Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital ARC to read so that I could provide my opinion.

I went into "The Joy Reset" feeling hopeful—who doesn’t need more joy? Dr. MaryCatherine McDonald has insightful, valuable things to say, and I appreciated that she offers practical tools right from chapter one. As a busy reader, I know that early value matters.

For those who have experienced trauma in their lives, this is a valuable read. It offers excellent activities and some truly illuminating stories that can help guide healing and self-reflection.

That said, I struggled with the delivery. The heavy use of profanity early on felt distracting and unnecessary—it didn’t add to the message for me and made it harder to focus on the important content. The writing style often felt overly wordy, which buried some of the book’s best ideas. There are definite “Aha” moments throughout, especially in chapter 3, but I had to work to find them.

This book has real potential and offers meaningful help, but I wish it had been more concise and tightly edited. Still, I can see this resonating more strongly with readers who enjoy a casual, highly personal tone.

Dr. McDonald has written a guide detailing why joy can feel so illusive to trauma survivors. She shares specific, actionable steps to reclaiming joy through real-life stories and circumstances. A groundbreaking work for the mental-wellness space!