free audiobooks won't download on my ipod, & won't play on itunes

I was thrilled to find that itunes has a number of free audiobooks on itunes. I was even more thrilled to find out (because I am a nerd) that the free ones are many of the classic books I would want anyway. Score for me. Almost. I downloaded three books within a few seconds (which makes me suspect). Now they are sitting in the "books" section of my itunes version 10.4.1 and I can't play them. The play icon appears, but nothing happens when I press it. I thought that maybe they woudl play when I downloaded them on my ipod classic (from 2005), but "books" doesn't even appear as an option for download on the ipod menu within itunes. Help! I would really love to listen to some of these books on a very long drive I am taking in a few days. Thanks to any kind soul offering advice!