As I mentioned in my last post, I was late to the podcasting party. Before the birth of my daughter I had only ever vaguely heard of the term. I knew it was something people could enjoy on their phones but had absolutely no idea what they actually were.
I used to listen to audio-books on CD in my car on the commute to work occasionally but most of the time I was a radio person. I would put on one station and zone out. I really only registered it was even on if I heard a classic that made me start loudly singing along. At home I would flip between binging on TV or listening to my record collection. I would have an ever increasing stack of books on my bedside table that I wasn’t quite getting through but I was happy and there was nothing I was missing, or so I thought….
So when I left work to raise my little bundle of fun I thought I would catch up on all those books and start my daughters love of vinyl at a young age with some Nina Simone, Carly Simon and maybe even some T-Rex. However, very quickly I realised that being a stay at home parent was going to be a little more involved that I first thought. It was then that I got the recommendation for my first podcast obsession – LeVar Burton Reads.
If you haven’t had the opportunity to listen to the hypnotic voice of LeVar, i suggest you stop reading this immediately and correct that! His pace of story telling is magical, and the gentle sprinkling of sound effects and dramatic music create an extremely immersive experience. Each episode, LeVar reads a handpicked piece of short fiction. My personal favourite is his reading of ‘The Paper Menagerie’ by Ken Liu (Episode 11, August 22 2017). And while he would be the first to admit that he is lover of fantasy stories, the stories run the gamut and promise a different experience each time.
They all do have one thing in common, however, they take you to somewhere else just for that brief period of time. So if you are looking for a moment of relaxation, a way to switch off from the hustle and bustle, then sit back, take a deep breathe and LeVar will begin…..