This & That: In Praise of Paper Magazines
This & That: In Praise of Paper Magazines
Plus our family's favorite reads of April.
Hello, readers!
In today’s edition of the newsletter I have some thoughts on paper magazines, the Anderberg family’s favorite reads of April, and, as always, some great links to peruse. Let’s get right to it.
Something I’m Thinking About: Paper Rules
I’ve been a subscriber to The Atlantic for a long time. My plan gets me digital access as well as the paper magazine, though in all honesty I rarely get to the paper edition. Until recently, that is.
After a few months of reading the paper magazine front to back, I realized that I’m doing myself a disservice and that the online experience can be subpar compared to the “real” thing.
There’s a number of downsides to reading magazine articles online: Headlines change dynamically (this is called A/B testing), the articles surfaced most prominently are those deemed most clickable (with help from an algorithm), and the likeliness of me reading something outside of what I’m already interested in is slim-to-nil. Plus, when I read online I’m likely to skim a lot of what I read.
The paper experience, on the other hand, is utterly unique and often superior. A team of people spent hours curating the perfect selection of articles, then arranged them in the perfect order for maximum enjoyment and impact. Graphic artists laid out the text on the page and created the perfect eye-popping visuals to accompany the content. A paper magazine is a work of true craftsmanship.
What I enjoy most about committing to the tangible object is that I end up reading articles I probably otherwise wouldn’t have. I learn new things. My world expands a bit. Ultimately, I’ve come to really enjoy interacting with the physical thing rather than skimming the same articles on my phone and ending up in my email inbox or Slack app instead.
If it’s been a while, give paper magazines a shot.
The Anderberg Family’s Favorite Books of April
Jeremy — The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell may have just been a case of a book perfectly matching a mood, but I loved it. Caitlin Doughty’s Smoke Gets In Your Eyes was a superb memoir by a young mortician; I’ll never see funeral homes the same way.
Jane — Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld. Jane liked the premise of this one and thought it was uniquely funny and well-written for the rom com genre.
Graham (7 years old) — A Wind in the Door by Madeleine L’Engle. We finally finished book #2 in L’Engle’s Time Quintet. Graham liked it just as much as A Wrinkle in Time.
Willa (5 years old) — Who Would Win? Alligator vs. Python by Jerry Pallotta. More weeks than not, Willa comes from home from school with a “Who Would Win?” book checked out from the library. It’s a very fun series if you aren’t familiar with it!
Bo (2 years old) — Playtime with Sophie. Bo’s favorite books continue to be those he’s not supposed to color in (especially library books), but always gets a kick out of Playtime with Sophie.
Miscellany
🔎 As a fan of mystery novels, I always have a keen interest in the annual Edgar Awards, which celebrate the best crime and mystery books of the year. This year’s winners were announced last week and I added a handful of titles to my Must Read list.
☕️ My simple, beloved French press finally cracked after 10+ years of loyal service. Naturally, I bought the same exact thing to replace it. Bodum for life.
📚 As I travel to Palm Springs this week, I’ll keep in mind this short article about why books make the best souvenirs. It almost makes too much sense for me, doesn’t it? Surprisingly, though, I’ve rarely been one to buy books on vacation — I pack enough that it feels ridiculous to add to the stack. I might just change my tune though.
💻 I’ve read articles about work-from-home employees powering through two full-time jobs, but the rise of ChatGPT is bringing that phenomenon to another level. This is a wild article. Sure, it might be possible, but the mental burdens would add up very quickly and the work would certainly be subpar.
Thanks for reading! I really appreciate it.
-Jeremy