Hello! and Welcome to purplespeak audiobook store.

My name is Linda Gray and I'm the person behind the purplespeak storefront.  

I'm very pleased to be a partner in The Spoken Network which is constantly working to bring new and exciting audiobook titles to the online community, and I hope you enjoy browsing through the titles that are available here. 

My home is in Dundee, on the east coast of Scotland: we're very fortunate to be bounded by a bank of hills to the north and a river to the south, so we have some protection from the north winds and a fast flowing river that gives us a great panorama! 

A well as that, it's possible to be in the most beautiful countryside within twenty minutes of leaving the town...(these Angus Glens are on Dundee's 'doorstep') 

Dundee itself has a long history of industrialisation that once included marine engineering and textile manufacturing amongst many others.  Today, though, its economic and cultural development is hugely influenced by two universities and new industries like biomedical research and computer technologies. 

It's really interesting to see the transition of the city in action, and to witness the ways that people respond to changing environments and social settings.  I was fortunate to have studied social sciences and sociology in particular at the University of Abertay in Dundee, having left a long-term job in the banking industry, and to continue in the University for a short time as a Teaching Assistant. 

Latterly, I've been exhilarated and humbled with visits to other cultures and climates - principally India - and the United Arab Emirates where my older son lives. My younger son lives in the south of Britain close to a stunning part of the country's coastline, so I'm extremely conscious of having access to some amazing geographic areas.

Quite apart from needing books in my life to see me through studies and travels, their presence (and my love of them) goes back as far as I can remember.  I still have the copy of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women, which I received at primary school, and that probably forged the first strong link in my book memory.  I am also still very much attached to my sons' childhood books - even Ladybirds and Mr Men! because to me, anyway, they are much more than just paper and print. I'm sure my sons would not want me to say too much, so suffice it to say that I think I was probably doing a mean variable version of audiobooks without realising it!  

Now, I love to have readings around me from global issues to humanities and biographies, and I love the fact that readings are available in different formats - it's now so easy to access materials online, and to have someone else do the reading for me is just the best if I also want to keep up to date with the rest of my life!  

Interestingly, audiobooks have their own little story of development: in their very early days they were to be found in record shops rather than book shops, since book retailers were a bit hesitant to place audio materials alongside the printed word.  At that time, of course, audio cassette tapes served as the medium before CDs became widely used, and I suspect there are quite a few people who remember tapes with some fondness.  Eventually, book shops began to take a chance on audiobooks when a few brave authors started reading their own materials, and gave some legitimacy to the audio format.   And the rest, as it's said, is history in the making...

...Today, technology and digital downloading make access to the spoken word quite an awesome advance.  The availability of an ever-increasing collection of categories and titles is testament to the popularity of this form of entertainment and education, and the idea of cultivating the 'art of listening' is one that could be receiving more and more attention as spoken word materials extend across genres and technologies.  

I'm very grateful that the Internet allows me to pursue my continuing interests in the book-world: I have a marketplace listing through Amazon -  www.amazon.co.uk/shops/colourpurple - as well as this audiobook store, and I hope you'll feel free to email me at linda@purplespeak.com if there's something I can help with at either of these sites...

...And the reason behind the 'purple' theme?  Well - I could make something up, but how about I just like the colour!  Please enjoy the site!