Each week we bring you a sample of the books we’re reading, the films we’re watching, the television shows we’re hooked on, or the music we’re loving.

Clare Millar is reading Chronic Pain Couple by Karra Eloff

When I heard this title was being published, I was very excited! There’s nothing else like it – so many books on managing chronic pain, but very little acknowledging how it can impact couples and families.

Eloff – who lives with chronic pain herself – gives advice on how to communicate when in pain, how to have romance and dates when everything feels like it takes too much energy, and how to live joyfully when there is suffering. The book is written primarily addressing the person in pain, but it is also for partners of people with pain, as well as for practitioners. What I found helpful in this book was the emphasis on strong communication and mental health strategies in place before pain flare ups become an issue.

I’m moving in with my partner soon and this is a book that has helped me to have a clearer sense of what tools we need to maintain a fun and healthy relationship while I have chronic pain. I highly recommend Chronic Pain Couple to anyone dealing with chronic pain!

Mark Rubbo is reading What We Owe the Future by William MacAskill

I’ve been reading What We Owe the Future by English philosopher, William MacAskill. It is just terrific!

MacAskill jumps off with some basic ideas – that future people count, that there could be a lot of them and that we can, and should, make their lives better. If we do that, we can also make our lives better. This such a refreshing and stimulating way to look at our world –- everyone should read this book!

Teen Advisory Board Member Soleil is reading Libby Lawrence is Good at Pretending by Jodi McAlister

Libby Lawrence is delighted to be cast as the lead in her uni theatre group’s new play, Much Ado About Nothing. However, backstage, gossip spreads like wildfire, and if she’s not careful, she’ll be the one everyone’s talking about. And so she pretends, until ‘Libby’ becomes just another character in a play.

Libby Lawrence is Good at Pretending is fun, dramatic, witty, relatable, and doesn’t shy away from delving deeper into themes surrounding friendship, love and figuring out who you are. This contemporary YA novel has it all, and if you’re into theatre, drama, and theatre drama, this is 100% the book for you.