The Little Red Dot: Reflections by Singapore's Diplomats, Volume II
Tommy Koh & Chang Li Lin (eds.)
Singapore: World Scientific, 2009
ISBN: 9789814271868

This is the sequel to the bestselling book, The Little Red Dot, published in 2005. This volume is a collection of essays by the third-generation of young diplomats, with a Foreword penned by the Second Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Raymond Lim. It contains many inspiring stories that demonstrate the resilience and inventiveness of young diplomats. It also includes an updated and comprehensive Annex of the milestones of Singapore's external relations. This book is a highly enjoyable read for all who are interested in Singapore current affairs and in the art and science of diplomacy.

In the stories contained in this book you will find and discover:

• The cultures of countries such as Cambodia, Saudi Arabia and Thailand
• Lessons in crisis management
• Courage and teamwork amidst crises
• How international treaties are formulated behind the scenes
• The necessity of exercising one's brains and opening his/her heart in diplomacy
  

Path of the Righteous Crane: The Life & Legacy of Eu Tong Sen
Ilsa Sharp
Singapore: Landmark Books, 2009

ISBN: 9789814189224

The name of Eu Tong Sen is well known in Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong. Yet to date, there has been little of substance written about the man; much of what there is has been drawn from a deep well of unsubstantiated folklore.

Ilsa Sharp's account of Eu Tong Sen's life, based on voluminous research by academic Maria Yang Tse-oy, has theatre aplenty, from mystic feng shui mountains and murder by poison, through dare-devil jungle trekking to fending off revolutionaries, taking on the opium establishment, playing political games with colonial masters, consorting with opera stars, racehorses, flashy cars and women (11 wives), building stately palaces and castles, and above all, the amassing of enormous personal wealth, a respectable part of which went to family, friends, and needy causes, from schools to hospitals.

Yet this is no ordinary tale of a towkay who just struck it rich. Eu Tong Sen stands tall as a man of his age, and also ours, signalling a future 'Renaissance Chinese' character that would combine the best of many worlds and so produce something quite new. In this, Eu Tong Sen was a man well before his time. His life was not a footnote to the period of history he lived in; it was an integral part of the main narrative of the lives of the people who called themselves hua qiao, the Overseas Chinese.

A History of Modern Singapore, 1819-2005 [Revised edition]
C. M. Turnbull
Singapore: NUS Press, 2009

ISBN: 9789971693435

When C.M. Turnbull's A History of Singapore, 1819-1975 appeared in 1977, it quickly achieved recognition as the definitive history of Singapore. A second edition published in 1989 brought the story up to the 1988 election. This fully revised version takes into account recent scholarship, including the work of social and cultural historians. The author has added a chapter on Goh Chok Tong's premiership (1990-2004) and the transition to a government headed by Lee Hsien Loong. The book now ends in 2005, when the Republic of Singapore celebrated its 40th anniversary as an independent nation.

Major changes occurred in the 1990s as the generation of leaders that oversaw the transition from a colony to independence stepped aside in favour of a younger generation of leaders. Their task was to shape a course that sustained the economic growth and social stability achieved by their predecessors, and they would be tested toward the end of the decade when Southeast Asia experienced a severe financial crisis.

While most modern studies have focused on contemporary or very recent times and Singapore's successful transition from the developing to the developed world, younger historians are increasingly interested in other aspects of their past. A History of Modern Singapore, 1819-2005 provides a general framework for their research, giving due weight to the origins, early development and successive periods of Singapore's history.

Sentosa Cove: Island Modern
Yu-Mei Balasingamchow
Singapore: Editions Didier Millet, 2009

ISBN: 9789814217651

Just 15 years ago, few could have imagined that the quiet eastern shore of Sentosa would one day become the crowning glory of luxury living in Singapore. Land that was once marked by no more than a few groves of coconut trees is now home to the prestigious gated communities and signature bungalows of Sentosa Cove, Singapore's first and only oceanfront marina residential community. This lavishly illustrated volume tells the story of how Sentosa Cove rose on the back of the vision, ambition and inspiration of the pioneering few who saw its potential, and provides a showcase to the stunning design and cutting-edge architecture that epitomise the development. Evocative images and descriptive passages provide a guide to an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the lush landscape and waterfront homes of this tropical residential resort, and a glimpse into the privileged lifestyle of its international community. This stylishly presented book will appeal to those interested in resort development, architects and designers, and photography-lovers.

In the Footsteps of Stamford Raffles
Nigel Barley
Singapore: Monsoon Books, 2009

ISBN: 9789810835347

Stamford Raffles is that rarest of things – a colonial figure who is forgotten at home but still remembered with affection abroad.

Born into genteel poverty in 1781, he joined the East India Company at the age of fourteen and worked his way up to become Lieutenant Governor of Java when the British seized that island for some five years in 1811. There he fell in love with all things Javanese and vaunted it as a place of civilization as he discovered himself as a man of science as well as commerce. A humane and ever-curious figure, his administration was a period of energetic reform and boisterous research that culminated in his History of Java in 1817 and it remains the starting-point of all subsequent studies of Indonesian culture.

Personal tragedy and ill-health stalked his final years in the East. Yet, though dying at the early age of 44 and dogged by the hostility of lesser men, he would still find time to found the city-state of Singapore and guide it through its first dangerous years. Here, mythologised by the British and demonised by the Dutch, he is more than a remote founding father and remains a charter for its independence and its enduring values.

In this intriguing book, part history, part travelogue, Nigel Barley re-visits the places that were important in the life of Stamford Raffles and evaluates his heritage in an account that is both humorous and insightful.