New!! Britain's only supermarket reptile magazine. (Practical Reptile Keeping Magazine)

Member Name: CokaCola

Product:	Practical Reptile Keeping Magazine
Date:	10/07/09 (64 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Interesting reading, not ridiculously priced, editor is well regarded in this area.

Disadvantages: Some adverts (may be a problem for some)

Practical Reptile Keeping is Britains only reptile publication available from common shops, including all the major supermarkets, WHSmith and various local newsagents. It is a recent magazine, currently on it's third issue, with a new issue being released on a montly basis. I have taken a strong liking to it, and whilst it is still in its early stages, I think (and hope!) that it has a promising future ahead of it, because we definately need a widely available reptile mag in the UK.

The magazine is edited by David Alderton, who has written countless books on many subjects pet-related. I currently have a few of his books on my own shelves, mainly on cage and aviary birds. It is produced by Kelsey publishing, a large publishing company that also print various car magazines, and Practical Poultry, the popular magazine for chicken and duck fanciers. Many different writers contribute to the magazine, of a variety of ages, and this makes for diversified and interesting reading. As you would expect really, the magazine is chock a block full of beautiful colour photos.

When reading it, you get the impression that it is primarily aimed at beginner readers, and I think that's fair enough. The vast majority of people that keep reptile in Britain have a corn snake or leopard gecko as a pet, or they are thinking about getting one as a pet, and so I think it's probably quite sensible to have a lot of basic articles. Having said that, the magazine is not totally basic, with a few features aimed at the more experienced keeper, infact it is pretty broad all round. I must admit I have heard some criticism online about how "novice" some of the articles are, but I think a lot of these critics have a complex with their levels of "expertise" and fail to realise that the majority of readers with not be selectively breeding a random species of dart frog from a small isolated patch of rainforest in South America.

There are a lot of adverts in the magazine, although personally I don't feel that is such a bad thing. I enjoy looking at new reptile related products, and also reading the stock lists of various reptile sellers, so I like to keep up with the market place. Some people do not appreciate all of the adverts, but I think most people realise they are necessary for any magazine, especially a new one, because of the income that they provide.

Priced at £3, I think it's definately worth what you pay for it, and the quality of the paper and the product in general is very satisfactory. All I can say is that I hope the magazine becomes even better as it evolves and develops, and I wish the editor good luck with this fantastic new project.

Summary: Well worth the £3 monthly, I look forward to each new issue.