Books published by publisher William A E Ford

Thousands of children have gone through their childhood, wondering where exactly the rainbow ends. As far as I understand, nobody has ever found the rainbow’s end or the crock of gold that lies there. I am however content to believe that Annie did find her very own crock of gold in her parent’s love, her inquisitive nature, her ability to honestly express her feelings, her vivid imagination, her positive approach to all problems and her unwillingness to give up until she has exhausted all possible options. Annie is a child of love and a child of action. Are you? Help Annie follow her rainbow and find her crock of gold at its end.Another reason for writing the ‘Action Annie’ stories was to correct an imbalance which had appeared to have developed between girls and boys; and in particular, the differing stereotypes. When one looked at ‘roles’ and ‘the type of behaviour’ that might be ‘expected’ from a boy, but which was wholly ‘never expected’ or considered ‘acceptable’ from a girl; the discrimination practised was more subtle: such as shouting, swearing, fighting, picking one’s nose and even making rude noises in public! In short; ‘Action Annie’ represented ‘girl power’ in action and was my humble attempt of redressing the perceptual balance.Annie is an imaginative and very active seven-year-old whose mind and body is always on the move. She never seems to stop. Even as she sleeps, she is dreaming about the things she plans to do tomorrow. Annie is always thinking up new ideas and inventing things. Once she gets an idea inside her head, she becomes determined to try it out. If her ideas don't work out the first time Annie tries them out, she will try and try again. Once Annie has decided to do something, nobody and nothing will stop her.Annie's head is crammed with ideas and her body is filled with feelings, feelings which she finds impossible to hide from the outside world. Anyone can tell whether Annie is feeling happy or sad by simply looking at her and by listening to what she says, because she just can’t hide her feelings.When Annie is happy, her smiley face tells you so and when she is sad, the smile on her face will quickly disappear and be replaced by a squashed-tomato look. When Annie is ‘very happy', the smile on her face widens, her two arms begin to rotate like the propellers of an aircraft, her two feet jump her body up into the air and her mouth gleefully yells out, "Yippee! Yippee! Yippee! Yippee for Annie!" But when she’s ‘very angry’, she rotates her arms, jumps in the air and lands saying, “Bother! Bother! Bother! And Double Bother!”*When Annie gets angry she knows how to get the anger out of her. When Annie wants to get the anger out of her body, she writes it out, she talks it out and she acts it out. If she is angry with someone, she may write them a nasty letter and then tear it up without posting it. When she does this, she finds that expressing her feelings makes her feel a bit better. Whenever Annie becomes annoyed with another person she goes into a corner where she won’t be heard and calls the person a ‘Jolly old stinker!’ If she is very angry, she will go to her bedroom and pretend that the other person is her pillow. Then she will have a pillow fight, expressing her angry feelings to the pillow she is punching. Or she may lie on her back on the bed and peddle her legs up in the air furiously until she is physically exhausted and all the anger has left her body.*The author of these stories ‘founded’ Anger Management Programmes in Great Britain in 1971 and freely gave them to the world. Within a few years, they had mushroomed across the English- speaking world and have helped millions of people since. Included within the asterisked paragraph above are some ‘easy to understand’ and ‘simple to follow’ instructions for helping to manage anger in a young child. There is a little bit of Annie in every girl and boy. That is what makes her so likable. Are you like Annie in any of her ways?

A music box is there to play wonderful music. However beautiful the notes though, there is no sound as beautiful as the sound of a child’s happiness; no sun is as warm as a child’s smiley face, no song is as sweet as a child’s nursery rhyme, no touch is as satisfying as a child’s embrace, no entreaty is as coaxing as a child’s prayer and no celebration is as instant as a child’s innocent surprise. Follow Annie as she loses her voice but finds much more to her delight.Another reason for writing the ‘Action Annie’ stories was to correct an imbalance which had appeared to have developed between girls and boys; and in particular, the differing stereotypes. When one looked at ‘roles’ and ‘the type of behaviour’ that might be ‘expected’ from a boy, but which was wholly ‘never expected’ or considered ‘acceptable’ from a girl; the discrimination practised was more subtle: such as shouting, swearing, fighting, picking one’s nose and even making rude noises in public! In short; ‘Action Annie’ represented ‘girl power’ in action and was my humble attempt of redressing the perceptual balance.Annie is an imaginative and very active seven-year-old whose mind and body is always on the move. She never seems to stop. Even as she sleeps, she is dreaming about the things she plans to do tomorrow. Annie is always thinking up new ideas and inventing things. Once she gets an idea inside her head, she becomes determined to try it out. If her ideas don't work out the first time Annie tries them out, she will try and try again. Once Annie has decided to do something, nobody and nothing will stop her.Annie's head is crammed with ideas and her body is filled with feelings, feelings which she finds impossible to hide from the outside world. Anyone can tell whether Annie is feeling happy or sad by simply looking at her and by listening to what she says, because she just can’t hide her feelings.When Annie is happy, her smiley face tells you so and when she is sad, the smile on her face will quickly disappear and be replaced by a squashed-tomato look. When Annie is ‘very happy', the smile on her face widens, her two arms begin to rotate like the propellers of an aircraft, her two feet jump her body up into the air and her mouth gleefully yells out, "Yippee! Yippee! Yippee! Yippee for Annie!" But when she’s ‘very angry’, she rotates her arms, jumps in the air and lands saying, “Bother! Bother! Bother! And Double Bother!”*When Annie gets angry she knows how to get the anger out of her. When Annie wants to get the anger out of her body, she writes it out, she talks it out and she acts it out. If she is angry with someone, she may write them a nasty letter and then tear it up without posting it. When she does this, she finds that expressing her feelings makes her feel a bit better. Whenever Annie becomes annoyed with another person she goes into a corner where she won’t be heard and calls the person a ‘Jolly old stinker!’ If she is very angry, she will go to her bedroom and pretend that the other person is her pillow. Then she will have a pillow fight, expressing her angry feelings to the pillow she is punching. Or she may lie on her back on the bed and peddle her legs up in the air furiously until she is physically exhausted and all the anger has left her body.*The author of these stories ‘founded’ Anger Management Programmes in Great Britain in 1971 and freely gave them to the world. Within a few years, they had mushroomed across the English- speaking world and have helped millions of people since. Included within the asterisked paragraph above are some ‘easy to understand’ and ‘simple to follow’ instructions for helping to manage anger in a young child. There is a little bit of Annie in every girl and boy. That is what makes her so likable. Are you like Annie in any of her ways?

Bes is a New Millennium spirit who comes to the earth as a profit on January 1st, 2000. Bes physically manifests herself in the image of part bear, part elephant and part sheep. The task of Bes is to persuade all the other creatures of the earth to live alongside each other in peace and harmony as ‘The Maker of all Things’ instructs. Bes has 40 years in which to achieve this task. If Bes cannot achieve the task, Bes will be recalled and ‘The Maker of all Things’ will end all life form and start a new age.

This story addresses that perennial question that has perplexed the minds of millions of children ever since ‘Father Christmas’ came into their lives. “If there is a Father Christmas, and he visits the home of every boy and girl across the world to give them a present; then why does he always give the most expensive presents to the richest children and the cheapest presents to the poorest?”Another prime reason for writing the ‘Action Annie’ stories was to correct an imbalance, which had appeared to have developed between girls and boys; and in particular the differing stereotypes. Often the contribution of boys in a primary school classroom would be allowed to override the contribution of girls, simply because the boy’s contributions were invariably put forward more vociferously as opposed to the ‘more polite girls.’ Classroom teachers with a high pupil ratio would tend to give sway to the views expressed by the boys for the sake of an easier life and a more manageable day.Then there were the roles that each of the sexes was naturally expected to gravitate towards upon completion of school: doctors and consultants for the boys and nurses for the girls: air pilots for the boys and air hostesses for the girls, etc.etc. More subtle discrimination and expectations existed however, when one looked at the type of behaviour that might be ‘expected’ from a boy, but which was wholly ‘never expected’ or considered ‘acceptable’ from a girl; such as shouting, swearing, fighting, picking one’s nose and even making rude noises in public! In short; ‘Action Annie’ represented ‘girl power’ in action and was my humble attempt of redressing the balance of the young reader and the more discernable adults in their lives.Annie is an imaginative and very active seven-year-old whose mind and body is always on the move. Even as she sleeps, she is dreaming about the things she plans to do tomorrow. She's always thinking up new ideas and inventing things. She is such a busy child that her parents never know whether she's coming or going.Annie is very determined. Once she gets an idea inside her head, she becomes determined to try it out. If her ideas don't work out the first time Annie tries them out, she won't give up and will try and try again. Once Annie has decided to do something, nobody and nothing will stop her.Annie's head is crammed with ideas and her body is filled with feelings, feelings which she finds impossible to hide from the outside world. Anyone can tell whether Annie is feeling happy or sad because she just can’t hide her feelings. Anyone can tell if Annie is in a good mood or a bad mood; by simply looking at her, and by listening to what she says and how she says it.Whenever Annie is happy, her smiley face tells you so. Whenever she is sad, the smile on her face will quickly disappear and be replaced by a squashed-tomato look. Whenever Annie is ‘very, very, very happy', her eyes sparkle and grow bigger; the smile on her face widens, her two arms begin to rotate like the propellers of an aircraft, her two feet jump her body up into the air and her mouth gleefully yells out, "Yippee! Yippee! Yippee! Yippee for Annie!"Whenever Annie gets angry, she begins to lose her temper. Her face turns red, the sound of her voice gets louder and she stamps one of her feet on the floor three times and says, "Bother! Bother! Bother!" Whenever Annie gets 'very, very, angry' her face begins to scowl; her lips twist up and she stamps her foot on the floor three times saying, "Bother! Bother! Bother!" Then, both of her arms begin to rotate furiously as she jumps up into the air, and upon landing with both feet, she yells out loudly, "And Double Bother!"There is a little bit of Annie in every boy and girl. That's what makes her likeable. Read about Annie’s adventures and find out what bits of Annie are like you.

As a growing child, the one thing that I experienced in abundance was ‘second chances.’ In fact, I’d go as far as to say that without having had my fair share of second chances, my life would have taken a much different course. Second chances were my life saver!Not surprisingly, one of my favourite books was Victor Hugo’s ‘Les Misērables,’ a story that was chiefly responsible for transforming me from ‘Thief’ to that of ‘Probation Officer’ in later life. I was also fascinated by the bible story of Christ telling His followers to ‘turn the other cheek’ in circumstances where it seemed more natural to ‘strike back.’ I eventually came to understand that the instruction of Christ to turn the other cheek wasn’t so that the offender might strike you once more, but to afford him/her ‘a second chance’ not to strike you again.Wherever the fault lies, whatever the character trait requiring changing happens to be or however the behaviour needs improvement, being provided with ‘a second chance’ is essential to one’s overall sense of well being. It may be that losing weight is what is required to getting a second chance at life or giving up smoking or abstaining from alcohol or drugs. One may need to address one’s inappropriate behaviour of aggression, distrust, bullying, dishonesty, name calling or anything which adversely affects one’s life and image. Whatever the unhappy state of being, ‘a second chance’ may be what one requires to either give or receive.‘Sleezy the Fox’ is a book of four stories about the overarching theme of ‘second chances’. On the surface it deals with the immigration of a married couple and their seven children into a strange country, the bullying of neighbours, the ostracizing of offenders from the community as a whole and the alienation that often exists between man and wild beast and beast and wild man!Each of us shall experience or perpetrate some wrong in our lives. At the critical stage of reconciliation and healing, it is vitally important that we are able to give others and ourselves the benefit of a ‘second chance’. And if you are like I used to be growing up, you may need to receive a ‘second chance’ many times before you eventually get it right. In Story Three, the theme of ‘second chances’ is reintroduced, along with the setting of the theme for the final story in the series. Sleezy's apprentice is a good sheep fox in all respects except being able to remain 'awake on the job'. The apprentice's catnaps lead to the flock of sheep being stolen and Farmer Hans threatened with ruin. Follow Sleezy and Snoozy as they locate the whereabouts of Farmer Hans' sheep and bring them back home.

‘Douglas the Dragon’ negotiates the life stages of being orphaned, adopted, accepted, loved, rejected, feared, outcast, reformed and then made redundant. In this final story, he leaves his beloved village and past to seek a new way of life, and finds an angry female dragon whom he eventually changes with his love. He returns to his beloved village, marries her and starts a family of baby dragons.By 1971, I had founded the process upon which all ‘Anger Management’ groups would thereafter follow and freely gave this knowledge to the world. Within the space of two years, ‘Anger Management’ (a phrase that I coined), had mushroomed across the English speaking world. After 25 years of researching and specialising in Anger Management, Relaxation Training, Behaviour Modification and Stress Management, I started writing children’s books. My primary purpose of writing for children was to convey to them through my books, the basic principles of ‘Anger Management.’The expression of ‘Anger’ by a child is a natural and healthy process that ought not to be discouraged by adults. When a child expresses anger, the adult is alerted to the fact that something is wrong, but the repression (non-expression) of anger by a child conceals personal hurt and a degree of emotional disturbance, which could lead to them feeling ‘unloved.’The most popular of all my children’s books have been the four stories of ‘Douglas the Dragon.’ These stories have been publicly read in thousands of Yorkshire Schools between 1990 and 2005.Numerous teachers have used them to help children come to terms with the emotional upset that moving house, changing schools, being separated from part of one’s family, bereavement of loved ones or being excluded from community activities can produce. Child Psychologists, Educational Welfare Officers and Trauma Therapists also used the stories to help abused children express their righteous anger, thereby enabling the progression of their emotional development through the facilitation of healthy expression.The central themes of the ‘Douglas the Dragon’ stories evolve around the issues of Anger, Fear, Love, Separation, Bereavement, Second Chances, the Effect of Exclusion and the unwelcome experience that Sudden Change can often produce. Indeed, the late Princess Diana once phoned me when Princes William and Harry were aged around 9 years and 7 years, and asked that I send her a copy of ‘Douglas the Dragon’ along with a copy of ‘Sleezy the Fox’ so that she may read them to her children at bedtime. There is a two-headed dragon that lives in the heart of every man, woman and child; a ‘Dragon of Anger’ and a ‘Dragon of Love.’ Both dragons compete for the control of our thoughts, feelings and actions, but only one of them can be victorious. The ‘Dragon of Anger’ will destroy you unless you evict it from your body in the form of healthy expression. We cannot get the ‘Dragon of Anger’ out of our bodies until we allow in the ‘Dragon of Love.’The ability to express the ‘Dragon of Love’ through our thoughts, words and deeds will lead us on to increased self-acceptance, greater happiness, improved health and personal freedom; bringing us closer to our true selves, our families, our friends, our neighbours and our God.

Gilbert Grim, the village bully and sheep rustler, is released from prison and faces life as an ex-con. He is evicted by his old neighbours and decides to steal to survive. Farmer Hans tracks him down and 'reforms' Gilbert.As a growing child, the one thing that I experienced in abundance was ‘second chances.’ In fact, I’d go as far as to say that without having had my fair share of second chances, my life would have taken a much different course. Second chances were my life saver!Not surprisingly, one of my favourite books was Victor Hugo’s ‘Les Misērables,’ a story that was chiefly responsible for transforming me from ‘Thief’ to that of ‘Probation Officer’ in later life. I was also fascinated by the bible story of Christ telling His followers to ‘turn the other cheek’ in circumstances where it seemed more natural to ‘strike back.’ I eventually came to understand that the instruction of Christ to turn the other cheek wasn’t so that the offender might strike you once more, but to afford him/her ‘a second chance’ not to strike you again.Wherever the fault lies, whatever the character trait requiring changing happens to be or however the behaviour needs improvement, being provided with ‘a second chance’ is essential to one’s overall sense of well being. It may be that losing weight is what is required to getting a second chance at life or giving up smoking or abstaining from alcohol or drugs. One may need to address one’s inappropriate behaviour of aggression, distrust, bullying, dishonesty, name calling or anything which adversely affects one’s life and image. Whatever the unhappy state of being, ‘a second chance’ may be what one requires to either give or receive.‘Sleezy the Fox’ is a book of four stories about the overarching theme of ‘second chances’. On the surface it deals with the immigration of a married couple and their seven children into a strange country, the bullying of neighbours, the ostracizing of offenders from the community as a whole and the alienation that often exists between man and wild beast and beast and wild man!Each of us shall experience or perpetrate some wrong in our lives. At the critical stage of reconciliation and healing, it is vitally important that we are able to give others and ourselves the benefit of a ‘second chance’. And if you are like I used to be growing up, you may need to receive a ‘second chance’ many times before you eventually get it right.

In the year 2000, when this book was first published, I wanted to create a book which could be given to a child who was starting school at the age of 5 years and which could be read by them progressively until the age of 13 years when they either moved up to ‘Middle or High School.’ I also wanted to mark their memory of the New Millennium with their own special book.Because the reading age between all children of between 5 years of age and 13 is so vast, this project naturally involved the writing of a number of stories that catered for children of different chronological ages and reading abilities.The outcome of this idea was the publication of the book ‘Bes’; which contains four interdependent stories that links in theme. The four stories would concern four types of creatures, a bear (for 5-7 year old readers), an elephant (for 7-9 year old readers), a sheep (for 9-11 year old readers), and a New Millennium spiritual creature called ‘Bes’, who was part bear, part elephant and part sheep in both appearance and disposition( for 9-13 year old reader).Bes is a story suitable for the New Millennium reader aged between 9-13 years. It tells a story that loosely links with the three character types I introduced in ‘The Bear with a Sore Head’, ‘Solo and Solomon’ and ‘Elephants Cry Too.’ It is the first day of a New Millennium and the ‘maker of all time’ who is disappointed with the humans of the earth, sends a three dimensional spirit to the earth in the form of a strange looking animal. that is part bear, part sheep and part elephant.The three-dimensional spirit is ‘Bes‘, whose form is in the shape of part bear, part elephant and part sheep. Bes is given 40 years in which to spread a message of peace and love to all of the earth’s creatures. If Bes can persuade the animals to live in ‘peace and love’ its purpose will have been served and as a reward to the animal kingdom, the ‘maker of all life’ will give all animals supremacy and rule over all humans. ‘The Bes Omnibus’ contains all four stories that can travel with a child’s reading development through their First School, Middle School and into High School. The four stories are also suitable for the different age ranges of different children within the same family.

Sleezy the Wild Fox reforms his ways and becomes a friendly sheep fox. When sheep killing and chicken stealing starts again, Sleezy falls under instant suspicion. Follow Farmer Hans' efforts to clear the name of his faithful Sheep Fox, Sleezy.As a growing child, the one thing that I experienced in abundance was ‘second chances.’ In fact, I’d go as far as to say that without having had my fair share of second chances, my life would have taken a much different course. Second chances were my life saver!Not surprisingly, one of my favourite books was Victor Hugo’s ‘Les Misērables,’ a story that was chiefly responsible for transforming me from ‘Thief’ to that of ‘Probation Officer’ in later life. I was also fascinated by the bible story of Christ telling His followers to ‘turn the other cheek’ in circumstances where it seemed more natural to ‘strike back.’ I eventually came to understand that the instruction of Christ to turn the other cheek wasn’t so that the offender might strike you once more, but to afford him/her ‘a second chance’ not to strike you again.Wherever the fault lies, whatever the character trait requiring changing happens to be or however the behaviour needs improvement, being provided with ‘a second chance’ is essential to one’s overall sense of well being. It may be that losing weight is what is required to getting a second chance at life or giving up smoking or abstaining from alcohol or drugs. One may need to address one’s inappropriate behaviour of aggression, distrust, bullying, dishonesty, name calling or anything which adversely affects one’s life and image. Whatever the unhappy state of being, ‘a second chance’ may be what one requires to either give or receive.‘Sleezy the Fox’ is a book of four stories about the overarching theme of ‘second chances’. On the surface it deals with the immigration of a married couple and their seven children into a strange country, the bullying of neighbours, the ostracizing of offenders from the community as a whole and the alienation that often exists between man and wild beast and beast and wild man!Each of us shall experience or perpetrate some wrong in our lives. At the critical stage of reconciliation and healing, it is vitally important that we are able to give others and ourselves the benefit of a ‘second chance’. And if you are like I used to be growing up, you may need to receive a ‘second chance’ many times before you eventually get it right.

This author's works have been praised by numerous celebrities, the most notable being Nelson Mandela who described two of his African stories as 'Wonderful', the late Princess Diana who used to read two of his books to the Princes William and Harry when they were aged 9 and 7 years, and a former Chief Inspector of Schools for The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (OFSTED), who described the author's writing to the press as being of 'High quality literature.'The Kilkenny Cat has been written as a trilogy. Book One deals with the theme of ‘truth’, Book Two with ‘justice’, and Book Three on the theme of ’freedom’.All three books seek to show that truth, justice or freedom cannot exist in isolation, and that the only way one can experience any one of them is when one is able to experience all three.Book Two’s setting begins in Falmouth, Jamaica and provides the reader with a way of life that most non-Jamaicans may find strange, but which all natives to Jamaica would instantly recognize. Book Two continues to examine the issues of discrimination that is practiced in that country and particularly homophobia and sexism. Mixed partnership between black and white couples is also looked at in the context of the story. The second half of Book Two is set back in Ireland. The trilogy is designed to show that every country on the face of the Earth exercises discrimination against some of its citizens. The nature of discrimination may subtly change and vary from one country and situation to another in both shape and form, but it will always be present in some degree for those of us who care to look.Particular forms of discrimination looked at in this trilogy include the issues of colour, race, religion, age, culture, sexism, disability, homophobia, gypsies, asylum seekers, refugees and economic migrants.These issues are looked at through the eyes of travelling cats, whose experiences mirror those of human society. Overarching all the themes of this trilogy is the issue of ‘Good’ versus ‘Evil’, where the terms ‘God’ and ‘Satan’ are used to denote opposing values, qualities and lifestyles.The speech of the cat characters who come from Jamaica is distinguished from the speech used by non-Jamaican cats by changing the word ‘you’ to ‘ya’ and its linguistic associates, and no attempt has been made to replicate the patois more commonly used by many Jamaican citizens.The Kilkenny Cat Trilogy is an allegorical story of all manner of discrimination practised throughout the world; particularly in Ireland, Jamaica and England. Told through the eyes and experiences of travelling gypsy cats, it is a must for all cat lovers and students of the discrimination, the 'Northern Riots', Ireland, Jamaica and Northern England and 'Good v Evil.' It is suitable for reading by teenagers and adults.

Kulwant is a girl who was born and reared in the Punjab, India. From being a young child, she has a recurring dream about the man that she will one day marry in the Sikh tradition. She is an only child and has a very happy upbringing until tragedy strikes the family and her father loses a leg in a landmine explosion. From there it is downhill for the family. Experience the trials and tribulations as Kulwant grows up into a beautiful woman and searches for the man of her dreams.She attracts suitors from all over India and after eventually reducing her offers of marriage to four, she sets the suitors a task and choses her husband as a result. One suitor is the most handsome man in the whole of India, the second suitor is the wealthiest and the third suitor is the most intelligent man in India. The fourth suitor is Hal; a poor,blind and uneducated beggar whose looks have been spoiled by a lifetime of poverty and simply trying to survive from one day to the next.Indian Dreams come true will appeal to any child over 8 years of age and any adult reader. Being set in the Punjab, it offers a taste to westerners of Indian traditions. I hope that it offers hope to all who wish to one day marry the man or woman of their dreams.Live in hope and hope shall live in you. Give your love freely and unconditionally and you will receive love in return. When you acknowledge your areas of ignorance, wisdom is your reward. Admit your wrongs at the earliest opportunity, try to correct them and you will feel right with the world. Confront your darkest fears, and courage will be your greatest strength. Strive for tolerance, understanding and acceptance of all strangers and new neighbours, and your heart will beat in the four corners of the earth. Learn to walk in the shoes of another and you will never walk alone.It pleases me enormously that after writing this story and getting it published in the year 2000, that I received a telephone communication from Nelson Mandela who had been given a copy of the book by ‘number 10.’ Mr Mandela had read my Indian, African and Jamaican stories and described them all as being,‘ Wonderful.’I extend my appreciation to the artist, the late Mary Jackson from Dewsbury for her painting of the cover for this book. The painting was completed by Mary during her final year of life and at a time when she was going blind. She described her painting for the cover of this book as ‘an act of love.’ God bless you, Mary.

Of all the fifty plus children’s books I have published since 1990 and from all of the stories I have ever written, the two most popular with children, teachers, parents, schools and libraries have been the stories of ‘Sleezy the Fox’ and ‘Douglas the Dragon.’ They were also the most popular of all my stories that the late Princess Diana used to read to her children, Princes William and Harry when they were aged 9 and 7 years of age after she phoned me and requested that I send her copies. It is nice to know that one’s stories has been read by a future King of England.The reasons why these two story characters have proved to be the most popular and enduring of my works is a combination of both my life experiences and the story themes. The theme of the Sleezy the Fox stories is one of ‘Second Chances’ along with ‘Discrimination against Immigrants.’ The theme of ‘Douglas the Dragon’ is one of anger management and the consequences of anger excess being inappropriately expressed.With regard to both overarching themes, I am suitably qualified to comment on and write about each. My work upon Indian, African and Jamaican stories were praised by Nelson Mandela, who phoned me and described the stories as ‘Wonderful.’ The overall quality of my writing was described by Chris Woodhead to the press (as a former Chief Inspector of Schools for Ofsted), as being of ‘High quality literature.’ As a growing boy, I was a persistent thief who required many second chances before I became a Probation Officer as an adult in West Yorkshire. As an 18-year-old youth who was the youngest textile shop steward in Great Britain in 1960 when racial prejudice within the country was rampant, I brought over 200 workers out on strike because of the employer’s refusal to hire a West Indian man on the sole grounds that ‘he was black.’ The man had applied for a job vacancy that the firm had advertised. As a young Probation Officer in 1971, I began working predominantly with people who displayed uncontrollable aggressive behaviour and after researching my work and the response patterns of many hundreds of aggressive clients, I founded a successful process of working with aggressive people that I freely gave to the world. This process that I founded became known as ‘Anger Management’ in Great Britain in 1971 and within a matter of a few years, this type of course had mushroomed across the English speaking world.‘Sleezy the Fox Omnibus’’ is a book of four stories about the overarching theme of ‘second chances’. On the surface it deals with the immigration of a married couple and their seven children into a strange country, the bullying of neighbours, the ostracizing of offenders from the community as a whole and the alienation that often exists between man and wild beast and beast and wild man!‘Douglas the Dragon Omnibus’ is a book of four stories about the overarching theme of ‘Anger and Aggression’that becomes uncontrollable. ‘Douglas the Dragon’ symbolises the power of love that lives in each of us and he represents the constant struggle between the forces of good and evil in the behaviour we display.The ‘Sleezy the Fox’ and the ‘Douglas the Dragon’ stories became so popular that Plays of each have now been written and published. Their popularity eventually led to all four ‘Sleezy the Fox’ stories being published in an omnibus edition and all four ‘Douglas the Dragon’ stories being published in omnibus edition also.For the first time ever, both ‘Sleezy the Fox Omnibus’ and ‘Douglas the Dragon Omnibus’ have been combined into one giant-sized volume entitled, ‘Sleezy the Fox and Douglasthe Dragon Omnibus.’