Audiobook 1

Escuela de Lenguas Vivas aim is to foster the habit of using English in everyday life among our clients. It is for this reason that we recommend listening to audiobooks during different activities such as jogging, ironing. People who do not get distracted by listening to the radio while they drive can listen to an audiobook instead. This should only be done if this does not cause any distraction while driving.

Below you will find a list of audiobook titles organized by levels. They have all been used successfully in our classes and some of the audiobooks can be rounded off with a movie adaptation. Please watch this space for a list of movies classified by levels.

Basic Levels

Beginners:

John Escott, The Missing Coins. Penguin Readers level 1

The Teacher's Secret and other Folk Tales. Dominoes one.

Stephen Rabley, Between Two Worlds. Penguin Readers

Elementary:

O. Henry, New Yorkers (Short Stories). Oxford Bookworms, Stage 2.

Mark Twain, Huckleberry Finn. Oxford Bookworms, Stage 2.

L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables. Oxford Bookworms, Stage 2.

James Fenimore Cooper. The Last of the Mohicans Penguin Readers - level 2

J. Verne. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea Penguin Readers - level 1

Three short stories of Shelock Holmes - Penguin Readers - level 2

John Scott Dead Man's Island. Oxford Bookworms, Stage 2.

To prepare PET:

Jerome K. Jerome, Three Men in a Boat. Vivens Vives (Black Cat Collection). The highest level to prepare PET (with exercises).

Mark Twain The ₤1,000,000 Bank Note. Vivens Vives (Black Cat Collection). The highest level to prepare PET (with exercises).

Baroness Orczy, The Scarlet Pimpernel. The Adventures of the Secret Spy. Vivens Vives (Black Cat Collection). The highest level to prepare PET (with exercises).

Intermediate

To prepare First Certificate:

Jacques Futrelle, The Problems of Cell 13. Vivens Vives (Black Cat Collection). It’s intermediate level to prepare FCE (with exercises).

Pre-Intermediate

Richard Macandrew, A Puzzle for Logan. Cambridge University Press, English Readers, Level 3 (Although the book doesn't have any exercises, its level could be appropiated to prepare Pet).

Edgar Alan Poe, The Black Cat and other stories. Penguin Readers Level 3

Oscar Wilde, An Ideal Husband. Penguin Readers Level 3. It’s very witty as every Oscar Wilde plays. The plot is a bit difficult to follow for some pre-intermediate students.

Alexander Dumas The Count of Montecristo, Oxford, Dominoes 3

A. Brontë, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. MacMillan Readers 4

Intermediate:

Colin Campbell, The Lady in White. Cambridge University Press, English Readers nº4 (This mystery book may be a bit difficult because of the plot).

Helen Taylor, In the Shadow of the Mountain. Cambridge University Press, English readers nº 5. Although it’s graded as Upper-Intermediate the quite simple plot makes it easier to understand. Sometimes students find difficult the British-English accent in it.

Rod Neilsen, The Sugar Glider. Cambridge University Press, English Readers nº5 (Adventure/Thriller). Vocabulary is in connection with the outdoors in Australia, pilots, planes and, social and family conflicts.

Charles Dickens, Nicholas Nickleyby. Penguin  Active Readers Level 4. (There are useful exercises in this book for the first stages of First Certificate Preparation; an English teacher will be needed to correct the exercises). 

Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Grey. Vicens Vives (Black Cat Colection) The topic is a bit difficult which make the book suitable for students in the later stages of the First Certificate Preparation. An English teacher will be needed to correct the exercises.

Upper-Intermediate

Richard Preston, Officially Dead, Macmillan Readers, Level 6. There is an interesting thriller with some vocabulary about business.

Scott Fizgerald, The Great Gatsby. Macmillan Readers, Level 5. This book is harder than the previous one because it gets deeper in the characters and the recreation of the historical period. (The movie should be watched after finishing the book. This will allowed the students to get a step forward in their understanding of English)

Charles Dickens, Great Expectations. Oxford Bookworms n.5. Period drama whose main difficulty is the old fashioned language and historical atmosphere.

John Grisham,The Testament. Penguin Readers.

Advanced

Daphne du Maunier, Rebecca. Macmillan Readers, Level 6. This book is excellent due to an interesting plot and the depth of the characters. (The Hichtcock black and white movie should be watched after finishing the book. This will allowed the students to get a step forward in their understanding of English)

Edith Wharton, The Age of Innocence. Oxford Bookworms n. 5. (There is an excellent movie –stared by Winona Ryder, Daniel Day-Lewis and Michelle Pfeiffer- which should be watched after finishing the book. The subtleties of the language and the complexity of the feelings and characters make this movie a useful exercise of comprehension).

Alan Maley, He Knows Too Much. Cambridge English Readers nº 6. This audiobook is one of the hardest in the list due to the plot, vocabulary and speed of the language. It has been very celebrated and enjoyed by most business people.

Proficiency

At this stage we recommed none abridged books combined with audiobooks and movies. Right now audiobooks are still rather expensive but it's the only way to continue the immersion process. 

Bernhard Schlink,  The Reader. New York, Vintage Books, 1997. Excellent book, very useful for English Reading Clubs. The Audiobook could be found in Amazone. There is also a movie based, more or less, in the story. It's not difficult for students with a minimun level of proficiency.

Lisa Lee, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan. New York, Random House Trade, 2006. The only audiobook we could find is abridged but it's quite good. There seems to be a movie based on the book but none of the ELV teachers have watched it. The language is not too difficult but the chinesse customs could make it harder for lower levels of proficiency.

Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables. New York, Aladin Classics, 2001. This is a very difficult book due to the language although the story is easy to follow. There are several series based on this book. This book could be recommended to students with the highest levels of proficiency.