Book review: France Davis: An American Story Told

Author: The Rev. France Davis and Nayra Atiya

Publisher: University of Utah Press

Pages: 278

Price: $24.95

In a nutshell: Using parables told to him by his father in rural Georgia, the Rev. France Davis' memoir, which includes snippets from his sermons, is compelling — the result of interviews conducted by Nayra Atiya, a writer of Egyptian heritage who belongs to Davis' Calvary Baptist Church. To a remarkable degree Atiya captures the voice of this gentle, yet powerful, pastor who talks of the way he receives inspiration for his sermons and his one-on-one counseling. He is a good storyteller, in part because he "practiced talking to trees in the woods and empty pews in church." He writes that he never wants to become "too comfortable," fearing he might be "no longer susceptible to the Spirit."