Redbook Magazine

Available at Amazon.com for 12 months/12 issues--ASIN: B00005N7SG

My rating : 3 out of 5

There's chocolate and there's vanilla and for those who like neapolitan, there's Redbook Magazine. Redbook takes everything that you love about separate magazines and combines them. For the parents, there's child-rearing articles and tips. There are style tips for the fashion conscious and sex tips for people who want to add a little "spice" to their lives. It's a great read for someone who has outgrown the "younger" magazines, but aren't ready for retirement (and even for those who are!). Something for everyone.

You'd be amazed at the inexpensive cost of a subscription, considering how many elements are tossed into one issue. Amazon offers a full year, 12 issues, for $5.99, which is a good $30 off the cover price! That's roughly 50 cents an issue! One would be hard pressed to find something to complain about at that price!

But, alas, they do. Many people don't like that the content is so broad. They think that sex and parenting tips don't belong in the same magazine. Or that magazine editors shouldn't assume that everyone woman with a career is balancing kids on top of it. I say when you find a magazine that has SO many essential elements, why complain because there are one or two that don't pertain to you?

But, for every negative review, there are plenty of positive ones. Most people find that the magazine is easy to thumb through. The different elements are arranged in such a way that if there's one that's of no interest to you (or if it is), it's easy to get to the sections that you're looking for. So, if you have no children, you can easily skip through the motherhood articles and get to the celebrity profiles.

Two of the typical "favorite sections" are the short story and the book excerpt. It's great to have a piece of a book in a magazine. It's like test driving the book before you rush to the bookstore to purchase it. Then, there's that short story, for those who don't have the time or attention span for a whole book.

With a subscription, Redbook isn't the slightest bit expensive and for only $6.00, you really can't go wrong!