Marvel Teams Up With Dreamscape Media for Superhero Audiobooks (EXCLUSIVE)

By Janko Roettgers

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Audiobook publisher Dreamscape Media has struck a deal with Marvel Entertainment to distribute a few dozen of the Marvel’s iconic comic books as read‐to‐me style audiobooks. The titles will be made available for sale, and also added to the free library lending app Hoopla, starting in September.

Some of the comic books covered by the agreement include “The Ultimate Spider-Man,” “The Ultimate X-Men,” “X-Men: Codename Wolverine” and “Daredevil: The Man Without Fear,” with works coming from author like David Michelinie, Tony Isabella, Len Wein, Marv Wolfman and Peter David. Around 2 dozen titles are being produced exclusively by Dreamscape Media as part of this collaboration, and an additional 20 titles haven’t been widely distributed before.

“ has changed pop culture with its emphasis on character‐driven stories that bring out the superhero in all of us,” said Dreamscape Media publisher Tammy Faxel in a statement released Thursday. “We are proud to collaborate with Marvel Entertainment to give fans a new way to connect with their favorite superheroes.”

Dreamscape Media is the audiobook publishing arm of Midwest Tapes, which will handle the distribution of the recordings, making them available for sale through Amazon, Audible, iBooks, Google, Overdrive and other audiobook platforms.

In addition, Midwest will also distribute these Marvel titles via its subsidiary, which is a digital media service that collaborates with local libraries. This means that library patrons will be able to listen to the books free of charge via the Hoopla app , provided that their local library has signed up for the service.

Hoopla previously partnered with Marvel to bring 250 comic books to its app , which is available for phones, tablets and smart TVs.