According to Jonathan Lowe, Land Line’s audio book reviewer, the audio book industry has exploded in just the last three years into more than $2 billion in sales, with more than 100 publishers producing books on tape, CD and Mp3.

“Production values have really improved too, and now it's standard practice for titles to come out in hardcover and on audio at the same time, both abridged and unabridged,” Lowe said in a recent interview with Jeff Davis, host of The Audiobook Cafe, heard on XM Satellite Radio.

Lowe has been reviewing audio efforts for Land Line readers for nearly five years. 

“Truckers spend more time on the road than anyone, and so they are the perfect audience for audio books,” says Lowe.

A successful novelist and veteran reviewer, Lowe says, “Of course, there are still plenty of mediocre titles being released, but that’s where a reviewer can help steer listeners toward the better audio books.