One
Mad Apple
One neighbor.
One town.
One unraveling.
Inspired by true events, One Mad Apple follows a man who returns to his quiet hometown to care for his aging parents — only to find himself pulled into a disturbing psychological feud with a volatile neighbor.
Careful… one mad apple can spoil the whole town.
Award-winning on both pages and screen
More than thirty festival honours across four years — including a Double Recommend from Stage 32 for the feature screenplay adaptation.
Double Recommend · Stage 32
A small town in turmoil
In One Mad Apple, a successful art dealer reinvents himself and moves to a small town to help care for his dying mother. He finds himself up against an unlikely foe out to destroy him and everything he holds dear — one who threatens the peaceful town and its innocent children.
It is the story of a community held hostage by a combative and mentally unstable elected official who happens to serve on the local school board. The novel evokes a fear many of us share: unstable individuals threatening our communities, and especially our children.
Each chapter opens with a song. Readers say they finish the book in a single sitting.
Tom Pratt
Tom Pratt is a California-based novelist and screenwriter whose work blurs the line between truth and satire. A forty-year veteran of the insurance industry, Tom built a national reputation in high-value property, fine-art and collectibles underwriting before turning his sharp observational eye toward storytelling.
His debut novel One Mad Apple — inspired by true events from his own life — has earned multiple festival honours and a coveted Double Recommend from Stage 32 for its feature-length screenplay adaptation.
Drawing on decades of community involvement and corporate intrigue, Tom’s writing blends psychological tension, moral conflict and dark humour in uniquely authentic ways. He is currently developing Allegiance, the follow-up to One Mad Apple, and expanding both projects for film and television.
Reviews
One Mad Apple is a charming, simply written book that packs in a lot of entertainment. One finds themselves speed reading so as to satisfy the ‘I gotta find out what happens next right now!’ If you have a few hours then read this book!
This book by Tom Pratt held my interest throughout, so much so that I read it in one sitting. It’s a quick read and I thoroughly enjoyed the well-chosen playlist that accompanied each chapter. The storyline touches on some very important issues along with some intriguing drama as well. I highly recommend.
This book was a very quick and entertaining read! I have never read a book that used music to begin chapters! Although some songs were familiar, there were new songs to add to my playlist once I listened to them. The story was real and relatable. All in all it was fun, quirky, and entertaining!
One Mad Apple is a very fascinating and entertaining read. I read it in one sitting because I had to see what happened next. Read it and enjoy!
Chapter One
New York Minute — Don Henley
(The thump of techno music is playing in the background.)
Newly divorced Jake, the owner of a chic, popular art gallery and wine bar in a big city, is pouring a glass of champagne. He walks toward a beautiful and exotic young woman that is very enamored with him. He hands her the glass, smiles, kisses her on the cheek, and walks away to greet all the movie stars, celebrities and beautiful people attending the latest art opening at his gallery. Jake is living the life most of us dream about.
While he is negotiating a deal with a movie star ready to buy a painting, his assistant, Bridget, approaches him with a profoundly serious expression on her face. She blurts out, “Jake, there is an urgent telephone call for you.” He tries to dismiss it, but Bridget is insistent. Then she finally yells over the music, “Jake, it’s your mother, Goddamn it!”
Suddenly, Jake grabs the phone and says, “Hey, Mom, what’s up?” What his mother tells him brings an icy-cold shiver from his brain down to his toenails. Margaret speaks slowly and deliberately. “Jake, I have stage four brain cancer and it doesn’t look good. I didn’t tell you right away because I don’t want you to worry, but now I don’t know how much longer I have.”
