Subscriptions That Pay Back

© Beverley Paine, 2004

As busy, productive people with dozens of absorbing interests we adore books and magazines that give us small 'bites' of information or pleasure. I subscribe to over two dozen magazines and newsletters and find myself reading them whenever I can, usually with four or five on the go at once! Magazines of every genre are littered in every room throughout the house. The children have naturally developed this habit.

Years ago I made the wise decision of investing in children's magazines. Receiving a magazine in the mail box addressed to him can stimulate a child of any age to want to read. Children's magazines are keyed to specific interests and age levels, which make them especially appealing, If you child has a hobby that isn't catered for by a children's magazine though, don't hesitate to buy one aimed at grown-up readers off the newsagent shelf. You can help your children read and understand the material and he or she will spend hours flipping through the stories, special features and advertisements.

If you are unsure, why not allow your children to browse the newsagent's shelves for themselves, or take them to the library and let them borrow a different magazine each week before you subscribe. I know a family that reads as many magazines as I do, but without the cost! It takes me longer than a week to read my magazines, and the children like to keep theirs, often for years. Thomas has personal computer magazines that are five years old on the bookshelf in his bedroom. He occasionally refers to dated issues for information to fix older computer problems.

Magazines can sometimes make invaluable reference collections. We have a collection of National Geographic and Australia Geographic magazines on our bookshelf. Every so often I'll leave an issue on the coffee table. Over the next week or so nearly everyone in the family will have flipped through its pages and read an article to two. My favourite is a magazine dated June 1939. Magazine production and advertising have changed a lot since then!