Every Day I Fight: Making a Difference, Kicking Cancer's Ass

Written by Stuart Scott, Larry Platt and Robin Roberts

Narrated by Adam Lazarre-White and Cassandra Campbell

“When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer.  You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and the manner in which you live.” – Stuart Scott

The fearless, intimate, and inspiring story behind ESPN anchor Stuart Scott’s unrelenting fight against cancer.

Shortly before he passed away, on January 4, 2015, Stuart Scott completed work on this memoir. It was both a labor of love and a love letter to life itself. Not only did Stuart relate his personal story—his childhood in North Carolina, his supportive family, his athletic escapades, his on-the-job training as a fledgling sportscaster, his being hired and eventual triumphs at ESPN—he shared his intimate struggles to keep his story going. Struck by appendiceal cancer in 2007, Stuart battled this rare disease with an unimaginable tenacity and vigor. Countless surgeries, enervating chemotherapies, endless shuttling from home to hospital to office and back—Stuart continued defying fate, pushing himself through exercises and workout routines that kept him strong. He wanted to be there for his teenage daughters, Sydni and Taelor, not simply as their dad, but as an immutable example of determination and courage.

Every Day I Fight is a saga of love, an inspiration to us all.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Audio
• Release date: Mar 10, 2015
• ISBN: 9780698402409

Reviews for Every Day I Fight

[carolee888 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

OK, I am not a sports fan, I do love basketball though. But that is not why I rated this low despite many moments of inspiring quotes from Stuart Scott. I will tell you that I did doze off during the 2nd and 3rd discs which focused on football and why football is so special. I prefer the first and the remaining discs.

My real reasons are that he is a celebrity and has money, a big ego and therefore cannot speak for the majority of cancer patients. Not every one can call up Tiger Woods and get a free ride on his jet. not everyone can afford what is leftover after insurance or Medicare for cancer medications, not everyone can spend money and time during extreme workups so that they look ripped. He did not mention or think of the financial devastation that cancer can cost a family.

It is also everyone's choice of how they deal with cancer. We are all different. If you are in an older age bracket, I believe that will be a huge influence. He did speak about not letting cancer take over your whole life, for him, that meant that he would continue to do sports casting but for others, it may be a focus on photography, painting or music. We are all different.

He is right on quite a few things. I have a pre-cancer which means if I live long enough I will get and die from it or I could die from something else sooner. But that means that I have had friends who have died from the cancer that I have the pre stage, and talked to them and written them and also I try to learn as much as I can about my particular threat. He is right, it is complex, cancer is the ultimate enemy, you cannot really say that you have conquered it. It may be hiding somewhere. You cannot completely trust test results that say you are clear. Cancer can involve some very, very painful physical situations. I will not go into detail. Just being monitored for a precancer for me involves getting bone marrow biopsies. I know that he has been through unspeakable pain.

People fighting cancer do not want to be told that they are courageous, they will probably not feel that they are because they are living in fear. it would be better to ask if you can be there with them, hold their hand or get something, anything for them.

I would recommend this audio book for people who do not have cancer yet and are ardent football fans.

[book_referees · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Every day I Fight invites readers behind the curtain of Stuart Scott’s life. Stuart Scott was never a person to mince his words, so I knew he was going to give it straight – no filters. The beginning of the book Stuart shared a lot of his childhood and the lessons that he learned along the way. He told stories of his father and other people that help shaped him into the man he was. Wow… I had to pause for a minute. THE MAN HE WAS… I get choked up when I think about the word WAS when I refer to Stuart Scott.

I went back and forth listening to the audio version and reading the hardcover copy of this book. I was also granted permission to read the electronic arc (Advance Readers Copy) of the book, but there are some books that you need to hold in your hand, and this book is one of them. I also have to say that Adam Lazarre-White did an exceptional job narrating the audiobook version. There were a few times I had to pause the audio, because he sounded and captured the essence of Stuart Scott so much I thought it was Stuart talking to me.

Stuart Scott shares with readers the moment he found out he had cancer, the treatments he went through, and how his family & friends stepped up to the plate to be there for him. Scott did make it clear that there was no need to go into graphic details of everything he endured during his fight with cancer. The things he did share was more than enough to give us an idea of what he went through on a daily basis. Stuart Scott was a father first – the love he shared for his girls was immeasurable.

Stuart Scott endured a lot with his bout with cancer, but every day he rose to the occasion of Life.

Do the things that matter in your life! Show up for Life!! – that’s what I took away from this book. Speak your truths, because no one can speak it for you. There are so many things I have learned about Stuart Scott – the man and about Life in general from reading this book.

Thank you, Stuart Scott for leaving your fans with gems that they will hold on to for the rest of their days. You will continue to live in our hearts. Forever.

[06nwingert · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Stuart Scott was an ESPN broadcaster who recently (January 4, 2015) passed away from appendiceal cancer. Scott has been a part of ESPN since the early 1990s when it was just a small sports channel to today where it is a staple in cable programming. In 2014, Scott won an ESPY-- ESPN's award show-- for outstanding courage during his fight with cancer.

In his posthumously-published memoir, Scott chronicles his childhood-- how he admired his parents for their love for each other; his attempts at playing professional sports; his college life; his early broadcasting career; and his life has a husband and a father, all while weaving the story of defeating cancer.

Every Day I Fight is a testament to Scott, his friends and family, but most importantly to everyone of us: that no matter what life throws at us, you fight it for the people you love.This book will leave tears in your eyes. And as Scott so eloquently said, "When you die, it does not mean that you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and the manner in which you live." Scott and his memoir exemplified that sentiment.