Founded in 1857, The Atlantic is one of America's great thought leader magazines. It features ground-breaking articles on politics, social trends, education, literature and arts. Famous for its excellent writing and artistic quality, The Atlantic has won more National Magazine Awards than any other monthly magazine. The Atlantic stories change minds through their fair, unbiased approach and respect for facts. The Atlantic presents the smartest, bravest thinking on the biggest, most important ideas of our time, entertaining readers while stimulating their minds and their civic spirits. Shop Amazon - $8 for a Full Year Subscription of Esquire
SAMPLE CUSTOMER REVIEWS –
1) 1857 versus 2009 - The Atlantic Monthly was founded primarily as a "literary and culture commentary magazine" for and by local authors such as Harriet Beecher Stowe, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., John Greenleaf Whitter, and James Russell Lowell back in 1857. On February 1, 1862, The Atlantic Monthly was the first to publish Julia Ward Howe's BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBLIC. Until recently the magazine was known mainly as a "New England literary magazine". The Atlantic too has shrugged off its roots, no longer publishing much fiction beyond a summer special. Things have greatly changed between 1857 and 2009.
I started reading The Atlantic Monthly, or The Atlantic, as they now call it, back in 1963 while serving in the military. Read it all the way through college into the 70s and 80s, etc. While I go back to Elizabeth Drew, Ward Just, James Fallows, Edward Weeks, and who can forget Phoebe Lou Adams, among others, I find today's magazine worthwhile if for no other reason than the book reviews and writer profiles that frequently occur.
As with most magazines of today, The Atlantic Monthly is no better, no worse than most, though much less than it was once. Though it is more colorful than in prior years, it still has a lack luster to it. And the logo, The Atlantic, now in use while new to many readers, is the way the logo appeared back in the 1940s and 1950s. Sometimes I think the high money-bright idea people at the magazine are too clever for their shirts, I mean positions. I really mark The Atlantic's decline from the mid-1970s, various and sundry ailments from which it has never bounced back.
I assume the magazine has changed hands at least once, no longer coming from Boston but from Washington, D.C. I think The Atlantic's guidelines and direction have changed too through the years and doesn't always succeed. Undecided whether to be a literary magazine, a political magazine, a "People" knockoff, or a combination of all. However, as many reviews listed here indicate, The Atlantic doesn't always succeed nor please its subscribers.
But for the occasional 'good' feature and the book/author information offered I will stick with them. And as with many monthlies, they are now reduced down to 10 issues a year rather than 12. You receive 2 combined issues plus 8 others, that too seems the contemporary trend (helps with summer vacations and winter holidays). I prefer The Economist to most other magazines but the cost is far too prohibitive at $127.00 per year. So The Atlantic is my next choice, good or not so good.
Semper Fi.
By Kay's Husband
2) Revised review from 5/8/10 - In the interest of fairness, I revised this review on May of 2010 to reflect the state of 'The Atlantic Monthly' of that time, and moved my original review to the comments section. Since my initial subscription and review of 'The Atlantic', the magazine has gone through some format changes, nearly all of which seem positive to me. For comparison, I read the last two issues of 2009 from cover to cover, and instead of having to force myself to finish, each kept my interest until the end.
Previously, the initial section of the magazine was called 'The Agenda', and it was a collection of short (sometimes only a few paragraphs) news items, included mostly for their ironic, unusual or surprising values. Also in 'The Agenda' were a few articles of a page or two, but the result was a scattering of unrelated material that haphazardly placed serious journalism next to micro-attention grabbers. The new format replaced 'The Agenda' (which seems like a terrible name anyway) with 'Dispatches' - a half a dozen or so equal length articles that concentrate more on the unusual story-behind-a-story. This is light and requires no heavy lifting yet is also entertaining. A vast improvement.
I didn't notice much change in the features format - usually five investigative journalism pieces - other than the fact that I found them more interesting than before. This could have a lot to do with a concentration on subjects that readers of 'The Atlantic' might expect, and leaving Brittany Spears to 'People'.
Lastly, I thought the changes to the book review section and the 'Cover-to-Cover' column to be huge improvements. Instead of trying to cover too many things at once, they wisely (I feel) decided to go with fewer subjects, but more depth.
I realize two issues does not make a subscription, and I will revisit this magazine again to see if the improvements have held up. I have changed my star rating from 2 to 4 (it may only deserve 3 1/2, but the people responsible for the changes seem to be aware of the problems they were facing and took some decisive action). I'm not so enamored that I'm willing to re-subscribe yet, but they are moving in the right direction. I would definitely recommend 'The Atlantic' for someone who, perhaps waiting for a plane, was looking for something intelligent and entertaining to pass the time.
By Bryan Byrd
