Scared

by Tom Davis

Book Overview

Stuart Daniels has hit bottom. Once a celebrated and award-winning photojournalist, he is reeling from debt, a broken marriage, and crippling depression. The source of Stuart's grief is his most famous photo, a snapshot of brutality in the dangerous Congo. A haunting image that indicts him as a passive witness to gross injustice. Stuart is given a one last chance to redeem his career: A make-or-break assignment covering the AIDS crisis in a small...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1589191021
• ISBN13: 9781589191020
• Release Date: June 2009
• Publisher: David C Cook
• Length: 283 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.7" x 8.3"

Customer Reviews

amazing

I LOVED this book. It is an incredibly sad story but has beautiful glimpses of hope. I found Davis' writing gripping. I was hooked into this story from page 1... if I could have read it start to finish in one sitting I would have. Unfortunately those pesky parenting duties got in my way ;) This story made me cry and it made me want to jump up off my chair and DO something... ANYTHING to help the oppressed in our world. I really think every single person in North America should read this book... maybe it would help us all get a little bit of perspective. We are blessed. We should be caring for those less fortunate than ourselves. We should stop being so darn selfish. I'm telling you I was reading this story, weeping and wishing I could scoop up those starving babies and bring them all home. But please don't misunderstand me- this book is not written in some sort of preachy condescending way. It is also not one of those books that leaves you feeling so overwhelmed that it seems pointless to care. It is a story filled with grim reality, yes, but it is also filled with hope and a do-able call to action. I promise you Scared will move you. Read this book. By yourself. With your spouse. With your children. With your bible study group. With your entire church. Pass it around to all your neighbours. You really must read this book.

There is hope in the midst of pain...

Author, speaker and activist Tom Davis recently released his first novel, Scared: A Novel on the Edge of the World. Tom pinned a gripping book that deals with the haunting reality of the life that is lived by those who have been swallowed by extreme poverty. Issues of hunger, aids, and other injustices are all too real in our world, and Tom allows the reader to enter into the narrative and grasp what life is like through the eyes and heart of a Swazi child, the good, the bad and the ugly! The story is gripping, fast paced and heartbreaking. Yet filled with hope in the midst of tragedy, Tom paints a picture of reality, but also pens a pathway of change and hope. My prayer for this book is simple, that the rest of the world would somehow realize that if we choose to love and care for those who live in extreme poverty, we can make a difference, life can be better, extreme poverty can be eradicated. I feel like this book is vital as it can help us see humanity beyond the issues the global poor face. These are real people who are desperate and deserve a better life. Hopefully, through this story, it will cause a movement of compassion and service.

Riveting and Heart-Stirring

Just like Jesus told stories and parables to illustrate difficult ideas, Scared tells a beautiful story of suffering and redemption that won't leave your heart the same. Poverty and suffering seems like an abstract concept for so many -- something Jesus tells us we should surround ourselves with -- but that we find elusive. And, when we do find it, it's laden with Sally-Struthers-Style guilt that is difficult to find Jesus in. Yet, walking with the poor and mourning seems to be a great source of blessing according to Jesus. Matthew 5 tells us things like, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted," and "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy." In Scared, Tom Davis takes the real world of suffering away from the abstract and guilt-ridden TV spots, and he makes it real. In fact, you find out in the afterword that many of the characters are based on real people Tom has worked with his work with a Christian orphan relief agency. The book rings true with the kind of details that make you feel like you are there. The adventure he paints keeps you turning each page, desperate to know what happens next. Simply, this is the best novel I've read in years. Read it.

Not just any old work of fiction...

I read "Scared" by Tom Davis in under 24 hours. I had to put it down in the waiting room at the dentist's office because I couldn't stop the tears. They weren't tears over Tom's fictional character, Adanna. They were tears for the girls she represents all over Africa. Tom has gripped my heart through "Scared" and motivated me once again (as he did in Red Letters: Living a Faith That Bleeds and Fields of the Fatherless: Discover the Joy of Compassionate Living) to recognize that there is hope for Africans who are in desperate situations. And that hope is in the form of me and you as we are empowered by God to do what He created us for - love the way He loved us - selflessly and sacrificially. I can't recommend "Scared" enough. Not only does the story keep your attention and engage you, but you will come away broken, changed and compelled to take action. Not very many authors can do that, but Tom certainly did in "Scared". I'll be giving this book as a gift for sure.

One of the best novels I've read in 2009!

I don't recommend reading this in public because you'd have a hard time getting past the lump in your throat to explain just what it was that evoked that level of emotion in you. I'm not exaggerating. You'd have to have a heart of stone not to be emotionally moved when you read Scared. The entire time I read this book I was in Africa right along with the characters. That's great writing. While the abuse and poverty were disheartening to experience through the story, the way people who loved God reached out with the little they had was truly uplifting. Evocative and intense, Scared cuts deep into your heart as you read along. Healing fills the pages, yet there are no easy answers given, and it shows how each day is a struggle for the people of Swaziland to even survive. That's why the orphans and the widows need people who care. I loved how Scared showed that many of the sick and dying were truly victims of AIDS through no wrongdoing of their own. This book should be an award winner for the message alone. Seriously. I've rarely experienced this level of realism in a novel, especially in the CBA. It's so realistic, it's downright edgy - but to the extreme. Like the Holocaust, there are some awful things that happen in this book. Unspeakable things. But it also shows how God holds those who suffer close to His heart. You see that in this book in a way that is rarely portrayed in Christian fiction. All of the ugly stuff is not smoothed over, nor is the God-given compassion. I was moved to tears so many times I lost count. When the people who were starving literally danced with joy when offered a meager ration of food, it really touched me. We have so much in this country, yet we are so ungrateful. Gratitude is definitely a missing element in most people's lives in the United States. We'd be so much kinder to each other if we were truly grateful for the gift of salvation we've been given, and for the many undeserved blessings that God has granted us. One way to thank Him is by showing love in action and not just in our words. Scared shows love in action. One caution, though. I'd be careful about reading this novel if you have a weak stomach or if atrocities like rape will give you flashbacks. It's graphic and harsh in some places, but sooo worth reading. I highly recommend it.