SM
Worth a re-read. Started strong but began to drag towards the end (could just be me). Stunned to find a mention of a Malay Singaporean gay man as that is very rare representation. The ending was poignant but sad. Overall a good insight into the triumphs and challenges of queer men living the big city life, as the title goes.
Found this title while looking up actual Chinese-English dictionaries. It was very amusing and engrossing for the first half of the book and then the pace slowed down (for me, anyway) along with the lovers' ardour for each other. I liked the observations of the differences between east/west culture, told through the main character's gradually improving English. I'd enjoy re-reading this.
First, full disclosure: I got to read early drafts of a few chapters and give some feedback (not a lot). I really enjoyed reading this book, right from the draft stage.
The analogy of considering the structure of a home for building a relationship is nice. It's not often that a self-published book is of such high quality, from the writing style right down to the feel of the book in hand through the choice of paper and size. What I like best is that the advice is inclusive. Anyone can read it whether you are single and looking (or not looking), happily loved up and married, heterosexual or not, of any faith or spirituality. It also covers cultural differences.
It's all useful advice that would benefit anyone looking for better relationships, and yet feels personal because there are guided exercises that get you to reflect on what you wish for in a partner or relationship. Though focused on romantic relationships, some of the advice is definitely also applicable to platonic or professional relationships. I also like the easy, breezy, conversational style of writing - it reads like a friend is speaking to you, and a frank one who doesn't shy away from addressing the more intimate, complicated, messy matters of relationships, too.
Small book, many short essays with big words and interesting ideas. My favourites are the chapters by Dr Nuraliah Norasid, Halijah Mohamad and Faris Joraimi. Not all the ideas are new to me, so several essays are very readable and skimmable, but it's a nice compilation of all these ideas and I like that a lot of the sources are listed for further reading. (Minus one star for the number of editing/proofreading errors - but I've noticed this seems to be a thing in most library copies of books. 🤨)
A very quick read for pointers on how to unlock creativity. Nothing really groundbreaking here, but put together like this, it's a great start for anyone needing a kick in the butt to pursue their ideas or get unstuck. There are fun reflection exercises and the book (printed in $ingapore!) is beautifully produced with thoughtful and surprising typography and illustrations.
Like a student's literature text, complete with discussion questions at the back of the book. It sure seemed intriguing at first glance and in the beginning, but the middle part dragged for a long time before it finally picked up again in the end. Not really as haunting or provocative as the blurbs say it is.
Good read. But I thought the title didn't have much to do with the real story, which (I feel) is more about a family coping with life in a different country that happens to be ‘less developed'. I don't think the protagonist even fully grasps what ‘democracy' is, yet. The more interesting story for me was the roles the main character had to play within her family and all the accompanying emotional struggles. Everything else was just... kind of background.
I prefer to see this as a history of comics through the lens of the history of Singapore, rather than the other way round, but perhaps only because I'm a lot more familiar with the history (and counter-histories?) of Singapore. But the book does both equally well. I particularly enjoyed the representation of historical figures as animals in a Sang Kancil tale and a night soil man as local superhero Roachman. Those who are interested in or familiar with Singapore and Malaya's history would enjoy the retelling of it in different graphic/comic forms.
I'm glad this beautiful book cover caught my eye in a bookstore. The first book I've had to read with the aid of Google Translate instant! A fast, fun read with lines that made me laugh out loud, especially in the chapter about being married. I haven't come across a book like this before, filled with a politician's witty bon mots and selected speeches given at universities, as well as a pages-long resume, interspersed with delightful cartoons by the “Philippines' best young illustrators”. Will probably read again, especially in the run-up to the 2016 Philippine presidential elections and for future Singapore elections too. This definitely makes me want to find out more about Senator Miriam.