Family Circle (1-year)

I found a very deceiving 8-page advertisement, made up to look like a special insert of articles, all about the glories of drugging our children.

This little section included a list of "symptoms" of mental illness in our children. They included normal childhood behaviors, like fidgeting and restlessness, interrupting the conversations of others, and difficulty concentrating in the midst of a noisy environment. Oh... another lovely "symptom"... easily bored. (And I thought that was a sign of a bright child who is under-challenged!)

The recommended treatment for this "mental disorder" was drugging, of course. The drugs recommended are Schedule II CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES (in the same category as cocaine and methamphetamine). These articles did not, of course, mention the serious potential side effects of these drugs - including seizures, Tourette's Syndrome, heart problems. Nor was the high risk of suicide mentioned. (As children have been taken off these drugs as they reach puberty, some have been known to attempt or commit suicide.)

Because this 8-page advertisement was veiled as a series of articles (thereby implying editorial endorsement of these drugs) and because Family Circle Magazine, per their own advertising rates, received well over a MILLION DOLLARS for this drug pushing, I have concluded that this magazine does NOT care about the welfare of FAMILIES at all.

The bottom line is the Big Buck.

I'm not falling for it, and so I'll never purchase this magazine again!

There is NOTHING wrong with expecting the companies we support to make ethical decisions.


Home Economics 101   April 8, 2004
Bryan Carey (Houston, TX)
20 out of 20 found this review helpful

Family Circle is a fairly good magazine that features articles on family life, raising kids, travel, personal finance, home improvements, and more. It is primarily directed at the female population, with articles that emphasize the roles that mother's play in household management.

The articles that feature recipes and family life form the bulk of the stories in Family Circle. Less common are the articles involving personal finance and other topics. These financial articles are a nice addition, and I was surprised when I first saw them in this magazine. But potential readers should be forewarned that these articles are not very in- depth. They only skim the surface of finance, talking about such simple matters as balancing a checkbook, refinancing a home, and paying off credit card debt. You aren't going to find a story about purchasing stock options or selecting tech stocks. Family Circle keeps it simple and covers only those financial topics that are relevant to taking care of the home and daily living.

Family Circle is published 15 times per year, with a low subscription cost. It may not cover topics as thoroughly as other, more specific magazines and it can sometimes get a little repetitive from month to month. But it's a pretty good magazine overall, with tips on cooking, cleaning, fashion, raising kids, and taking care of one's home.


great recipes   January 31, 2005
J. Stout (Portsmouth, Ohio)
10 out of 14 found this review helpful

Family Circle has great recipes compared to other magazines. Right now, I have subscriptions to Southern Living and Everyday Food. I also frequently purchase Real Simple, and I have to say that compared to these other publications, Family Circle is kitchen-proof. Several recipes from this magazine I have added to my repetoire, one of which is a cake for which I get frequent requests from my husband.

The articles are usually pretty ridiculous (particularly rated-PG ones about how to spice up your love-life), although there occasionally will be something useful, like about some rare disease you've never heard of caused by your hot water heater or something. However, I actually had to cancel my subscription after September 11th because the level of patriotic gore became untenable. Every page of the frigging magazine was red-white-and-blue, and I guarantee that you will never find a single article about, for example, "How to Deal With Domestic Violence when Your Husband Comes Home from Iraq and Starts Drinking Heavily" or "How to Get a Tombstone for Your Soldier AT COST and Save Your Family a Bundle!!!!"

I still like the recipes, but I am still boycotting the magazine. Fortunately, old copies are easy enough to pick up at garage sales and Goodwill.


Wonerful magazine!   December 16, 2001
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

This magazine has been around for as long as I can remember, but it recently got a fresh new look. It is sophisticated looking now and does not remind me of the Family Circle that my mother used to read. It still has the same, high quality articles and editorial that it always did, though. The writing in the magazine is excellent and I find that I can always incorporate their advice and tips into my daily life - unlike a lot of other magazines that I subscribe to. I especially love their recipes - very quick and easy, but delicous. My family always loves them. I highly recommend Family Circle to women of all ages!


TRIED AND TRUE   April 10, 2002
7 out of 8 found this review helpful

I LOVE FAMILY CIRCLE. IT'S SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN AROUND FOREVER. WHEN I AND MY SIBLINGS WERE GROWING UP MY MOM USED IT'S RECIPES AND HOUSEKEEPING IDEAS (ALWAYS WITH GOOD RESULTS). THE MAGAZINE CONTINUES TO GROW AND ADAPT TO CURRENT SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT AND TO OFFER WONDERFUL RECIPES, CRAFTS, ARTICLES, ETC. I ESPECIALLY LIKE THE HOME DECOR IDEAS (THOUGH I WISH THERE WERE MORE OF THESE). WHEN I MOVED INTO MY CURRENT HOME I BOUGHT SO MANY DECORATING/DESIGN MAGAZINES SEARCHING FOR IDEAS TO GET MY NEW PLACE INTO SHAPE. THE BEST DESIGN IDEAS I FOUND WERE IN FAMILY CIRCLE.