I frequently change magazine subscription just to see what be out there . Harpers , however , be a staple and for the simple reason that its writing be the best and the most varied in term of length and subject matter . the real measure of its success be that I will wade into article , memoirs and discussion , whatever the subject , and find I come away with something to talk about with friend instead of a hour spend with teaser paragraph and no payoff . you know the feeling from coffee table mag where you eye wind up tired and inside you head a dull tom-tom begin to beat ... Harpers be a strange amalgam of irreverence , analysis , personal revelation and humor that put it somewhere between the New York Review of Books , the New Yorker and Mother Jones -- without the brand that the other cordon you with . check it out and be sure to read the piece not usually on you checklist . they 'll take you place you have not be .