Saturday, September 28, 2013

Diapason

DiapasonMy kid has had an interest in pipe organs since before there were any permanent teeth. This magazine is very informative and he thoroughly enjoys reading it.

Moment (1-year auto-renewal)

Moment"Moment" is an excellent magazine. It discusses many various issues that concern the modern Jew; politics, culture and -of course -religion. Often the magazine will discuss controversial issues (with reader imput) so you can get the "scoop" on the latest debates.

I especially appreciate that fact that "Moment" does not take a specific position on issues; the magazine is very good at providing the viewpoint from the perspectives of all types of Jews.

I have read 'Moment' occasionally over many years, and this in the hope of enriching my knowledge of the Jewish world. There have been articles and features which I have found useful. But on the whole the Magazine does not seem to me to be in a class with 'Commentary' or even 'Midstream'. I would say my reaction to it has been by and large lukewarm. I also believe it could be much more forthright and positive in regard to Israel.

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Moment Magazine does not only appeal to Jews, but it appeals to everyone who enjoys reading engaging, thought-provoking stories about culture, religion and politics. Moment's stories showcase how great journalism can be. The magazine teaches, inspires and captivates its readers in a way that most other publications cannot hope to do. Moment is fantastic and absolutely a must-read for all!

Read Best Reviews of Moment (1-year auto-renewal) Here

I look to Moment Magazine to get a sense of Jewish issues. They offer a wide range of articles about Jewish politics, culture, and religion. Moment makes Jewish life exciting, and always finds quirky angles. They also offer an excellent range of viewpoints on all these topics. Particularly on Israel, they are able to convey the complexities of the state with all its strengths and problems.

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Friday, September 27, 2013

Redbook (1-year auto-renewal)

RedbookJust canceled my subscription, after a year-and-a-half. Unfortunately, for my tastes and lifestyle (40s, married, business owner, no children). I think Redbook is trying to be too well-rounded. I used to love this magazine (especially back in HS and college), but now it seems like it trying to appeal to too many audiences at once...a few pages of Cosmo-style sex-related articles, a few pages of Women's World-style life-threatening articles, a few pages of Healthmagazine "you too can have abs of steel" articles, and way too pages of Parent's Magazine-style articles. The only thing I found myself enjoying was the "Most Embarrassing Moments" feature. I think that a magazine with an article about "Red Hot Sex Kissing Games" a few pages away from an article about "Kids Get Dry Skin Too" is not focused enough. On top of this (and perhaps because of it), it seemed as though most of their articles only touched the surface of any one topic, -all headlines and captions, no substance. I think Vanity Fair, Jane, or Marie Claire might be a better choice for those who want a more focused magazine that delves into its topics more thoroughly.

This magazine should be handed out for free, I am not surprised currently going for $3 because it is basically only full of ads. Out of a bulky 225 pages to browse, ony 25 pages of articles, out of which only 10 pages of interest to me....I would definitely not renew my subscription in 9 months!!!

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I enjoyed reading this magazine when I was raising my children because it had something of interest to almost everyone in the family. When the kids were at school, I especially liked putting my feet up and settling down with a cup of hot tea while reading the few short fiction stories that were featured in each issue.

I was disappointed when the publishers went "with the flow" and discontinued the short fiction a few years ago, but I continued to read it for the other interesting features.

As the kids grew up and situations changed, I quit reading magazines so much and lost myself in my true love--reading novels. Thus, Redbook was lost somewhere along the way.

Recently, when I saw Redbook in Amazon, it was like seeing an old friend ... an old friend showing more "cleavage," to be sure. But, regretfully, that's the signs of the times. On a whim--I ordered a subscription. The price was right, and I haven't regretted my decision.

Some reviewers have complained because they think Redbook tries to appeal to too many sections of society, but I find that a plus. I like learning about things other generations and cultures find of interest.

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I use to read this magazine back in the eighties and I remember that I had enjoyed it. Recently I decided to subscribe to a few women's magazine,this being one of them.Upon receiving the first issue I could see this wasn't the same magazine I remember.Every other page is an advertisement.No wonder it's only $8.00 for a subscription they don't have to pay any staff,there are little to no articles.Very disappointed, I should have picked up a copy at the supermarket first to check it out before subscribing.Oh well, at only $8.00 it isn't a huge lost, but once the subscribption runs out I will not be renewing.I can recommend Good Housekeeping, Ladies Home Journal, and I was pleasantly surprised by an improved Family Circle.

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I was annoyed that this magazine seems to equate "mature woman" with "has kids". I enjoy the realistic fashion tips and advice, and I get annoyed with Cosmo's teenage attitude, but I'd like to see more about careers to balance out the "how to be a mom who does it all" sections. And yes, I'm not kidding...there's a regular section on being a mom who does it all.

This mag will appeal to those who are in the mom/work category. Those of us who do not have kids but are still "grown up" will be a little left behind.

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Trapper & Predator Caller (1-year)

Trapper & Predator CallerThis magazine comes out every two months and has very good hunting, calling, and trapping tips and strategies and their fur price charts are on the same level as Fur Fish and Game.

You won't find any kind of compromise in The Trapper & Predator Caller. This unapologetic "news" magazine has three fundamental goals:

1. To deliver "how to" material on traps, trapping, furbearers, and predator calling. A recent editorial was titled "Disposing Evidence: it's important to be discrete when getting rid of carcasses" (Dec. 2010, p. 6).

2. To serve as a bulletin board for state trapping associations. Many state trapping associations use the T&PC to publish the minutes of their business meetings, report on the success of their conventions, advertise fur sales, and rant against the antis.

3. To advertise products and services relating to trapping and predator calling. There are ads galore.

If this is want you want, then this is what you'll get! American Trapper, the official publication of the National Trappers Association, has more information on state, national and global issues affecting trapping and the fur markets.

If you want to learn about trap refinements and alternatives, you won't find them in this magazine.

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Everything I wanted in a trapping magazine and it gets passed on to others to read. Will renew again when time comes.

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So, there is actually a magazine out, that discusses how to cruelly catch our fellow living souls, in painful traps, where they linger for days in pain, get eaten alive by other wildlife, or get their heads chopped off by the trappers who then stuff them and admire their kill?

This is why 'evolution' remains a theory, not a fact.

That neanderthals, to this day, trap and murder innocent souls, and get excited about it, shows that evolution is still a work in progress.

What a disgraceful waste of paper this is. It isnt worthy of being a substitute for toilet paper.

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Islands (1-year auto-renewal)

IslandsIslands Magazine is a must for the travel lover. Each issue features stunning photography, articles from people who have visited various world islands, and advertisements on popular travel destinations around the globe.

The articles covered in this magazine usually focus on popular islands for travelers, like the Caribbean, South Pacific Islands, Hawaii, etc. But on occassion, the magazine features other islands, too, including those that are not as popular as tourist destinations like the Balearic Islands, Ceylon, Madagascar, and others.

There are LOTS of advertisements in this magazine, and that might not sit well with some readers who prefer more articles and less selling. But the ads are helpful to the reader because they often include bargain prices. There are also classified ads from other readers who have island vacation property to rent.

If you like to travel and you love water, then Islands magazine is a great publication to read. The photography alone makes it worth while. It will tempt you to head to the nearest travel agency and book your tropical beach vacation asap!

I'm a canadian girl (picture snow-filled childhood) currently living in Seattle (picture gloomy, dark, rain filled days --10 months of the year). Until 3 years ago, my husband and I were living in the virgin islands, and before that, I spent several years in Trinidad. Imagine my sunshine withdrawl. Sometimes I think we truly must be crazy to have left. This magazine is a regular fixture in our bathroom, and I practically stalk the mail man, waiting for it's arrival each month. While I can't afford a real tropical vacation every time I need one, Islands gives me a great quick-fix, allowing me a glimpe of the island life I dream of one day returning to. With stunning photography and wonderfully written island profiles covering every corner of the globe, this is the best subscription I've ever ordered. I'm hooked for life. The only reason I didn't give it five stars was because there are (in my econo-travelers opinion) too many advertisements for high-priced resorts.

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This is the only magazine I subscribe to I love it because it has wonderful timeless images of places and people which simply exude calm, chill, beach bum latitude attitudes. There's little cultural or political commentary here; these destinations are described and presented simply as perfectionist's paradise which may not be reality, but it makes me want to hop on a plane and go. Photography is top notch and there is a section at the end of every issue giving travel details for each island described (including local costs, times, and places to stay and eat.

Read Best Reviews of Islands (1-year auto-renewal) Here

The photography is fantastic. I love the shots of tropical islands, clear blue sky, soft white sands, palm trees, and crystal ocean water. Basically, paradise on display. Period. Unfortunately, everything else about the magazine is disappointing: The articles are junk, usually full of random babble which provides no real insight into searching, planning and executing a vacation. The advertising is marginally better, but the options are all limited. I can (and do) get more useful information from my travel agent, discount travel magazines & brochures, word-of-mouth, and the internet.

I thought this magazine would be a great "virtual" vacation every time it arrived in the mail. The problem was that it only lasted about 15 minutes, the amount of time it took to read through the entire mag. The one claim to fame, however, for Islands magazine is that it introduced me to my honeymoon destination, the South Pacific, many years ago. Even with this, though, the most useful information was found on the internet.

For about $15/year, this isn't a bad deal. But, if anyone knows of a magazine with Islands' photo quality, and useful articles, please post.

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This magazine is in part a magazine of dreams. If you have ever dreamed of getting away to an island paradise, then this magazine is for you. All of the articles and photographs are of island destinations. Enjoy your taste of paradise! This magazine covers islands in every part of the world including Hawaii and the South Pacific islands.

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Thursday, September 26, 2013

Fine Gardening

Fine GardeningFine Gardening is a magazine packed with information for the serious and sophisticated gardener. It's articles and departments provide careful consideration of aesthetics and design. There can be found in one issue a range of ideas to adapt to the skill level of the gardener. For the beginner there is instruction on designing container gardens for the summer or for the serious garden architect there is detailed instruction on building waterfalls.

For those who just love to drool, a multitude of pictures are provided within each issue. One can imagine planting a jungle and completely transforming one's front yard with articles such as "Front Yard Gardens Make a Strong First Impression." The magazine presents a wide variety of gardening styles to choose from, natural, cottage and more formal designs.

Each edition is broken down between Departments, the monthly columns and articles which vary from edition to edition. Departments include Tips, Garden Architecture, Working Gardener, Praiseworthy plants. Basic, Container Gardens, Master Class, Reviews, and Q & A. The departments are packed with information for the serious and neophyte gardener. A recent issue had information on such issues as solar greenhouses the fertilizing benefits of a thundershower, composts, pests, pronunciation of Latin names and garden follies.

Each edition abounds with interesting and creative articles for the reader. Counting the articles in a recent edition revealed that there were nine articles which provided detailed information, lovely photographs and garden diagrams. They range from information about Fritillaries, old roses, building rustic garden structures, adding purple to the garden, circular elements, designing outdoor places to entertain. and evergreen hollies.

If you are serious about gardening or if you are just beginning and want an instructional tool that is tasteful and informative this is a magazine for you.

I love, Love, LOVE this magazine. It is the perfect combination of technique, design, and inspiration every issue. If you are a beginning gardener, you cannot do much better than study this magazine. If you are an experienced gardener, you will learn something new every issue.

This is one of the few gardening magazines that covers the US West -it is different out here, and they know it. It is rare that you will read in any of their articles, "If it has not rained this week..." which is always a sign to Californians that the article does not apply to us.

One of my favorite features is the semi-regular tool essays. It must be a guy thing, but I really enjoy their tool expert explain the proper way to use a tool. Since I started paying attention to his advice, my back has stopped aching so much at the end of a garden day, I know how to keep my shovels sharp (you would not believe what a difference this makes), and I gave away the leaf blower -there is a real peacefulness to raking leaves that you will never achieve with the Devil's hair dryer.

However, I think the best feature is the tips from other readers. I have learned so many clever things from other gardeners volunteering their suggestions -one person suggested putting vegetable scraps in a blender jar (it's airtight, so it won't smell) and when it is full, just whizz the stuff and pour onto the compost hear. That tip alone has paid off in my compost pile being active year round. I turn to this section first every time.

It is a great magazine, you won't regret subscribing.

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I do landscape design and landscape maintenance professionally, and this is the only magazine I'd recommend to clients. As another reviewer noted, The American Gardener is also a fine publication if you are very serious about plants, but for most readers, Fine Gardening best walks the line between accessability and having great information.

I have been a subscriber for eight years and have kept every issue. The information on the spine is clear and so you can easily find that elusive article you remembered and wanted to refer to, without pulling out every issue and having to look at the cover.

As a professional, I find the in-depth articles on different kinds of plants really helpful. It is neat to focus on say, all the different kinds of Forsythias around, so you can really compare the varieties available and know all of your options if you would like to plant one. They usually have six or more photos of the different varieties, with each photo highlighting an important aspect of the plant's habit, foliage, or bloom, plus a few photos of the plants used in a garden, so you can see what kinds of textures and colors the plant works with.

The articles on landscape design are by well-respected professionals and offer a wonderful balance of intellectually interesting discussion and gorgeous photos. They don't always tell us exactly which plant is which in each photo, so that would be a drawback to the new gardener who isn't familiar with a number of plants, but they usually only neglect to name the plants when the photo is trying to illustrate a design concept. I think they find a good balance between urban gardening/ gardening in small spaces, and gardening in a more country or spacious setting.

They also have articles on seasonal care (and as a reader for eight years, I haven't found any articles that are overlap or repeats), articles on broader topics like groundovers for shade or grasses in the garden (in which they usually include a large and useful list of plants, organized by foliage and flower color, size, sun needs, zone, etc), and profiles on the latest tools, books and other gardening needs.

I have read a lot of gardening magazines over the years and Fine Gardening is by far the best. The language is simple yet the ideas are not dumbed down. Most other magazines have huge amounts of distracting advertisements, and Fine Gardening's are related to gardening, useful, and not too prolific.

Recommended.

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I read all the reviews especially the earlier ones saying how wonderful the expert advice is. It must have changed since those reviews were written. I started receiving editions a few months ago.

The photos are still beautiful and it has good tips from users; but I found errors that even I recognize and I am no expert. Wrong names for plants, misspellings... but what disappoints me the most is the content seems to be 'crowd sourced,' largely from readers and not so much from experts.

I want to learn about plants that I didn't know about for different seasons and conditions, so I was surprised that it did not have a section for plants that are in season for the West (California), but covers the rest of the country in some detail: Southwest, Rocky Mountains, Southern Plains, Northern Plains, Mid-West, Southeast, Northeast. What happened to West and Northwest?

I found the ads interesting and they give me ideas to decorate my garden elegantly, although having checked some of the vendors, their prices seem high. Maybe they're targeting designers?

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I have subscribed to FINE GARDENING for several years, and the only real problem I've encountered is where to house back issues. I have also subscribed to a number of other "gardening" magazines, most of them dropped after the initial subscription period. The exceptions have been THE AMERICAN GARDENER (my favorite gardening magazine) and FINE GARDENING.

Want information on design? You will find many ideas in FG but few are within the reach of the average pocketbook or space permitting. However, unlike other magazines I could name, FG does not limit it's coverage to landed estates or huge houses in Atlanta or Savannah, but covers homeowners all over the US in "regional" features, so occasionally urban gardens are covered.

A nifty thing about FG is that each spine indicates the contents, so as I look though my "stacks" I can find almost any topic covered. For example, the February 1995 issue featured "Hillside Gardens". "Ferns". "Garden Diaries" and "Vines". FG also includes several knowledgeable garden writers on its editorial board.

The downside for FG and many other gardening magazines is that over the years, the text of regular features and articles has been substantially reduced, while the number and size of photos associated with the articles as well as those of advertisers has increased (30 percent of the pages is covered with advertising in the current issue of FG).

If you are seeking first-hand experiences and not "McNuggets" sponsored by gas-guzzling garden tools, you will find fewer and fewer of them in most of the more comercial garden magazines (mags without a "botanical" society-based sponsor).

I am a great fan of photos, but photos have their downside too. I have been gardening a long time so I can look at a photo and usually identify the plants shown...but can every reader do this? Unfortunately, too many of the copy editors know nothing about gardening, thus, too often, the captions they have overseen for photos are misleading. FG does a pretty good job of avoiding this problem, but AG is the best.

The AMERICAN GARDENER tends to include essays by home gardeners (many in urban areas with small yard issues) rather than focusing on the travails of designers working on landed estates or home owners with comparatively large spreads (how many of us have a few dozen acres to "garden"?

AG also favors organic practices and reflects this in its advertising (the current January/February 2006 issue includes articles on "Earth-friendly weeding techniques" as well as "A Plant Buff's Guide to Plant Sales" and a side bar examining top "weed" problems in regional areas).

AG is very plant based and conducts "performance trials" of various new plant introductions, so you can benefit from the "on-the-job" hands-on experince of horticulturalists working at River Farm (HQ of AG) in the Eastern US (Alexandria VA), as well as learn about recent research by plant scientists from all over the US.

THE AMERICAN GARDENER is published by the American Horticultural Society and is the PBS of the gardening world -comprehensive, in-depth, and earth-friendly (some advertisement but it does not overwhelm--about 12 percent in the current issue, and most of it on behalf of small and/or earth-friendly organizations).

If you can only afford one gardening magazine join the American Horticultural Association and receive their monthly magazine. If you can afford more than one, FINE GARDENING is also a good bet.

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Blue & Gold Illustrated

Blue & Gold IllustratedThis company delivers the issues chronically late when they arrive at all. No issues have been received for three weeks despite renewal having been paid months ago. Completely usesless for keeping up to date with current football season. Not worth the price. A complete rip off. This was a gift subscription for a 90 year old ND alum, and he is very disappointed in the low quality service.

When I purchased the Blue & Gold magazine for my husband it stated that the magazines may not start arriving for 8-12 weeks. That really concerned me as he is an avid ND football fan and wanted to get the early news before the games started. I went ahead and purchased the subscription on July 23 with much hesitation. The first issue arrived about three weeks later and my husband is very satisfied with this purchase. Next year I will order earlier just to make sure he gets the magazine in August.

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WHEN MY HUSBAND RECEIVES AN ISSUE HE IMMEDIATELY SETS TIME ASSIDE TO READ IT. SOMETIMES HE WILL SPEND OVER AN HOUR GOING OVER SPECIFIC INFORMATION. IT DOESN'T MATTER IF HE IS TIRED OR NOT HE WILL READ PART OF THE MAGAZINE IMMEDIATELY. AFTER READING ALL HE WANTS WHICH MAY TAKE A DAY OR TWO HE WILL SHARE IT WITH OTHER MEMBERS OF THE FAMILY AND CALL SOME FRIENDS TO INFORM THEM OF WHAT HE READ. I WISH THE MAGAZINE CAME EVERY MONTH, IT BRINGS SO MUCH JOY TO MY HUSBAND

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I have had a sudscription to B&G off and on my whole life. Most recent, I had a subscription over the past 2 years. I love the content of the newspaper, but it never came on time. during the season I would get my issue a week late. The 1st half of the issue is previewing that weeks game, making half the issue useless to me.

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I ordered a magazine a few weeks ago and he won't receive my gift til late April. I wish I had known that before I oredered.