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For anyone that is interested, Audiofile Magazine is running their annual summer program again. They offer two free audiobooks every week beginning April 29th this year. The books are only available for 1 week, so you need to return weekly in order to get them all. The program runs through August 4th.

I believe you now need to have an app (Sora) in order to download them, but the app is also free. So, you may want to check out the above link for more information ahead of time.

This is the with themes for the summer releases.

Week 1, April 29 - May 5, 2021: After Crossing the Border
Come On In
Illegal

Week 2 , May 6 - 12, 2021: Confronting Injustice
They Went Left
Trell

Week 3 , May 13 - 19, 2021: Rooted in China
Descendant of the Crane
Monkey: A Journey to the West

Week 4 , May 20 - 26, 2021: How to Be Human
Alive
What Makes Us

Week 5 , May 27 - June 2, 2021: Making a New Life
The Magic Barrel
Of Beetles and Angels: A Boy's Remarkable Journey from a Refugee Camp to Harvard

Week 6 , June 3 - 9, 2021: Off to Paris
Rook
Salty, Bitter, Sweet

Week 7, June 10 - 16, 2021: Creating Change
Crescendo: The Story of a Musical Genius Who Forever Changed a Southern Town
Extinction

Week 8, June 17 - 23, 2021: Listening to Art
Poemsia
This Is What I Know About Art

Week 9 , June 24 - 30, 2021: Take Pride in Your True Self
Sasha Masha
Stay Gold

Week 10, July 1 - 7, 2021: Back Stories
Dust
The Raven's Tale

Week 11, July 8 - 14, 2021: Romance and Relationships
The Henna Wars
Saints and Misfits

Week 12, July 15 - 21, 2021: The Chill of the Thriller
The Ruinous Sweep
The Body Snatcher and Other Stories

Week 13, July 22 - 28, 2021: Gleefully Familiar...Twisted
Not Your Sidekick
Spellsinger

Week 14, July 29 - August 4, 2021: Secrets
Keep This to Yourself
Storm and Fury

Thanks Kristie. I've been watching the site for the start. There are a few books that I'd like to get.

thanks Kristie, I had totally forgotten about this.

There are a couple that I'm looking forward to this year. The Henna Wars was a Choice Awards nominee.

Yay! Thanks Kristie!

Thanks Kristie. I was keeping an eye out but I couldn't access the list for this year.

Don't forget to share what your recommendations everyone ;-)

I thought the list was harder to find this year., Margo.

I registered and downloaded the app. Thanks, Kristie!

Just a reminder that today is the day to download the first 2 books!

Thanks Sandra!

Do you have to listen to the books in the week they are available?

No, you can keep them and listen to them whenever you want, but you do have to download them to the app before they are replaced by the next week's offerings.

I have from a couple of years ago that I haven't read yet. I don't get them all. I just get the ones I'm interested in.

Awesome!

i love this program - i got The Hunger Games in one of the first years of it. I'm not a huge fan of the Sora app that they transitioned to this past year - but for free books i'll do almost anything lol

I haven't read any of the books I downloaded to the Soro app last year, that's how behind I am. What don't you like about it Dee?

I really like the soro app. The year before last I didn't realise till the end of the program that I hadn't download ANYTHING properly. I think I missed out a step !

In preparation for Illegal I got book #1 Disappeared - and I recommend it. It has the same characters and has the story of why they had to cross the border. I am not sure why they chose book 2 and not book 1

Margo wrote: "I really like the soro app. The year before last I didn't realise till the end of the program that I hadn't download ANYTHING properly. I think I missed out a step !"

Oh, do you have to actually have them downloaded? I just chose streaming for mine.

Katrisa wrote: "In preparation for Illegal I got book #1 Disappeared - and I recommend it. It has the same characters and has the story of why they had to cross the border. I am not..."

Glad you enjoyed it, Katrisa. I was thinking about reading that one too. Fortunately, my library has it because I don't want to pay $7 for the Kindle or use an Audible credit on it. I was surprised they chose book #2 as well, but it's probably because it fit the theme better. The theme for the week is "After Crossing the Border." It sounds like the first book is set before they were immigrants.

Katrisa wrote: "Margo wrote: "I really like the soro app. The year before last I didn't realise till the end of the program that I hadn't download ANYTHING properly. I think I missed out a step !"

Oh, do you have..."

Not with the Soro system, it's much easier to use. And with the old way maybe "download " is the wrong word but to get the books was a 2 step process and I was only doing step one 😖

Tomorrow is week 2, and the offerings are:


They Went Left
Trell

I already own and read They Went Left. It was an emotional story of the aftermath of WWII. I think I will get Trell. It's based on a true story of a man wrongfully imprisoned for a crime he didn't do.

I have They Went Left on my TBR and marked it that my library owns it, but I will pick it up anyway so I have it when I'm ready. I will also pick up Trell.

Thanks guys. I'll pick up both although they're not my usual kind of stories. I can't say no to a freebee!

Margo, I'm doing something like that. I'm getting everything and Will decide later if I keep them all or not. Starting to look at the books main pages is a rabbit hole, and I have to study now! Can't risk getting distracted.

Janice wrote: "I haven't read any of the books I downloaded to the Soro app last year, that's how behind I am. What don't you like about it Dee?"

its not that i don't like it - i guess but more, why couldn't they stick with overdrive - this is just another app on my phone I have to deal with - on top of audible, overdrive, hoopla etc...

Kristie wrote: "I have They Went Left on my TBR and marked it that my library owns it, but I will pick it up anyway so I have it when I'm ready. I will also pick up Trell."

They Went Left is one of the ones i'm most excited about- i loved her other book - and it reminds me of a holocaust survivor i interviewed in high school....the only reason he survived and his parents/siblings didn't was because he was wearing long pants the day the train arrived in Auschwitz and he was sent to work - the rest of his family was killed

I initially felt the same way about Sora vs Overdrive, Dee. However, I downloaded all the old audios to the Overdrive app on my old laptop and it died, so now I have no access to them. They don't show up on my Overdrive app on my phone, so maybe not fully downloaded?? Or at least not in my cloud somehow. The ones in the Sora app should be in my cloud, so if I get a new phone they should transfer and I'm less likely to lose them.

I'm always fascinated or intrigued and horrified by the stories survivors of the Holocaust tell. I can't even imagine being saved by my choice of wearing pants on a given day. It's so random. And the thought of losing my whole family like that is just beyond imagination.

I certainly understand not wanting to have more apps for my reading addiction. I have to mark down in my note section where to find the book otherwise I'd never find them.

It happens not only with reading app. For some reason you need a different app for every single thing in the world. From time to time I just get rid of the ones I don't need anymore, but still.

Sandra wrote: "It happens not only with reading app. For some reason you need a different app for every single thing in the world. From time to time I just get rid of the ones I don't need anymore, but still."

I feel this way about streaming services. There are so many of them.

Kristie wrote: "I initially felt the same way about Sora vs Overdrive, Dee. However, I downloaded all the old audios to the Overdrive app on my old laptop and it died, so now I have no access to them. They don't s..."

the holocaust fascinated me and horrifies me - I took a history elective in college just on it - it was the first that I had time to study not just the jewish elements, but also what they did to other groups of people. I wrote several papers on it in high school (portrayal of holocaust in modern film and then one about recollections of survivors) - I considered doing a Masters of Arts in Jewish and Holocaust Studies - maybe in the future

Dee wrote: "Kristie wrote: "I initially felt the same way about Sora vs Overdrive, Dee. However, I downloaded all the old audios to the Overdrive app on my old laptop and it died, so now I have no access to th..."

I also took an elective course on it in college. My major was psychology, so my final research paper was of the psychological effects of the Holocaust on the survivors. I was a little concerned that my professor would be insulted by the implications of my research because he was a survivor, but he thought it was excellent.

Kristie wrote: "Dee wrote: "Kristie wrote: "I initially felt the same way about Sora vs Overdrive, Dee. However, I downloaded all the old audios to the Overdrive app on my old laptop and it died, so now I have no ..."

I'll be interested in your take on They Turned Left because it deals with the aftermath and the way survivors coped.

I considered downloading the Sora app but decided that I just did not need another location to track down where some book was, when I wanted to read it, even if they are free. If I can’t get it from my library or I don’t want to buy it, I just don’t need it. I have a book spreadsheet that just gets harder and harder trying to track them all - especially when I have noted a title in the wrong section. Trying to keep up with the ones I have finished and remove them from the list is just as bad, especially when I used to track the library books. I removed Libby from my apps on my tablet, along with others that I didn’t use that often already.

Wow that's a lot, Cherie. I have so many books in various formats that I'll never be able to read them all. I don't have a spreadsheet though. I just added shelves on ŷ������, so when I buy a Kindle, I check ebook, for Audible, I check Audible, etc. That way I always know where to find them. I am often surprised by a book in my Kindle or Audible app that I forgot I purchased and it's like a little surprise present to myself. lol

I use the private note section. If it's ebook, I write Kindle or iBook. Most of my audiobooks are from Audible, so I just write Overdrive or Soro in the not section if it's an exception.

Margo wrote: "Katrisa wrote: "Margo wrote: "I really like the soro app. The year before last I didn't realise till the end of the program that I hadn't download ANYTHING properly. I think I missed out a step !"
..."

Oh good! I was worried because I have a bit of a book backlog at the moment, but am looking forward to some of these books!

Kristie wrote: "Wow that's a lot, Cherie. I have so many books in various formats that I'll never be able to read them all. I don't have a spreadsheet though. I just added shelves on ŷ������, so when I buy a Kin..."

The worst is when I buy something as a deal on one of my apps and then realize I already own it in a different app - the struggle is real, lol!

I feel your pain Katrisa lol

I've done that before too, Katrisa! I've even bought a physical book, brought it home, then found it on my bookshelf when I go to put the new one away. 🤦🏼‍♀�� I'm trying to remember to check GR now before purchasing.

Has anyone else gone to download the new audiobooks today? I am interested in Crescendo. I went to Sora and downloaded, then noticed that all my books are now missing. The only ones I am able to get into my library are this week's downloads. The older ones are in my history, but it says they can't be sent to a device and the description says it's not available in Sora. I'm not sure if I just need to refresh the book page or 'renew' the loan. I was wondering if any of you had this experience and how you got the books back.

Same here, Kristie. I haven't noticed but checked when I read your comment. My books aren't there and when I try to send it to the device It won't let me. My guess is that it is just a glitch, since the book still says due in 35,972 days.

I'm also having problems to download this month's books. There is something off with the app for sure. I'll try again later or tomorrow.

Same here Kristie.

Thanks, ladies. I’m sure it’s a glitch then. Hopefully they’ll get it worked out. I’d hate to lose all those books.

Yikes - I hope it gets fixed. I haven't actually listened to any of my books yet :(

The response I got from them was to do an app reset, but now it won’t let me in without a school code 🤦‍♀��

Oh no... so frustrating.

I signed out and then signed back in and my books were back