Audiobooks as far as I’m concerned are actually more important! Books are relatively new, but oral storytelling has been a human tradition for tens of thousands of years. Listening to an audiobook is closer to that tradition!

I don’t think people are saying the book doesn’t count if you listened to it. Just that the verb of listening vs. reading are different. Walking and running are both valid ways to get somewhere, but the method is different. But congrats, you did the thing. I read 100 books this year, and listened to 1. I finished 101 books. What’s wrong with saying that?