Beginning on a first date with a couple of swingers, followed by working through social anxiety and shyness, recognizing the importance of touch in life, evolving feelings about love and expectations, having threesomes, orgies, and prostate orgasms, going through a divorce, and leveling up in life and sexuality. For six years, Cooper S. Beckett has written for Life on the Swingset, a website born out of the feeling that he'd learned enough in his whole year of swinging to tell other people how to live their non-monogamous lives. His hubris can be seen from space. From that writing he has collected personal essays, stories, erotica, and prescriptive "how-tos" into this memoir of his life on The Swingset. He may be biased when it comes to swinging, polyamory, and other forms of ethical non-monogamy (in fact, he most certainly is) but he doesn't sugar-coat it. He speaks honestly and earnestly about a unique way to live life, one that allows for sexual and loving growth and experimentation, a strong sense of community, and the ability to do what we all crave, whether we know it or not: Be honest with ourselves and others about what we want sexually. And out of life. This second edition includes an excerpt from Beckett's novel A Life Less Monogamous. "Cooper Beckett writes about non-monogamy, sex, love, and friendship with such honesty, wit, and charm, it's hard not to like this guy. He challenges the hard line between swinging and polyamory, tackles taboos with grace, and will make you rethink what you believe about relationships."
- Tristan Taormino "Lots of people talk about open relationships and non-monogamy, but few do it with as much clarity, compassion, humor, and intelligence as Cooper Beckett. He has lots of insight and wisdom to share, whether you're just dipping your toes or you've been swimming in the deep end of open relationships. You won't be disappointed."
- Charlie Glickman "Kudos to Cooper Beckett for his delightful collection of essays regarding his exploration of non-traditional ways of being in relationship. He speaks from personal experience and shares all of it, the good and bad, the silly and transcendent, the harsh bumps and effortless glides, the highs and lows, the insights and cluelessness, the benefits and drawbacks, of choosing to love consciously in a culture that makes it hard to do so. Essential reading for anyone interested in all that is implied by the 'non' in 'non-monogamy.'"
- Nina Hartley "Cooper Beckett goes old school gonzo in My Life On the Swingset as your tour guide of non-monogamy in this delightful and playful romp of a read. Fear & Loathing meets On The Road as Cooper gives you first hand debaucherous details about his trials and tribulations and ecstatic moments of exploration in the swinger lifestyle. Defining NRE, prostate orgasm, sexy safe sex, and basic etiquette while telling a charming story is not easy but this recovering Catholic boy gives it his gusto and the book is helpful as well as entertaining."
- Jackie Strano "As I read My Life on the Swingset, I saw my own poly/non-monogamous relationship reflected and grew excited to share the book with my partner. I also thought 'Damn, I'd really like to meet this Cooper Beckett fella.' (And it's not often that I'm seduced by an author.) Expressive, honest, and often hilariously geeky, this collection of personal anecdotes on ethical non-monogamy is as enjoyable for the most jaded poly 'sexpert' as it is educational to the new swinger. My Life on the Swingset is the dirty cousin to The Ethical Slut. I can get with this."
- Jiz Lee
