I have had problems with some of the old McCalls magazines. I like American Patchwork and Quilting magazines. Quiltmaker and Fons an Porter are also good ones. I agree that you need a good start out book. Eleanor Burns, Fons an Porter, Quilters Complete Guide,The Quilters Ultimate Visual Guide and Singer, all have good books for starting quilters. There are so many good ones, so I would say to research beginning quilting books on the web. There . it is to your preference. Happy Quilting!