Holly Genovese is a Ph.D student in American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. She is also completing graduate portfolio programs in African and African Diaspora studies, as well as Women's and Gender Studies. Her writing has been published in Teen Vogue, The Washington Post, Electric Literature, The La Review of Books, Literary Hub, Hello Giggles, and many other places.
I’m not sure why, but lately I’ve been thinking about subscribing to more print magazines, particularly the book-related variety. I love reading magazines, but my Texture subscription has meant I’ve been reading them primarily online. That said, these are the magazines I’ve found worth having around.
The Times Literary Supplement is out of the UK (and is no longer affiliated with the Times). The essays it publishes can veer towards the academic, but there is such a wide range of criticism it is a joy to read (plus it comes weekly!).
I love the LA Review of Books. I feel like they take a few more risks than some of the more traditional literary magazines, and aesthetically, the reviews are beautiful.
As an object, nothing can really beat the Paris Review. I keep all of mine on my shelf, though I end up throwing most magazines away. Besides the beautiful poetry and prose that gets published there, I am partial to their author interviews. Plus, a subscription gets you access to their archives, which are so worth it.
Bookforum is also a very fun read (and bonus, you can get a subscription for free if you subscribe to Art forum). It’s more newspapery in its aesthetics, but I love the kind of content they feature.
Of course, The New York Review of Books is a classic. I subscribe and unsubscribe regularly, depending on my mood, but it is always a solid go to when I am looking for reviews—though it’s generally not super earth shattering in its hot takes.
