Best of the Bunch (March 2024)

Today I'm sharing the best book I read in March.

Of the six books I read this month, I had only one 5-star read, so that's my Best of the Bunch!

Polywise was an excellent follow-up to Polysecure. Fern strikes a great balance of grounding her writing in academic research while using a conversational style to share her points. In this book, she and co-author Dave Cooley go through the most common challenges that happen in consensual non-monogamy (CNM) when either a monogamous couple opens up or a previous CNM relationship structure changes in some major way. This is based in their own experiences working with people in CNM relationships as well as extensive interviews that Jessica did specifically for this book. I appreciated that each chapter included frameworks, realistic examples, and exercises to try. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in or practicing CNM, but I would especially encourage anyone who's thinking of opening up a previously monogamous relationship to read this first and complete the exercises. It will likely save you a lot of challenges in the long run.

What is the best book you read this month? Let me know in comments, or write your own post and link up below!

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: The Nobleman's Guide to Shipwrecks and Scandal, When Pigmen Fly, Out of My Mind, and McDonald's
Five years ago I was reading: Ugly and Harry Potter à l'école des sorciers
Ten years ago I was reading: The Body & Society, The Given Day, and War and Peace

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Top Ten Books on My Spring TBR

I'm linking up with That Artsy Reader Girl for another Top Ten Tuesday.

It's time for a quarterly reading check-in! I read all the books on my Winter TBR except Elatsoe, which I'm now reading. Here's what I plan to read this spring!

1. Bingo Love by Tee Franklin, Jenn St-Onge, and Joy San
After reading Snapdragon, my partner reminded me about this graphic novel with a similar love story that they'd recommended to me previously.

2. The Breakup Lists by Adib Khorram
I love everything Khorram writes, so I'm excited he has a new one coming out at the beginning of April!

3. Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
This has been on my TBR list forever, and I recently heard it recommended again, so I'm going to make it a priority to read it this spring.

4. Dead in the Garden by Dahlia Donovan
I've wanted to read this cozy mystery for ages but it wasn't at the library; I finally realized I'd saved up enough Amazon digital credits to get the Kindle version for free. Done!

5. Death Comes as the End by Agatha Christie
This is next in my quest to read Christie's complete works!

6. I Am Ace by Cody Daigle-Orians
I was a fan of Daigle-Orians' channel in the time that I was on TikTok, and I'm excited to read his book.

7. The Polyamory Paradox by Irene Morning
I wanted to read this one after hearing the author on the Multiamory podcast, but like Dead in the Garden it wasn't at the library, and I've now used my digital credits to get the Kindle version.

8. Setting Boundaries That Stick by Juliane Taylor Shore
I put this on my TBR list after hearing the author talk on several podcasts, and now my partner is reading it and encouraged me to actually put a library hold on it.

9. Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed
This advice book has been on my TBR list forever, and I'm looking forward to finally getting to it.

10. When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön
As I'm anticipating some possible big changes in my life soon, it seems like a good time to read this book about making it through challenging times of life.

What do you plan to read this spring?

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: Fangirl, When Pigmen Fly, and McDonald's
Five years ago I was reading: Becoming, Redwall, Harry Potter à l'école des sorciers and Mankiller
Ten years ago I was reading: The Body & Society, Wolf Hall, and War and Peace

What I've Been Reading Lately (Quick Lit)

Today I'm linking up with Modern Mrs. Darcy's Quick Lit to bring you some short and sweet reviews of what I've read in the past month. For longer reviews, you can always find me on Goodreads.

Not a lot of reading happened this month! Most of my reading time was listening to The Secret Keepers audiobook and then reading with my older kid in the evenings. Still happy with what I did read!

The Bad Guys in the Others?! by Aaron Blabey: My 9-year-old finally called it quits on the series after this 16th book. It had some funnier bits than some of the previous books, but the series had just gotten too repetitive at this point.

The Secret Keepers by Trenton Lee Stewart: This was my Best of the Bunch for February. It was an engaging middle grade read about a boy who discovers a magical object and suddenly finds himself embroiled in the most recent chapter of a generations-long battle for power. It was a little on the long side and the characters a bit too impossibly clever at times, but it was an enjoyable story to get lost in.

Polywise: A Deeper Dive Into Navigating Open Relationships by Jessica Fern with David Cooley: This was an excellent follow-up to Polysecure, and I encourage anyone who's thinking of opening up a previously monogamous relationship to read this first and complete the exercises.

Dog Man by Dav Pilkey: This book is pretty ridiculous (like, the conceit is that it's written by two 1st graders, and it really feels like that), but my 3rd grader actually requested to get this book and read the entire thing themself, so I'm not complaining!

Elevating Child Care: A Guide to Respectful Parenting by Janet Lansbury: Lansbury's writing summarizes many of the teachings of RIE pioneer Magna Gerber and matches a lot of the philosophies of my favorite parenting books. It's a self-published collection of blog posts so it's a little rough around the edges, but overall I think this is a really great summary of some key parenting ideas in a very readable, slim book.

Looking back:
One year ago I was reading: Sparkling Cyanide, Mooncakes, Fangirl, When Pigmen Fly, and McDonald's
Five years ago I was reading: Becoming, Indian Horse, Harry Potter à l'école des sorciers and Mankiller
Ten years ago I was reading: The Body & Society, The Death of Bees, and War and Peace