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THE UGLY TEAPOT is Fred Holmes’s first fiction novel, having previously ghost written a nonfiction book, LETTERS FROM DAD, published by Thomas Nelson. He is known primarily as a writer and director of films and television, working primarily in family films and children’s television. His work can be seen on Mary Lou Retton’s FLIP FLOP SHOP, BARNEY & FRIENDS, WISHBONE, HORSELAND, IN SEARCH OF THE HEROES, and many, many other shows. He has won two Emmys and three CINE Golden Eagles, among numerous other awards. He has also directed three feature films: DAKOTA, starring Lou Diamond Phillips, distributed by Miramax, HARLEY, starring Lou Diamond Phillips, distributed by Lionsgate, and HEART LAND, a Bollywood feature film shot on location in India, and starring Divya Dutta and Prem Chopra. He lives with his wife and son in the southwest United States, and can be found online at http://www.flholmes.com
Reviewed by Patricia Reding for Readers' Favorite
Hannah Bradbury is the heroine in The Ugly Teapot: Book One: Hannah by Fred Holmes. Fourteen years old, Hannah has just lost her world-traveling, danger-provoking, death-defying, genius-inspired photographer father. She is devastated, as he was her hero. As compared to her terribly ordinary waitress mother, Hannah loved her father's lively spirit, his sense of adventure, and his unrivaled gift for storytelling. Unable to face her grief, she is moved when her telepathic-talking dog, Griffer, suggests she take matters into her own hands. Specifically, Griffer reminds her of one of the many treasures Hannah's father had left her: an ugly old teapot that he claimed was Aladdin's lamp. When Griffer convinces her that there is no harm in giving it a try, she does, calling up Metathusalah the Magnificent. And so begins an adventure that takes Hannah and Griffer, with Hannah's brought-back-to-life father and his quirky, but loyal, assistant, Gus, to the Middle East. In hot pursuit is "The Magician" and his merry band of gun-toting thugs, all intent on acquiring the lamp/teapot from Hannah. In a rush into and then through a cave, while seeking to escape, Hannah discovers the power of her words, their specific meanings (as translated by the quite literal interpretations of Genie), and the consequences that may come of seeking to change the past.
Fred Holmes offers middle-grade readers an adventure they won't soon forget in The Ugly Teapot. Even better, he drops bits of wisdom along the way: the importance of valuing a parent who sacrifices a life of excitement in exchange for being there for you on a daily basis, the value of faithful friends, the power that comes from reaching deep inside for the strength to take necessary risks you thought you could never take, and more. The text reads rather like a film would play out, and although some violence is met along the way, the details are not overdone. If you are looking for an adventure for young readers, you'll not regret picking up a copy of The Ugly Teapot.
