Reassessing the tools we’ve long relied on, and the ones that claim to improve our lives
This is an edition of The Wonder Reader, a newsletter in which our editors recommend a set of stories to spark your curiosity and fill you with delight. Sign up here to get it every Saturday morning.
You know America’s most controversial appliance when you hear it: The leaf blower is loud, it’s messy, and it’s a hazard to the environment. But Ian Bogost recently argued that we’re thinking about leaf blowers all wrong: “Excessive use of blowers, not the tools themselves, should be taken as the villain here,” he wrote. A full ban on the appliance is impossible as long as yards are part of American life, so limiting its use would be the best path forward.
Today’s newsletter explores the appliances we’ve relied on for decades, and those that claim to usher in new ways of living—with varied success.
On Our Appliances
A Defense of the Leaf Blower
By Ian Bogost
Reassessing America’s most hated appliance
Read the article.
A $700 Kitchen Tool That’s Meant to Be Seen, Not Used
By Ellen Cushing
KitchenAid’s newest stand mixer seems like a great appliance—for people who don’t actually bake.
Read the article.
The Microwave Makes No Sense
By Jacob Sweet
Every kitchen appliance is getting smart—except one.
Read the article.
Still Curious?
Other Diversions
P.S.
I recently asked readers to share a photo of something that sparks their sense of awe in the world. John Ambrose, 72, wrote that he took this photo “looking due west from my front door in Glastonbury, CT. The sky kept changing and went from an orange to a deep pink.”
I’ll continue to feature your responses in the coming weeks.
— Isabel
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