Spotify Kicks Off Audiobook Offering With Nine Free Classic Titles

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Spotify is kicking off its new audiobook offering with nine books that have been narrated by actors and celebrities.

After experimenting with audiobooks last year, Spotify is now starting to offer a dedicated audiobook section featuring nine literary classics that can be listened to for free.

Each audiobook is narrated by a well-known celebrity and comes with a 10- to 15-minute chapter with Harvard Professor Glenda Carpio called “Sitting with the Classics on Spotify.” Each chapter goes over the history of the book, its narratives – and its themes.

The titles currently on offer – and the people who narrate each, are:

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, narrated by David Dobrik
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass, narrated by Forest Whitaker
The Awakening by Kate Chopin, narrated by Hilary Swank
Persuasion by Jane Austen, narrated by Cynthia Erivo
Cane by Jean Toomer, narrated by Audra McDonald
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens, narrated by James Langton
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, narrated by Sarah Coombs
Passing by Nella Larsen, narrated by Bahni Turpin
Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane, narrated by Santino Fontana

Users can listen to these for free.

Spotify is kicking off its new audiobook offering with nine books that have been narrated by celebrities.

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Spotify had started experimenting with audiobooks last year, bringing the first Harry Potter book to the platform – narrated by Daniel Radcliffe, David Beckham, and Dakota Fanning. Only now, though, are we seeing the culmination of the company’s efforts in this domain.

We currently don’t have any more information about how Spotify’s audiobook efforts might pan out, but if these first titles are popular, I believe we can see them expand soon.