Stuart Daniels has hit bottom. Once a celebrated and award-winning photojournalist, he is reeling from debt, a broken marriage, and crippling de... read full description
reviews
Mar 21, 2009
Michelle
rated it: 
“This is a life changing story! Tears were flowing down my cheeks through a good portion of the book. 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.
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4 comments
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(2 people liked it)
May 19, 2011
Bill
rated it: 
Well, I don't read much fiction...in fact, I think the last novel I read was in 2004 while vacationing poolside in Mombasa, Kenya. It was a Grisham novel...I love Grisham!
And I love Davis! Tom is a fellow doctorate student with me at George Fox University. Together, we are working on our Doctor of Ministry degrees in the Global Missional Leadership program.
Tom is the President of Children's Hopechest and is passionate about caring for orphans. I have a deep amount of More...
And I love Davis! Tom is a fellow doctorate student with me at George Fox University. Together, we are working on our Doctor of Ministry degrees in the Global Missional Leadership program.
Tom is the President of Children's Hopechest and is passionate about caring for orphans. I have a deep amount of More...
Sep 06, 2009
Lorrie
rated it:
Wow.
When I first started reading this book, I wasn't sure I wanted to continue. Most of the story takes place in Africa and depicts the unbelievable atrocities that occure--rape, incest, violence, extreme poverty, AIDS, and the fear and reality of becoming orphaned to AIDS. It was overwhelming and depressing, as it was meant to be.
However, the more I read, the more I was convicted of my own materialistic life style, as the author contrasted the ways of the rich Americans and the pove More...
When I first started reading this book, I wasn't sure I wanted to continue. Most of the story takes place in Africa and depicts the unbelievable atrocities that occure--rape, incest, violence, extreme poverty, AIDS, and the fear and reality of becoming orphaned to AIDS. It was overwhelming and depressing, as it was meant to be.
However, the more I read, the more I was convicted of my own materialistic life style, as the author contrasted the ways of the rich Americans and the pove More...
Oct 15, 2009
Simmonsmry
rated it:
In Scared, debut novelist Tom Davis takes us on a journey to Africa, bringing the continent’s real struggles and hardships into our lives in a way that cannot be ignored.
In the Prologue, we are introduced to Adanna, an African girl who is struggling to survive in horrific conditions with next to no food to eat. She wants to be hopeful, but she is stuck in a quagmire. She says, “I think about what hope means for the people in my village. I try to imagine them rising up in glory…But I More...
In the Prologue, we are introduced to Adanna, an African girl who is struggling to survive in horrific conditions with next to no food to eat. She wants to be hopeful, but she is stuck in a quagmire. She says, “I think about what hope means for the people in my village. I try to imagine them rising up in glory…But I More...
Jun 15, 2009
Clockstein
rated it:
Scared by Tom Davis is a heartbreaking look at a world we spend much of our lives trying to ignore. Adanna is a 12 year old girl in Swaziland trying to make the best of the life God has given her. She cares for her two younger siblings when her mother is ill and tries to ignore the pains of hunger that color every aspect of her life. Stuart Daniels is a award-winning photographer best known for a photo of horrific violence that indicts him as an witness to horror. His inaction has haunted him in
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Jun 20, 2009
Kristi (Books and Needlepoint)
rated it:
This book is truly inspiring and eye-opening. It is a work of fiction based on fact and reads like a true story. I try not to read a lot of info about a book before I start it, so as not to have any preconceived notions - but I was so moved after reading the first chapter I had to go back and find out whether or not it was true!
This book tells the story of two vastly different people. Adanna, a young girl living in Swaziland, and Stuart, a photographer for the New York Times.
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This book tells the story of two vastly different people. Adanna, a young girl living in Swaziland, and Stuart, a photographer for the New York Times.
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Oct 02, 2011
Cassandra
rated it:
What an intense book. I actually shied away from it in parts because it was so painful. It reminded me of Beaded Hope, another wonderful story, but this one was more raw. More in your face. More painful. I would be surprised to come across someone who reads this book and doesn't feel compelled to help our fellow man.
The only reason I didn't give it five stars was the ending. I thought it was a little over the top and just beyond my suspension of disbelief. I wish I could discuss it More...
The only reason I didn't give it five stars was the ending. I thought it was a little over the top and just beyond my suspension of disbelief. I wish I could discuss it More...
Jan 27, 2010
LeAnne
rated it: 
Davis uses stronger language and more sex and violence than is usual in Christian fiction, but as the publisher points out in a foreword, this is the reality being portrayed. I respect both author and publisher for taking the risk.
I have been to Swaziland many times and even stayed in the Mountain Inn where the characters stay, but this is not the Swaziland I knew twenty years ago. It is a place devastated by HIV & AIDS. I too feel passionate about these issues. I recommend the More...
I have been to Swaziland many times and even stayed in the Mountain Inn where the characters stay, but this is not the Swaziland I knew twenty years ago. It is a place devastated by HIV & AIDS. I too feel passionate about these issues. I recommend the More...
Dec 15, 2009
Rachel N
rated it:
Scared will grieve your heart and stir you to ask, "What can I do?" It's a novel but it's based on real people the author has known. Scared confronts apathy, indifference, and selfishness. It challenges readers to look beyond the gaunt, helpless, empty faces of poverty and consider the value of every human life. Scared is amazing - a must read, but not to be viewed as entertainment. It has the potential to rock your world, that is, if you want your world to be rocked.
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Nov 12, 2009
Lindsey
rated it: 
Scared paints a vivid picture of tragedies taking place in Africa. The book follows Stuart Daniels, a photojournalist, haunted by his past, and Adanna, a young orphan, who radiates hope despite catastrophe. Their lives are woven together when Stuart travels to Swaziland to capture the AIDS crisis in Adanna’s African village.
Author Tom Davis does not hesitate to recreate a world filled with devastation. The story wrestles with honest questions regarding God’s providence. “Where is More...
Author Tom Davis does not hesitate to recreate a world filled with devastation. The story wrestles with honest questions regarding God’s providence. “Where is More...
Aug 02, 2009
Shannon
rated it:
Definately not a book I normally read but it was one I couldn't put down. It has really made me appreciate all that I have and all that I am able to do. I cried quite a bit throughout this book and it wasn't just a tear slipping down my cheek-I really sobbed at times. It is graphic in some of the scenes but I think that is what grabs you and really makes you appreciate what you have compared to others. I highly recommend this book.
Sep 20, 2010
Jude
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This story, based on real life accounts will haunt you. The reality of what children all over the world are going through is heartbreaking, but this book is able to make you want to get up and help change it. I feel like it reminded me that Christ's love is for EVERYONE... sometimes I think we act like, even if we don't think it necessarily, that His love is for white middle class Americans. A must read.
May 04, 2010
Kacie
rated it:
This book is light, fast reading that is meant to give you an insight into the broken heart of Africa. It's emotional, perhaps too much so. It provides obvious conversion stories and stories of poverty, war, and natural disasters that are meant to shock and guilt the comfortable Western reader. It's beautiful in some ways, but not particularly nuanced.
Aug 31, 2011
Jessie
rated it:
I love this book because it speaks the truth. Finally, an author not afraid of speaking the truth no matter how true or sad it is. We as Americans need to learn as Stuart did in the book. We need to let go of our ignorance and wake up to the fact that we are not the only people hurting in this world. We need to allow ourselves to be used by God to help those who are misfortunate other than ourselves.
Jun 13, 2010
Ryan
rated it:
The first fiction book to make my shelf this year. A heart-wrenching tale of how God works even amidst the most evil of conditions. A journalist's life is changed forever by an African orphan. My friend Michelle gave me this book. She has such a heart for orphans and this book explains why we should all be inspired to act, like Michelle does.
Sep 06, 2011
Kayla
rated it:
This book is...not well written. The writing is startling bad at times. It's also heavy handed. It's written to manipulate your emotions.
But I don't think people read this novel for the writing, they read it for the message. The message is good. Very good. I rate the message with 5 stars. It is so important that we care for one another! It is so important that we not only preach the gospel, but live it as well. We need to reach out to people and help them. We need to do ALL we can. More...
But I don't think people read this novel for the writing, they read it for the message. The message is good. Very good. I rate the message with 5 stars. It is so important that we care for one another! It is so important that we not only preach the gospel, but live it as well. We need to reach out to people and help them. We need to do ALL we can. More...
Oct 07, 2011
Patty64465
rated it:
Like Randy Alcorn's story Safely Home, this book also made an impact on my life. Sometimes a good fiction book can come along that deals with very real issues in the world that are hard to comprehend by those of us on the outside. Tom Davis tackles the subject of the AIDS epidemic, stavation, deplorable conditions, abuse, and lack of education for many people in Swaziland, South Africa. Davis takes you on an unbelievable journey of an orphan girl, and her walk of faith, through the eyes of an
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Jan 09, 2011
Tara
rated it:
All I can say is, "Count your blessings!" This book will certainly make you grateful for the country we live in and for the many luxuries we enjoy. Just as I felt after reading Tom Davis' sequel to this book, Priceless, I wish there was some way I could help the people in Africa.
Mar 27, 2011
Layla
rated it:
Read it...it will forever change you. (Buy Kleenex, cry it out, then go and change the world.)
Jan 13, 2012
Leslie
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A very moving book in which I had to remind myself that it was a novel. Unfortunately, however, it is based on factual information, which is disturbing. If this book doesn't lead you to action, I would be surprised.
Dec 26, 2010
Ruth
rated it:
A beautiful and haunting novel that will remain with you after you've finished.
Sep 28, 2010
Katie
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WOW - take all the issues and conflict in a nonfiction book like Half the Sky and put them into a relevant, moving fiction story and you'll get this title - Scared. I won a copy of this novel from a blog and I couldn't be more grateful that I had the chance to read this incredible story. I can't really say anything about it except READ IT! It will impact you.
Jan 02, 2011
Michelle
rated it:
Powerful. I was a little skeptical when I first saw this novel and actually thought about taking it back to the library. I'm so glad that I read it. It was one of the most powerful novels that I have read in a long time. It is not a "cheesy" Christian Novel. It is written so authentically that you are taken on an emotional roller coaster. It will open your eyes to what others go through while we sit in our nice homes with our cupboards full of food.
Nov 01, 2011
Andrea
rated it:
The main character, photojournalist, Stuart Daniels learns about the horrors in Africa and experiences them up close. He meets children in a small village who are impacted by the devastation that comes from being HIV/AIDS infected. These children are abandoned and often abused.
Through this experience he also encounters a God who is not distant, but very close to those in need.
Good book and deeply moving.
Through this experience he also encounters a God who is not distant, but very close to those in need.
Good book and deeply moving.
May 29, 2009
Rebornbutterfly
rated it:
This is a book that will change your life. I have read one of his non-fiction books, Red Letters. Scared is practically the fiction companion. For a first time novelist, Tom Davis did an amazing job, his book will stick with me for a LONG time to come. Scared is well worth buying for yourself, and for anyone you know. I will be re-reading this book, once I finish passing it around my to family & friends!
