[aspidistra]

It's one thing to charm writers. But what about charming readers, too?

As a reader I am not charmed.

I find it all too similar and slick. It is "designed" to within an inch of its life. The text and pictures don't seemed anchored to anything and just seem to float there on the page. This deprives them of any weight. It makes everything feel pompous or grandiose.

I agree with a lot of what is said here:

http://www.theguardian.com/news/oliver-burkeman-s-blog/2014/...

I also find the "Reading time" a little infantilising.

[k-mcgrady]

I find it a great site to read specifically because of the design. No clutter, just the text I want to read. The text is clear and the site works nicely on any screen size.

As for the 'reading time' - that's one of my favourite things on the site. I can quickly look at a post and decide whether I have time to read it now I whether I should bookmark it for later.