Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 135
 Quick mental jolts to keep your brain entertained December 16, 2006
Lisa Shea
41 out of 43 found this review helpful
There are magazines you read for specific how-to texts, like how to fix your kitchen sink. There are magazines you read to stay up to date with the latest news in the world, your field, or a given region. Then there are magazines like Mental_Floss, which is more like a "News of the Weird" magazine version release. These aren't brain puzzles to improve your memory a la Brain Age. They aren't research pieces that will test or challenge your mental ability. Instead, they are quirky factoids.
What is yelling "Geronimo" all about? Just what is a "Vegemite Sandwich"? There are all sorts of odd things covered here. Sometimes they touch on science, world politics or human relations - but often they're related to pop culture, the things you hear every day and never really thought about.
It's intriguing that how you react to this magazine is probably based a lot on what you have read until now. If what you've been reading has been mainstream newspapers aimed at the "lowest common denominator", or the Dummies series of books, you'll be greatly refreshed by this! This magazine doesn't assume you're a dummy with a dead brain. It assumes you want to learn, to grow, to find out the "why" behind the things in your world. It's aimed for people who pop onto Wikipedia when they hear about a new, interesting item on the news ... or people who jump onto IMDB to see what else an actor was in when they watch a movie. It's for people who are intrigued by those connections and backgrounds.
On the other hand, Mental_Floss generally provides a surface read. It's the perfect bathroom magazine - but for those who already get mentally challenging magazines, they might be let down by a magazine that is explicitly named Mental_Floss. This doesn't provide in depth or rigorous details on anything. If the academic magazines are at college level, Mental_Floss is more like the fun high school underground newsletter that tackles intriguing issues that might otherwise be ignored. Now, before you start to clamor that most newspapers write at a 5th grade level, that is in fact untrue! Here's a factoid for you :) The New York Times writes at a 12th grade level of vocabulary and comprehension, while most other newspapers fall between 9th and 10th grade. The 5th grade stat came from the 1700s and 1800s.
Still, every magazine has its target audience and its purpose in life. Mental_Floss isn't there to provide in depth education. There are other magazines for that. Instead, it gives you great tidbits on things that many people care about - things that are *super* to use at cocktail parties, networking events, dinners out with your boss or employees. Instead of getting into a discussion about religion or politics, and perhaps starting the third world war, you can give info on a topic that will intrigue most people there, and often impress them.
Definitely a magazine that just about every age group will enjoy - and that is very "useful"! If I have a real issue with this magazine, it's that it only comes out every other month. It'd be great if they could get this onto a monthly schedule, with more intriguing facts to keep us fresh and full of new information.
 THE BEST REVIEW YOU'LL EVER READ July 26, 2006
Monika Plume (Cincinnati OH)
40 out of 220 found this review helpful
dO not order MENtle floss Magazin. it preetends to be sMart but It's just a teaz. Covers intersting toppics, aks good qestions but the ansers are lackng. Each issu has half a page of corections frm the preevius issu. whats the point of reeding a mag whitch promises to mak you smarter if its not so clevver itself? Like ths revue, it dosn't live upto it's claims.
Be patient, it's worth the wait...... May 17, 2004
James L. Kaufman (Denver, CO, USA)
38 out of 43 found this review helpful
For the disgruntled reviewer, when you order through Amazon.com it takes longer to reach the publisher. Amazon.com does state it will be 12-16 weeks, to receive your first magazine after you order. If you ordered in March, chances are you'll start with the June/July issue, as the publication is a bimonthly. Sometimes the double month's issue i.e. June/July is referred to as July. I'm betting you'll start with that issue. There may be some confusion, as far as when you are starting, as compared to what issue you are starting with.I have been a subscriber for a while, & expect the June/July issue to arrive towards the end of May, if the schedule remains the way it's been previously. The magazine, as well as the customer service is superior by far. Give it a chance, I'm sure you'll be "VERY PLEASED" in the long run. I've renewed my subscription up to the year 2007, I enjoy the magazine so much! Trust me, once you start receiving it, you'll be delighted!
 Where am I? November 5, 2005
Dr. Mary Fox (Baltimore)
36 out of 49 found this review helpful
Of course it's meant to be a collection of bits and pieces to wake-up those synapses - so the scattered format shouldn't be a surprise - but it is. Disorder is no problem for me - I have a high tolerance for ambiguity. So think about what kind of floss you're seeking - content brainteasers or process challenges(readability). This gives some of both. Content: Some articles are pretty ordinary - stuff most people know already - but other tidbits are in depth additions thst are new and fun for any trivia hound. As for readability: It takes a lot of concentration to find your way through each page-let alone the whole magazine. I will continue to subscribe, but I do wish they would string together just a few of those loose ends which serve not to 'floss'the brain but instead to burn out the reader's neurosynaptic connections.
Poor Content and Poor Customer Service May 31, 2005
L.K.L.
35 out of 66 found this review helpful
I was disappointed with this magazine. The trivia it contains
is often either not interesting or is common knowledge.
More importantly, I tried to cancel my subscription and get a
refund for the remaining issues but have yet to receive a refund
after several months of correspondence.
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