Boys' Life - I'm been reading it for 30 years or so

I can hardly remember a time when Boys’ Life was not a part of my life. My father was the local scoutmaster, and both my brothers made Eagle. Both my sons are in Scouts. This magazine comes with the sign up for scouting. Actually, you can elect not to pay that part of the fee. But, most families do pay ($10 for a year I’m thinking) and get the magazine. It’s not totally billed as the magazine for Boy Scouts and would be fine for other youngsters (male or female) interested in the outdoors and high adventure, but I’ve only known scouting families to subscribe.

Over the years, the magazine has been redesigned to reflect trends in the magazine market. Older copies had more text and were less colorful. Today “Boys’ Life” is a virtual explosion of color with all kinds of background shades and many print fonts including the standard black. Though there are a few detailed pieces in each issue, there are a lot more short blurbs for quick reading.

Frankly, I liked the old style better. When I’m reading, I want to read and not just skim a couple of sentences and look at pictures or drawings. The magazine is not, however, “Mommas’ Life,” and the boys like it. My older son loves to read and will read long pieces. The younger likely would not—though a few topics draw him in for more extended reading. So, the balance here works for both boys. And, they fall in the target market. I’d say they are on target with the style and set up.

Typically, the magazine includes a feature on a troop and some outdoor activity though they may also cover something like chess which was in the magazine this month and with diagrams and how-to directions. Many of the stories are newsy and deal with issues like the environment. In recent years the magazine has stressed the “No Trace” approach to outdoor fun. Sports or sports figures are often featured. They almost always cover products like camp stoves with short reviews. Those are helpful when buying gear as the outdoor items are quite expensive. They also include fiction, and few markets do that now. It’s nice that the guys get a chance to read stories as well as non-fiction. They have cartoons like Pee Wee Harris and a back page with jokes and gags. All in all, it’s a nice mix with something for everyone. It’s not a very thick magazine, but they do manage to cover a lot.

They do run some ads in the magazine, but the advertising is not excessive. Also, most of it is on target and the types of things that the family might need or want. They have some typical ads mixed in and also a couple of pages for smaller vendors like summer camps of various types ranging from military to weight loss.

When I was a girl, I enjoyed reading “Boys’ Life.” I didn’t really like camping, but they had a lot of other things covered that did match my interests. I especially enjoyed the cartoons and the letters to the editor back then. As a parent, I find good ideas for the troop. I was looking at the rock climbing article the other day and thinking we might try that. My favorite extreme sport is white water rafting, but I’m game for most anything.

Both boys look through the magazine monthly. Then, we save them, because they often have information that may not be needed right then but may be needed later. For instance, the boys had good sleeping bags, but they got taller. So, they needed adult sized bags (or they were only half covered). It’s nice to flip back and see information on sleeping bags or those mini tents (when they began doing the backpack camping).

For anyone interested in the magazine, the web site is www.boyslife.org. Though the magazine is mainly used by scouts, I’d say any child who enjoys outdoor activities would like “Boys’ Life.”