Smithsonian

We took a visit to the Smithsonian in Washington, hosting some guests from Germany who had the treasures of the mineral exhibit on their "must see first time to the US" list of attractions. We were a bit nonplussed by this--we didn't know that foreigners would be interested in the Smithsonian Museum. We spent an entire day, seeing just a small percentage of the national treasures in this montsrous museum complex. While we were shopping in one of the gift shops, we were offered a membership. We signed up to support the Smithsonian and to get this magazine.

Recently, there was an article on Cambodia's huge temple complex Ankhor Wat (filmed in "Lara Croft"), an article on sled dogs and an article on the Kansas-Nebraska Act, a key law that added to the tinder sparking the Civil War. And best of all, an article on Diane Arbus, the photographer who was famous for her portraits of seemingly ordinary people, somehow caught with an eye to freakishness or evil. Though I've been familiar with Arbus' work for year, this article had so much new information.

If you like magazines about nature, culture and history, this is the one to get. We get excited by every issue.


For the insatiably curious   January 16, 2003
Debbie Lee Wesselmann (the Lehigh Valley, PA)
54 out of 60 found this review helpful

I always find at least one article in every month's SMITHSONIAN that interests me. From art to history to the sciences, this magazine covers American life, both past and present. Unlike the Smithsonian museums themselves, this is not exclusively an exhibit journal since it takes its readers to unexpected places and topics. A real treat for the broadly curious.

With a subscription, you'll get a membership to the Smithsonian Institute, enabling you to get members' prices out of their catalog and gift shops. Support this uniquely American institution - and learn a lot in the process.


Better than a trip to the museum!   October 26, 2001
Word Sorceress (Seattle, WA USA)
43 out of 43 found this review helpful

I never know what I'm going to find when I open an issue of Smithsonian, but I always find something intriguing that I would never have learned about in any other way. The depth and breadth of the articles never ceases to astonish me. In what other single magazine could you read about the art of Maxfield Parrish, the history of the calendar, the 13 smallest countries in the world, and see photos of exotic species of chickens? The writing is always intelligent, often witty, and inevitably a pleasure.


Learn more than you ever knew you wanted to...   July 14, 2003
22 out of 22 found this review helpful

The Smithsonian is a wonderful source of information. Every time I read one, I learn so much about things that I never realized that I might have an interest in. Some of the articles can get lengthy, but for the most part they are well written and obviously thoroughly researched. As opposed to many of the mindless magazines on the market today, the Smithsonian makes the reader think and may even spur the desire for further personal research. It's a terrific magazine!


Used to be Great, Now Very Disappointing   January 25, 2007
Audible_Alex
19 out of 28 found this review helpful

I used to read Smithsonian religiously. It was only because I had other things to do that I stopped. Things had gotten slower so I thought I would renew, but what a disappointment. I read about death and destruction in the newspaper or in Newsweek or Time. I don't want to see it with my arts and history. My first three issues had major stories on fighting terrorism in the Philippines, a killing in Africa (cover story), end of terrorism in the Basque country of Spain (cover story). Sorry, guys. End of subscription.