Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an electronic/digital Advanced Reader Copy (ARC).

I admire what Courtney Carver is doing. She's telling her story while also providing tips or a road map on how to jump off the "do more all the time, girl boss, hustle culture" treadmill. This is nothing new. She's merely using more current language and addressing different technologies. In the 1960 and 70s, it was "turn on, tune in, drop out." Those old enough probably remember hearing about people who wanted out of the "rat race," which seems to go back to the 1930s. Carver is trying to reach a younger audience, most likely millennials and maybe some young Gen X.

For those who have never considered "what's my purpose," other than to get that degree, get that job, make more money, live an enviable lifestyle, etc., this book may be helpful.

If someone has achieved a lot of material success but is feeling empty, this is the book for you.

Also, while her message is not new to me, some of her tips were things I needed to be reminded of.

This book is broken into three parts: Rest First, Less, and Rise. Each part has multiple sections.

Some of the language and tools she references are reference in other books, such as "count your spoons." Plus, there are some Brene Brown vibes (permission slips) in the book.

I did like that each subsection has "The Tiny Steps" and "One Gentle Step." You can also skip around as needed, which I appreciate.

I appreciate that in the Notes section, she includes many of her sources/references. They are not the most credible sources, but it's nice to know where she's getting her information.

At first, I felt like this was more of the same, but as I read through the book, I realized that I liked it more than her first book. I plan to buy this once I can buy it on sale. Sadly, NetGalley removes books at some point, so I won't have a copy of it to keep.

This is the kind of book that millennials will find illuminating.

If you, like me, have mastered productivity but struggle with rest, "Gentle" is the book you didn't know you needed. Courtney Carver offers a refreshing, compassionate guide to stepping off the hamster wheel of DOING and embracing a life of BEING.

Divided into three sections (Rest, Less, and Rise), this book gently leads readers through practical steps to reduce overwhelm and cultivate self-compassion. What I loved most? Each chapter includes a small, manageable step for those of us who feel too drained for big changes.

Carver's wisdom hit me hard: "When you're exhausted, the answer is always less." This isn't about giving up; it's about living fully, without burnout. I highly recommend reading a chapter per week, using it as a meditation to shift your mindset. If you life feels overwhelming, "Gentle" is the hand reaching out to help you slow down. 4.25/5 stars!

"Gentle" came out at the perfect time. Remembering to be gentle to others and especially gentle to ourselves is so important. While the author's life and mentality about how she lived her life drastically changed due to a health issue, I think we can all relate to many of the observations she makes throughout the book.

I have read a lot of self-improvement books. Courtney Carver did a great job of pulling from lots of those resources to give a comprehensive look at how an individual can live a healthier and gentler life. "Gentle" is organized into three sections: Rest, Less, and Rise. It was a great division to tackle the biggest topics that many people struggle with.

While a lot of the topics that she mentioned throughout the book were not new to me after all the other self-improvement books I have read, what I think makes this book special are the actionable tasks. I love that after discussing each topic under the three sections she gives actionable tasks for us to change our habits/lifestyles. Plus, she adds one "gentler" action we can take if the other actionable tasks are too much.

I've already started recommending this book to many people I know, as well as recommending the author's website.

I really love this book. I’ve been following Courtney’s blog for years, and I loved her approach to knowing when to rest, knowing when to push, but also if you can kind and compassionate to yourself.

This was a comforting read - the guidance and advice presented within was, well, gently presented and was easy to go through without feeling overwhelmed, which is imperative when readers who pick this up will likely already be stressed.

So completely wonderful. I love Courtney's other books, but I love the pacing of this one. Maybe it's because it is so needed at time moment in time. I savored it, reading it slowly and letting it sink into my soul. Gentle indeed. And lovely.

When I think of a standard, run-of-the-mill self-help book, Gentle by Courtney Carver is exactly what comes to mind. It’s surface-level and simplistic, with some solid nuggets of insight, but overall, it lacks depth.


That said, I do believe there’s an audience for this book, and based on the reviews, plenty of readers have found value in it. If this was a book that resonated with you—awesome!


What I Liked:
✔️ Short, digestible chapters.

✔️ Clear calls to action, making it easy to apply the concepts.

✔️ Personal examples that added a relatable touch.


What I Disliked:
❌ Some content may not be neurodivergent-friendly.

❌ A bit too surface-level for my taste.

❌ Repetitive in parts.

❌ While I liked the idea of giving readers “permission” to rest and slow down, the actual permission slip felt a little childish.

Overall, Gentle is a light and accessible read, but if you’re looking for deeper, more nuanced self-help, this one might not hit the mark.

“Gentle” by Courtney Carver is a self care book that has three sections: Rest, Less and Rise. Each section has different chapters to help you be more gentle with yourself. At the end of each chapter is tiny steps to help move forward without being overwhelmed and then also if you only have the capacity to do just one thing she outlines one to do. I thought that this book had good reminders and tips. Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the advanced reader copy.

This book would resonate most with people that have an overactive work ethic. It encourages you to be easy with yourself, to take time to smell the flowers and give your body the rest and compassion it deserves. If you happen to be someone that already lives a gentle lifestyle then the beginning can feel repetitive or like needless information, but there is something to be found for everyone in this book. The exercises were meaningful, and I can see them help someone make some real change in their routines.

I enjoyed the read and would gift this book to anyone that doesn’t normally take the time to care for their own needs. But that thought also brought me the question: if someone doesn’t make time for themselves, will they make time to read the book? I do recommend this for someone beginning to explore a gentle lifestyle

Lovely book about creating space and peace in life.

Carver explores three larger topics: Rest, Less, and Rise, and has many chapters that focus on each of those in more detail. I loved that she starts the book with Rest, because that is the thing that I feel as if most women struggle with. We are always told to do more, and even our simplification tasks focus on the "doing." The author builds her case for being gentler with ourselves by focusing on rest rather than pushing to do more.

It seems counter-intuitive, but this book makes a great starting point if you're overwhelmed with stress and too much on your plate. Starting from a place of being rested, focused, and calm helps you to decide what is most important and eliminating the extras.

There are some things that I didn't care for and things I thought she spent too much time dwelling on, but I just chose to focus on what was important for me and what would work for me and set the rest aside.

The perfect book to pick up when you’re feeling overwhelmed with the world, or even a smaller scale just your day to day life. This gives you plenty of practical ways to be gentler with yourself. I’m so excited to bring these steps into my life, to sit back and just BE. I love this and you will love it too.

Wow! Wow! Wow! Never has a self help book resonated so much - this was the right timing for me. This book isn't meant to be read quickly but instead taking breaks and rest throughout so that what Courtney is writing sticks with you. I love her actionable tips in the end of each chapter with gentle tips and permission slips. It's a really nice reminder to slow down and enjoy life.

In her newest book Gentle, minimalist expert and author of Soulful Simplicity and Project 333 Courtney Carver walks to reader through how to live with less stress, less overwhelm, and more joy by discovering the Gentle You.

This was such a good read, and it felt like something I needed to hear during my current season of life. Courtney writes an easy-to-read self-help book that doesn't feel disguised as more productivity hacks. I also loved that Courtney provides lots of actionable steps without making it feel like you need to create another to-do list. She provides lots of opportunities for you to take the steps as you need them, and even gives smaller, gentler options if you aren't ready to take some of the bigger steps right now.

Courtney Carver has written another lovely book full of mini steps one can take to slow down and enjoy life. Her idea behind "one small step, and if that is too much, then one tiny step" is brilliant, especially when dealing with the never ending winter season! An easy to read book, one that can be reread over time. Thanks to Ms Carver, Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, this book was exactly what I needed in this current season of life of feeling overworked, overwhelmed and apathetic. This book invites you to complete super simple and gentle activities that foster rest and care for self. Every chapter gives different activity or concept for rest, and the chapter starts of with the author sharing a story or narrative of that concept in action. Then my favorite part of every chapter - the action steps to apply the concept. She calls them the tiny steps. Every rest practice includes The tiny steps, and then she provides “one gentle step” - one thing that you can take away and put into practice right now, and it’s gentle and easy enough to accomplish, even with the busiest of lives. I really love this book! It has been wonderful for me to read in my current state of “busy”. I’m so grateful for the opportunity to read this book through NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one just wasn’t for me. The structure was nice, with personal stories followed by key takeaways and then one tiny step. However the content overall was very wide and shallow. As someone who has done a lot of therapy and reads a lot of personal growth, this book just barely skirted over the surface of way too many topics for it to be impactful or meaningful. If it had limited its scope and gone deeper I think it could have been more successful, but for me this was just too shallow.

This is the book I didn’t know I needed, and it’s been written at just the right time. Courtney Carver’s words are like a warm hug, encouraging and inspiring whilst conveying that we cannot and should not simply push through constantly.

Drawing on her own experiences when faced with a life changing diagnosis, “Gentle” will touch all of us that struggle in the do-all, keep-going, stress-inducing culture we often get sucked into.

The book is constructed neatly into sections, with Rest being the first focus, followed by Less and Rise. Each section spoke so profoundly to me, and provided such reassurance that I feel that Courtney was speaking directly to me, giving me permission to be kinder, gentler and shift my thinking on what constitutes a successful life.

I’m already planning a slower re-read and to dive deeper into many of the steps, and am recommending this title to my friends - this would be a great book club choice!

Thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for this e-ARC.

GENTLE by Courtney Carver is subtitled "Rest More, Stress Less, and Live the Life You Actually Want." Carver (Soulful Simplicity) stresses self-compassion and self-care as she tries to convey a plan to do just that. She writes about "gentle" as "easing through instead of pushing through," "creating strength in stillness," and "putting yourself first." Her text is divided amongst the three seasons of gentle: Rest (e.g., relaxing, sleep practices, and connecting); Less (e.g., unplug, decluttering, and less regret); and Rise (e.g., cultivating quiet, releasing every worry, and bringing it all together). Within multiple chapters for each season, Carver offers ideas for tiny steps and one gentle step. That seems doable and Carter's tone is supportive and non-judgmental. I especially liked her reference to Laura Vanderkam's comment that "going to bed early is the way grown-ups sleep in." Carver frequently refers to her own habits and life experience which is also less intimidating. However, I would like to see a print version since some readers could still feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of "to dos." They will need to remember Carter's summary: "Be Gentle. Move softly. Go slowly. Celebrate every tiny step. You don't have to push through. Ease through. Be light. Be you."

3.5 stars

This was a balm to my soul; exploring "yes, I am tired, but how do I stop it?" was eye-opening for me because as a busy person, and a person who likes to stay busy in general, it is really hard to break away from the cycle. I've pushed through sloughs and downers, but this book let me know that that isn't the way to go. I need to be more kind and patient with myself, rather than always giving into the loud "monster" who insists that I keep grinding, pushing, and hustling to be someone that I'm expected to be, rather than someone I want to be.

Well written thoughtful insightful.A minimalists guide how to lead a more gentle life.This was a warm lovely book of suggestions to lead a more caring life.# netgalley #gentle.