Gentle: Rest More, Stress Less, and Live the Life You Actually Want

by Courtney Carver

Overview

From an expert on simplicity and minimalism, a collection of 30 practices to overcome chronic overwhelm, cultivate self-compassion, and find permission to do less–perfect for readers of Rest is Resistance and Wintering.

Being Gentle is about being grounded in self-compassion and a fierce commitment to less—becoming the Gentle You isn’t about taking the easy road. Organized into three parts—Rest, Less, and Rise—Courtney Carver's Gentle provides simple challenges and practices that will help readers radically and gently shift their pace, headspace, and heart.

Becoming the Gentle You is a practice of real self-care that, over time, will soothe your nervous system and strengthen your relationships.

Gentle is the “don’t do it all” self-help book that promotes less stress and more joy by standing in your light and honoring the person you are. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538765210
Publisher:	Grand Central Publishing
Publication date:	02/18/2025
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Courtney Carver is the author of Soulful Simplicity and Project 333, and bemorewithless.com and The Simplicity Space, a membership program and community full of mostly women who are reducing stress and simplifying life. She also co-hosts The Soul & Wit Podcast with her daughter, Bailey. She has been featured in countless articles, podcasts, interviews, including O, The Oprah Magazine, Real Simple, Vogue, Success, BBC, The Guardian, today.com, Good Morning America, CNN, USA Today, Forbes, PBS, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

Editorial Reviews

"If you want to live more intentionally and feel liberated in your life, Gentle can help guide you there. This is a beautiful call in for us all."—Alexandra Elle, New York Times Bestselling Author of How We Heal

"Gentle will shift your assumptions about what it takes to live a ‘successful’ life. Rejecting the old rules of hustle culture, this book is an invitation into real self-care that goes way beyond face masks and bubble baths. The simple practices laid out in each chapter are the permission slip we all need to stop measuring ourselves by our accomplishments, instead trusting ourselves and embracing a rhythm that frees us to actually enjoy our lives.”—Camille Styles, Editor-in-Chief of camillestyles.com

"Courtney's honest and relatable storytelling, combined with practical steps and heartfelt wisdom, makes Gentle a must-read for anyone feeling overwhelmed by the demands of modern life. Her message of prioritizing rest, letting go of unnecessary burdens, and rising with renewed purpose is not only empowering but also incredibly achievable. This book is a treasure for those looking to reclaim their time, energy, and peace.”—Dawn Madsen, The Minimal Mom

"Courtney’s beautiful book is the antidote to hustle culture and a must-read for anyone who feels too stressed and busy to enjoy the people and things that matter to them. With practical guidance and tiny steps to implement at the end of each chapter, Gentle can help you ease your way into a more peaceful life, with increased vitality, presence, and joy."—Lori Deschene, founder of Tiny Buddha

"If you need to free yourself from the grind, this book will show you the way. With her signature grace and compassion, Courtney offers one tiny step after another to a gentler, slower, kinder way of life—culminating in a book that feels more like self-release than self-help." —Erica Layne, founder of The Life On Purpose Movement

“Talk about the right book, at the right time! Evergreen and enlightening, Gentle is a much-needed manual on not just how but more importantly why we need to be intentional about caring for our whole selves—now more than ever.”—Christine Platt, author of The Afrominimalist’s Guide to Living with Less

"Anyone who is burnt out should read Gentle. Courtney Carver’s three-part approach to taking your life back from overwhelm is transformative and refreshingly simple. If you’re looking for a permission slip to rest and a guide on how to do it without giving up on your goals, this is it."—Victoria Hutchins, author of Make Believe, forthcoming Spring 2025

From the Publisher

01/01/2025

Long-time simplicity advocate and blogger Carver (Soulful Simplicity; Project 333) shares her plan for transforming overwhelming, busy lives by becoming a "gentle you." She suggests that readers initiate change by slowly creating habits that stick, with consistency being more important than intensity. She recommends identifying why one wants to make a change, listing tiny steps to affect that change, and creating a support system of encouraging people. The program is divided into three sections, one for each "season": "Rest" (relax and reset), "Less" (let go), and "Rise" (move forward by bringing everything together). In "Rest," Carver proposes resting first, underreacting, skipping breaking news, and setting a bedtime. "Less" recommends decluttering possessions and calendars, unplugging, and refraining from offering or accepting unsolicited guidance. In "Rise," the advice includes prioritizing the gentle you, not take things personally, and savor simple pleasures, closing with living the life one actually wants. Carver introduces each topic, then lists some tiny steps, followed by a gentler step for those low on time or energy. VERDICT An encouraging program for readers who have found that pushing through hasn't worked and want a gentler approach to life, coached by an engaging, empathetic, supportive guide.—Sue O'Brien

Library Journal