Four Crude Dudes and The Land of Hope

As we enter the Third Millennium, the world faces challenges which no civilised country can ignore. The greed and material consumption by people living in the most prosperous parts of our world become more conspicuous and effectively impoverishes further, those poorer, third-world nations in want of basic necessities in order to survive. As long as richer nations are prepared to continue building and increasing their wealth upon the debts of poorer nations, the advancement of the rich will be made at the developmental expense of the poor. As long as profit matters more than people, there can be no such thing as 'fair trade', 'equality of opportunity' and 'freedom from basic want'. To look beyond the immediate desires of oneself towards the needs of another person in less favourable circumstances is the most spiritually-uplifting experience one can ever have. Such action forms the basis for lasting friendship and helps to establish a climate of true understanding and mutual respect. Humanity and greed are incompatible. In the final analysis, a person can only serve one God. 'Four Crude Dudes and the land of Hope' deals with the most avaricious of human nature; mankind's capacity for greed. This was admirably exemplified in 'The Californian Gold Rush' of the 19th century, when greed turned a nation of god-fearing pioneers into gold prospectors; the worse of whom abandoned home, family, god and all sense of moral code to lie, steal, bully and cheat their way to wealth. 'Four Crude Dudes and the Land of Hope' tell the story of how the lives of a thief, a bully, a cheat and a liar negatively impact upon each other during the days of the 'Californian Gold Rush'; leaving the hero of the story, Farmer Hope, with all the wealth, despite him having never sought it. The story essentially shows that when greed becomes one's god, then all goodness goes out the window. The victory of the God-fearing Farmer Hope who seeks only to look after his family and his neighbours while all around are abandoning their contented lives to seek gold and increased prosperity in the land of plenty. It is a vindication and endurance of the 'good' in mankind over that of the 'bad.'
About the Author: William Forde was born in Ireland and now lives in Haworth, West Yorkshire, England with his wife Sheila. He has 5 children and is the author of 64 published books and 2 musical plays which are now available as Ebooks. One of West Yorkshire's most popular children's authors, his books were publicly read in over 2000 Yorkshire school assemblies by over 800 famous names and celebrities from the realms of Royalty, Film, Stage, Screen, Politics, Church, Sport between 1990 and 2002. The late Princess Diana read his earlier books to her then young sons, William and Harry. The late Nelson Mandela once phoned him to praise an African storybook he wrote. Others who have supported his works include 3 Princesses, 3 Prime Ministers, 2 Presidents and numerous Bishops of the realm. Former Chief Inspector of Schools for Ofsted, the late Chris Woodhead described his writings to the press as 'high-quality literature.' Always at the forefront of change, he became the youngest Youth Leader and Trade Union Shop Steward in Great Britain at 18. In 1971, he founded Anger Management in Great Britain and freely gave his courses to the world. In the next 2 years, Anger Management courses mushroomed across the English-speaking world. In the mid-70s, he introduced Relaxation Training into HM Prisons. Between 1970 and 1995, he worked as a Probation Officer specialising in Relaxation Training, Anger and Stress Management, and Assertive Training Group Work introducing Relaxation Training groups into HM Prisons and many other establishments. He retired early due to ill health in 1995 to further his writing career. This led him to work with the Minister of Youth and Culture in Jamaica establishing a trans-Atlantic pen-pal project between 64 primary schools in Falmouth, Jamaica and Yorkshire. William was awarded the MBE in the 1995 New Year's Honours List for services to West Yorkshire. He has never sought to materially profit from the publication of his books and all profit from their sales (approx £200,000 between 1990 and 2002) were given to charity. His latest stories are romantic and are published for adults under the generic title of "Tales from Portlaw". However, his last two books have been 'strictly for adult' novels set in Northern England, where he has lived most of his life. In 2013, William Forde learned that he had a terminal illness (CLL) for which he is presently undergoing treatment.