Google just started selling audiobooks in Google Play, which means you can listen to them with Google Home. Here’s how!
You’ll find these audiobooks under the Books section, and they’re available now in 45 countries and nine languages. Google is selling audiobooks outright — they must be purchased, but they’ll be added to your account and can be shared with family members who you add to your Family Library.
Google has also slashed the price of many titles and (for a limited time) is offering a 50-percent-off coupon for your first audiobook purchase. Audiobooks from Google Play are available on Android and iOS devices (through the Google Play Books app), the web and most devices that support Google Assistant.
To start listening to an audiobook on Google Home, you must first purchase a title. You’ll have to do this at play.google.com or within the Google Play Books app.
Here are some of the commands you can use:
- Play the most recently listened to audiobook: “OK, Google, read my book.”
- Request a specific audiobook: “OK, Google, read [book title].”
- Change chapters: “OK, Google, previous/next chapter.”
- Check how much time is remaining: “OK, Google, how much time is left?”
- Find out who the author is: “OK, Google, who wrote this?”
- Listen to the audiobook on another device: “OK, Google, read my book on [ name].”
- Play or pause: “OK, Google, resume/continue/pause.”
- Stop: “OK, Google, stop.”
- Set a sleep timer: “OK, Google, stop in 30 minutes.”
- Skip ahead: “OK, Google, skip ahead 10 minutes/seconds.”
- Go back: “OK, Google, go back 10 minutes/seconds.”
Currently, it’s not possible to change the playback speed with Google Home and voice commands, but you can use the Google Play Books app from iOS or an Android device to cast the book to your Google Home speaker and choose from 0.5x to 2x playback speed, as well as select a specific chapter to play.
