Books published by publisher William Forde

This author's works have been praised by numerous celebrities, the most notable being Nelson Mandella 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 beauty of life lies not in the physical characteristics of the world's children, but in our indomitable spirit to survive as equals in the environment we inhabit. We are each but a mere part of a more perfect whole, endowed with differing abilities and handicaps. When we live our lives in love, we live it in constant hope. When we live side- by- side harmoniously, we co-exist in peace and understanding.When the Maker made the world, He made the earth and filled it with flowers, trees and animals of all species. Then He made the skies and populated the heavens with birds of the air and all manner of flying insects. He then made His most beautiful creations of all ; you.The Maker made this world, filled it with all things beautiful, and then set it spinning on its axis. But it is the love of one person expressed to another that keeps it turning in perfect motion. Love truly makes the world go around.The heroin of this story is 8-year- old Cassey, a girl of indomitable spirit who has cerebral palsy. She befriends a dying foal. Read this tender story, enchantingly told of how Cassey sleeps by day and works by night to save the life of 'Midnight Fighter' - a colt from champion stock, who will never run, jump or walk again without a limp.Share and experience the love, bravery and sheer perseverance expressed between Cassey and her crippled companion. The story is suitable for any reader aged between 5 and 9 years.

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.

Solo is an independent sheep who in her early years becomes rebellious and refuses to follow the rules of the flock. The more the flock leader seeks to help Solo, the more rebellious she becomes. Matters come to a head when Solo publicly challenges the flock leader’s rules and is determined to carry on doing what she wants to do. The result is disastrous for Solo, as well as for the rest of the flock. The struggle for leadership of ideas reveals that within body of every leader once lived the heart of a rebel; within every Solomon there once was/is a Solo.

This book is a compilation of the 3 stories that Nelson Mandela phoned me personally to say were ‘Wonderful’ at their publication in the year 2000. The stories are from the individual perspective of 3 children; one from South Africa, one from the Punjab in India and one from Falmouth in Jamaica. Each story provides an accurate historical background setting.Throughout my life I have always been fascinated by the cultures, customs, development and history of three countries from the other side of my world. The 3 countries are Africa, India and Jamaica.With regard to Africa and its violent history, it has always interested me how an armed militant and anti apartheid activist in the early 60s became the peace maker supreme from the mid 90s onwards. As leader and co-founder of ‘Umkhonto we Sizwe,’ an armed wing of the African National Congress, Nelson Mandela could well have been expected to leave his prison after 27 years of incarceration resentful and angry. Instead, it was largely due to his peaceful advocacy and leadership that South Africa was able to get rid of apartheid and elect him as its first black leader in 1994.The African story is entitled ‘The Valley of the Two Tall Oaks’ and is based in the South Africa of old where all tribes warred for supremacy. It tells the story of one tribe who was a peaceful tribe in a violent time, and how the dream of each successive leader of that tribe was carried by them from one generation to the next and was passed from one chief to the next, like a baton in a relay team; until it eventually finished up in the hands of Nelson Mandela; the greatest tribal chief of all. Between 2000 and 2003, I worked with the Education minister in the Jamaican Government to develop a transatlantic pen-pal project between 30 Falmouth Schools of children and 30 schools of children in Yorkshire, England. During this period I wrote four books which were published to raise funds for Jamaican schools and to raise awareness of the area of Falmouth, Jamaica in particular.After 2 trips out there and obtaining the necessary background research, the book ‘Bucket Bill’ was published and the story was used in the school curriculum of all 30 Falmouth schools. Being an area that now depends solely on tourism for its revenue, most of the young people of Falmouth have a dream of living a better life in either England or the USA. I therefore wanted to help reverse this emigration trend wherever possible by highlighting the positives of its own region above that of all others.As a young man of 18 years in 1960, I made friends with an Indian man called David who came from the Punjab and as a consequence of his culture, only one of my friends would socially mix with him in public. This was a time in Great Britain when racism was rife.During my 3 years of contact with David before he returned to live in India, he taught me much about the customs and traditions of his native land: particularly the Punjab. Whilst there were some customs and traditions that I found alien and unacceptable, there was much more about the Indian way that pleased me.I was particularly impressed by the capacity of so large a continent to embrace so many different cultures and religions side-by-side. However, I was less stuck by its obvious privileges afforded to the males over that of the females and was unsure about the merits of arranged marriages, when the bethrothed couple were but boy and girl.‘Indian Dreams Come True’ tells the story of a girl from the Punjab, who from childhood dreams about the man she will one day marry. She dreams that he will be the most handsome, wealthiest and most intelligent of all Indian men. When the time comes for her to pick a husband, she faces a dilemma from the 4 suitors who want to marry her. One suitor is handsome, the second is wealthy, the third is intelligent and the fourth is an uneducated, blind man of extreme poor circumstances and modest looks. Who does she choose?

The true test of any great nation is not what it achieves, but how it endures. Africa is a great nation and the endurance of its people over many centuries is a testament to their capacity to survive with dignity within an all-too-often cruel and intolerant world.For many centuries, the people of Africa experienced colonisation, enslavement, economic exploitation, apartheid, disenfranchisement, resettlement and segregation. Throughout these hardships they kept their faith in their beliefs, culture, traditions, religions and dreams.The exodus of Africans to the four corners of the Earth has enriched the quality of their host countries. South Africa, along with the wonderful land of Jamaica, cradle of the Caribbean, remains today one of the most beautiful countries in the world where tourists continue to flock to.Many authors have written about the life of Nelson Mandela, but I wanted to write about his dream; the dream which sustained him through almost three decades of imprisonment; a dream held by other great tribal chiefs in the Africa of old.I envisaged this dream of being passed on like an athlete’s baton in a relay team; from one chief to the next, until it eventually ended up in the hands of Nelson Mandela, who then gave it to the world.As I look at Africa today, I know that this dream lives on in the hearts of its proud people. We were born possessing the potential to do good or bad. We have the power to make our dreams come true, as long as we keep faith with that great Jamaican concept of ‘one Love – one heart.’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 African story and described it as being,‘ Wonderful.’In 2001, during a visit to Jamaica, I was approached by the Jamaican authorities with the request to write a story about Falmouth for the benefit of the 32 schools in that area. Having researched the area and secured the necessary funding from Yorkshire schools for the publication, I wrote the Jamaican story "Bucket Bill". Given their African roots and the Jamaican's love for Nelson Mandela, I decided to place both stories in an Afro-Jamaican publication entitled "One Love, One Heart".

‘Douglas the Dragon’ symbolises ‘the power of love.’ A young orphaned dragon is found and adopted by a young boy and becomes a much-loved dragon in the village. When the boy is killed by a volcano, the dragon is eventually evicted from the community. The dragon spends 50 years in exile sitting upon his volcano of hate and getting angrier and angrier- until his anger explodes and he seeks revenge.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.

‘Douglas the Dragon’ was once an angry dragon, but became a much-loved dragon and guardian of the village. When the villagers are threatened by an erupting volcano, it is left to Douglas to save them as he allows his ‘righteous anger’ to defeat the ‘destructive anger’ of the volcano. The young reader learns that the expression of anger is part of a healthy process which is to be encouraged.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.

The social cohesion of any civilised society cannot be achieved without the eradication of high unemployment, mass homelessness and class division. While ever this triple scourge plagues our country, Britain will remain a divided nation, unable to harness the full potential of its human resources.The provision of adequate shelter, to act as a base from which meaningful tasks can be performed, alongside the rightful expectation to be treated equally, are the basic rights of every citizen and creature within any humane and democratic society.In the final analysis. Homelessness impairs health, homelessness deprives education, homelessness increases the level of hopelessness, homelessness reduces the prospects of obtaining full-time employment, homelessness increases the vulnerability of our most vulnerable citizens, homelessness breaks up families, homelessness costs lives!The plight of the homelessness is a cost we cannot afford to leave unresolved. It is a shared responsibility among all within society.In writing 'Tales of Bernard', I have tried to provide the reader and all dog lovers with a taste of what it is like to be homeless.Through reading about the exploits of our hero, Bernard, alongside those of Boxer and his pack of stray-pedigree hounds, the story as a whole can be productively used as a 'discussion starter' in both home and classroom for the child reader.'Tales of Bernard' is a book that can be enjoyed by any dog lover, whether they be child or adult as the central themes covered in the story embrace the many problems to be found in any society that experiences, abandonment, desertion, bullying and homelessness. Each of the dog characters in the book will be readily identified with by some child readers as they display behaviour and traits which are common to many growing children.The overall theme of the book is that whether it is bullying, homelessness or indeed any other problem of social and environmental conditioning, we all need to pull together to help each other win through.Twenty five years working as a Probation Officer in West Yorkshire taught me that all bullies were at some earlier stage of their lives subject to bullying themselves. I also learned that all persons bullied can best help themselves as well as the bully by standing up to them and informing on them. I learned that bullying can only exist with the acquiescence of all those involved in the process; the bully, the bullied and the spectator.Similarly, the solution to all other problems in society, whether they be homelessness, loss etc.etc can best be resolved by all working together as part of the problem and part of the solution instead of following an ‘I’m all right Jack’ type of mentality. Tales of Bernard is as relevant to the reader today as it was when it was first published during the 1990s. The book is suitable for young person, adult or any dog lover. Enjoy.

Musically talented 10-year old Nancy loves to explore the nearby woodland and feels at home with all aspects of nature. The story tells how Nancy and her mother cope with the news of her father's terminal illness. The author addresses the subject of bereavement in a sympathetic and realistic way while successfully encouraging the young reader to accept death as an inevitable stage of life itself.Bereavement, loss and separation are three of the most unsettling of emotions that one faces in their lifetime; none more so than when it involves the death of a family member and is experienced by a child.The healthy negotiation of this process requires time, patience and understanding by all concerned, along with the necessary expression of the bereaved person's feelings.When a young child experiences the death of a parent, it is not unusual for them to be left feeling emotionally confused and partly 'responsible'. It is at such times when 'sensitivity' by the adult minders needs to be at its greatest and 'being there' for the bereaved child is of the highest premium.Nancy's Song was written in memory of the late Roy Castle and was first published in June 1995. It identifies through its story the death of a father, many of the emotions that the bereaved family members experience both prior to and after the death of a loved one.The story is suitable for any child aged 7 years upwards.It is advisable to be read within the presence of an adult as it more than likely to make the reader cry.

The true test of any great nation is not what it achieves, but how it endures. Africa is a great nation and the endurance of its people over many centuries is a testament to their capacity to survive with dignity within an all-too-often cruel and intolerant world.For many centuries, the people of Africa experienced colonisation, enslavement, economic exploitation, apartheid, disenfranchisement, resettlement and segregation. Throughout these hardships they kept their faith in their beliefs, culture, traditions, religions and dreams.The exodus of Africans to the four corners of the Earth has enriched the quality of their host countries. South Africa, along with the wonderful land of Jamaica, cradle of the Caribbean, remains today one of the most beautiful countries in the world where tourists continue to flock to.Many authors have written about the life of Nelson Mandela, but I wanted to write about his dream; the dream which sustained him through almost three decades of imprisonment; a dream held by other great tribal chiefs in the Africa of old.I envisaged this dream of being passed on like an athlete’s baton in a relay team; from one chief to the next, until it eventually ended up in the hands of Nelson Mandela, who then gave it to the world.As I look at Africa today, I know that this dream lives on in the hearts of its proud people. We were born possessing the potential to do good or bad. We have the power to make our dreams come true, as long as we keep faith with that great Jamaican concept of ‘one Love – one heart’.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 African story and described it 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. Having been previously married to a British diplomat and having spent over 20 years living in South Africa, her memories of the animals and sky assisted her tremendously as she struggled with a magnification glass to see figures on the canvas she painted. She described her painting for the cover of this book as ‘an act of love’.God bless you, Mary. William Forde.

‘Douglas the Dragon’ symbolises ‘the power of love.’ A young orphaned dragon is found and adopted by a young boy and becomes a much-loved dragon in the village. When the boy is killed by a volcano, the dragon is eventually evicted from the community. The dragon spends 50 years in exile sitting upon his volcano of hate and getting angrier and angrier- until his anger explodes and he seeks revenge.Old age and death are stages in a person’s life that all children find difficult concepts to understand, but this is eased considerably when ‘death’ is associated with the concept of ‘rebirth.’ At a time of separation, bereavement or loss, children become more isolated, non-communicative and vulnerable. Allow Douglas to help them ‘live again’ through his own experiences of illness and near death.Douglas negotiates the life stages of being orphaned, adopted, accepted, loved, rejected, feared, outcast, reformed and then made redundant. 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, 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 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.’ They 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, Effect of Exclusion and the unwelcome experience Sudden Change can 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, an