Newsletter Reviews Toys, Books And Such

With summer in full swing and the kids looking for things to do, it helps to know your toys. Not to mention books, videos and software. You want to make sure what they’re playing with won’t turn their minds to mush.

That’s where the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio comes in. The well-respected newsletter, produced by Joanne Oppenheim and her daughter, Stephanie, publishes independent reviews of children’s toys and media.

The quarterly newsletter carries no ads.

The summer issue looks at toys for groups, such as the Water Wave Slide by Little Tikes; and toys for kids on their own, such as Bubble Tooobs by Little Kids; and toys for travel, such as the Maisy Domino Game by Ravensburger.

A nifty part of the newsletter lists product recalls.

To subscribe, call (212) 598-0502, or write Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Inc., 40 E. Ninth St., New York, N.Y. 10003. A year’s subscription is $12.