Would you recognize the voice of the main character in one of your favorite novels if you heard it?
That thought never occurred to me until I recently picked up an audio book to keep me company during an eight-hour trip by automobile. The book was one in a series. When I heard the voice given to the main character, I was startled. It sounded nothing like I expected.
I had read several books in the series , but had never given conscious thought to what the main character's voice might sound like. It was obvious that on some level, my brain had "heard" his voice. What I was actually hearing was so off-putting, that I turned the CD player off for several miles to contemplate the situation.
I had a mental image of his physical appearance and how he dressed. However, I could not recall anything from reading the series that addressed how his voice might "sound." So, where had the "voice" in my head come from? Was it a sub-conscious assumption as to what it would sound like, based on his physical description? I never came up with a satisfactory answer to the question.
I did finish listening to the audio book. But after six plus hours, I still had trouble matching the voice I was actually hearing with the one in my head.
It did make me realize that such adds another dimension to "reading" an audio book.
