Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Book-On-Tape

I have a 30-45 minute commute to work everyday, but I don’t mind the drive. I need that time to become a functioning person in the morning and to unwind after a day at work. On my drive I used listen to NPR (National Public Radio) or switch between classic rock and pop music stations. A few months ago, Evan’s mother gave me a bunch of books-on-tape after I told her that I had enjoyed listening to the DaVinci Code. I just finished the first book of many books she sent, Monster by Jonathan Kellerman. It was a suspenseful murder mystery involving a psychiatrist, a tough guy police investigator and a hospitalized psycho killer. The story begins with the brutal murder of a doctor who works at an asylum for convicted psychotic criminals. The only person in contact with the doctor was an inmate of the asylum that had not communicated with anyone in 16 years. From the very first tape the suspense was thick. The total listening time was 13 hours. It took me several weeks to finish. Every morning I would want to stay in the car after I had reached my office. I would get so involved in the story that when I got home from work I would sit in the car for an extra 10 minutes to make it to the end of a chapter. Yesterday afternoon, I reached the climax of the story, the part where the killer was revealed. I probably should have pulled the car over. I was so filled with suspense that I was practically hugging the steering wheel. I was surprised how enraptured I became with the book on tape, but when I think about it now, I probably finished listening much quicker than if I had read it myself.

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