Discussion Post: Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover, or a Narrator by their Voice

Posted September 24, 2018 by Lisa Mandina in discussion post / 13 Comments

I’m so far behind on my goal for discussion posts this year.  I had lots of ideas, but ran out of time.  As I’ve been listening to an audiobook with one of my favorite narrators this past week, I started thinking about how much I want to know what this narrator looks like.  If you’re a romance audiobook fan, then you probably will recognize the name, Sebastian York.  His voice, it’s just wowza.  It’s like sex on tape.  Reminiscent of Barry White you might say.

 
Sorry about that, but I’ve been waiting to use this Castiel gif forever.  
Anyway, as far as I know, Sebastian York is one of those narrator mysteries, like Joe Arden and Shane East (although I think the last one is actually a pseudonym for Steve West).  
Of course, all I can think about is my lessons learned when I was a kid with the people on the radio.  I’d picture someone based on their voice, and then when they actually were somewhere live, or on TV or something, they looked soooooooooooo different from what my brain had built up as I listened to them.  
First, listen to Sebastian York’s voice:
In my head, I see a very tough, muscular guy.  Like the covers of some of the books he narrates.

In one of the books by Meghan March that I listened to, I pictured him like the movie star Shemar Moore:
And even though I’ve met Jonny James, and you can hear him speak in the videos he often does on Facebook, I sometimes picture Sebastian York’s voice with Jonny’s looks.

And then there are the pictures posted on his? Twitter account, that look a lot like Tyler Hoechlin, the actor from MTV’s Teen Wolf TV series.

But, as with my radio personality lesson, I can’t help but wonder how far off my brain and ears are when they decide what he must look like.   Is he really a scrawny, skinny, nerdy guy?  (Okay with me, I like nerdy guys too!)  Is he an old man with a deep voice?  You’ve always got the James Earl Jones/Darth Vader voice as well!  What in the world could he possibly look like?
Anyway, it doesn’t really matter.  I wish I had a recording of his voice, that wasn’t a book I was listening to and wanted to stay awake to hear it all.  I’d put it on and fall asleep with his voice playing, hopefully giving me the types of dreams I could really enjoy.
 
Oooh, that gif reminds me I could totally see his voice coming from someone who looks like Jensen Ackles.
Here comes the discussion part.  Are you an audiobook fan?  Do you have any voices that you enjoy listening to as much as I love Sebastian York’s voice?  If you are a fan of him as well, what do you think he looks like?  I’d love to see your picture ideas!  Drop a picture or link in the comments below for me.  
Also, while you’re stopping by my blog, I’ve got a giveaway going on for another week I think, my Clear Your Shelf Giveaway Hop post, go check that out HERE
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13 responses to “Discussion Post: Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover, or a Narrator by their Voice

    • I mean, yeah, I like the mystery. But my brain just keeps holding on to wondering what he looks like. I kind of hope he is sooooooo not at all like what his voice sounds like. It will make me laugh. But I'll still love his narrating! Thanks for stopping by!

  1. I really haven't listened to many books that were narrated by men though I've heard amazing things about Sebastian York. You've got me wanting to find one of his books just for his voice!

    • I have actually quit listening to a book if I don't like a narrator very much. If it makes it hard to pay attention to, then I will give up and just read it instead. I think I've heard Rebecca Soler, the name is familiar. Thanks for stopping by!

  2. I'm a big SY fan too! I'm also about 72% sure I've seen a photo of him. If that is so he's really kinda cute and not even that scrawny 😀
    One of my favourite narrators is Holly Jackson and I've recently seen a photo of her for the first time. Afterwards her voice started to sound a bit different to me than before. Pretty weird, no? It's like now I adjusted the voice to the picture.

    • Well, there are photos on Twitter or Instagram I think, but they are not of him, they are of an actor. And I don't think the actor's voice sounds like his. I just saw a photo of Andi Arndt the other day, and of course she looks nothing like what I picture! But like you I tend to then adjust the voice to the picture, it's weird! Thanks for visiting!

  3. Oh man, that voice though. You've got me curious and I totally see how you imagine that type of guy with his voice. And in the end I wanted to know what he actually looks like. But you're right, who knows? We shouldn't judge a narrator by their voice 😉 Way to send the message home xD

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