, and I can already tell you that narration is a big deal. It’s actually another “thing” to make or break a book for me. I think I *might* have started with the VERY BEST narration (The Calamity Club) and then moved on to one that was read by a single narrator but in a way that was charming and magical and just divine (Lady Tremaine). I will go into detail in my September Book Review but now, I’ve read one by a narrator that was “okay” and another that was narrated by the actual author (not my fave). I am going to need a lot of coaching/tips/tricks when it comes to selecting audiobooks where the narration adds (and doesn’t take away!) from the story.

Okay, now for some questions!

Question #1: What are your favorite CURRENT listens?

I would love to know which books you’ve loved listening to that are CURRENT reads (books published in 2026).

Question #2: What are your favorite OLDER listens?

If you could only suggest one “older” book for me to go back and listen to on audio, what would that be?

Question #3: What makes an audiobook more desirable to you? Or less desirable?

For those of you well versed in audiobooks, what are things you look for before purchasing? What are things you stay away from?

I would love to know!

I said for YEARS that I would never read on a Kindle and well, as you know, I am OBSESSED with my Kindle. So here I am, taking back that “I’m not an audiobook person”. I clearly am 🙂 .

I can’t wait to read your thoughts, tips and comments below!

Two random things before we go…

If you’re looking to take a bite out of fall, my CINNAMON APPLE PECAN CAKE is exactly what you need to bake! It’s delicious!

And this is random, but I wanted to share…between now and Thursday, Tuckernuck is having their Friends and Family Sale!

Save 15% off orders over $250 – 20% off orders over $500 with code: FAMILY

I wear a lot of Tuckernuck. Here are just a few of my current faves:

THIS DRESS which is absolutely a favorite of mine right now! It’s gorgeous!

Clearly, my color right now is brown because…

…I wore THIS DRESS to church too. This dress comes in many other colors, but I picked…

…the brown vegan suede because it really screamed “I love fall!”. The fabric, the fit, the pockets…love.

MY TEE SHIRT DRESS! I love this dress so much that I decided to buy it in solid black too.

I bought THIS DRESS last year in black and loved it so much that I just bought it again in faux brown suede. It comes in nine different color/fabric options!