It is wild to me that there are people who think audiobooks is "cheating" literature.
Oh, so reading books is a competitive sport now?
unironically, it makes me sad that so many people (even people who like books!) still treat reading as homework
"audiobooks don't count as reading" is a sentence that only makes sense if reading "counts" for something.
This is true for all the dumbass discourse around reading: Does fanfiction count as reading? Do graphic novels or comics count as reading? Do you have to read "the classics"? Is reading short/easy books "cheating"? Is it okay to not finish a book, should it "count" towards your total? The answer to all of these questions is: log off.
What standard are you holding yourself up to? Why does it matter at all? Who is "counting" and why? You're 37 you can't get a good grade in reading anymore, it's not real