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Archives: Books

Fearless

This mesmerising memoir and guide to achieving your fullest potential from a trailblazing champion of women’s rights has the power to change your life.

Whatever your age, Fearless will inspire you to embrace your journey, confront adversity, and seize your destiny.

Sylvia Yu Friedman has led philanthropic initiatives for some of the world’s wealthiest families, transforming countless lives while shining a light on some of the worst human rights abuses of our time.

For two decades, her pioneering investigations into the dark underworlds of sex trafficking and modern-day slavery – even at the risk of her life – shattered barriers and charted a course for a new generation of philanthropists and changemakers.

In this captivating book, Sylvia takes readers on a journey through her life, marked by bravery, compassion, and a relentless commitment to changing the world for the exploited.

Through intimate stories of close calls, rock bottom moments, and triumphant breakthroughs, she reflects on her struggles as a nerdy Korean-Canadian immigrant kid grappling with racial discrimination, the highs and lows of her adventurous career, and her ultimate realisation that true freedom comes from serving others.

Along the way, she offers a wellspring of hope and insights on identity, overcoming heartbreak and toxic environments, finding love, and conquering self-doubt in this anthology of experiences drawn from philanthropy, journalism, and cross-cultural workplaces.

This book is Sylvia’s letter to her younger self, a rallying call to laugh unabashedly and harness the power of love. It’s a blueprint for discovering the limitless power within to live fearlessly.

Self-Improved Me

Being a woman in this modern society is getting more challenging each day. There are a lot of expectations from our closest ones and even pressures from strangers on the internet.

“When will you get married?”
“Why does your child behave that way? You must be too busy working.”
“You haven’t joined any Pilates class yet? Like, ever??”
“Beyonce also has 24 hours in a day, you know???

They seeped into our minds without realizing it, creating guilt and making it difficult to be aware of ourselves and what we truly aim for. There were times we did something only out of fear of missing out because everybody seemed to be doing it (or at least, that’s what social media told us).

Self-awareness and mindfulness about our purposes are the first steps to gaining clarity in life. They are part of the self-discovery journey, where we honor our growth process and embrace our imperfections.

This illustrated book offers a toolkit that doesn’t promise a one-size-fits-all method. It’s about the discovery process itself. With bite-sized writings and illustrations, it aims to help get us to know ourselves better and appreciate our unique way of progressing in life. It includes exercise templates and practical tips for arranging our priorities, measuring our progress, and making better decisions based on self-reflection and evaluation.

One Night Stand

The three famous girls have it all: the looks, the fame, and the boys.
GALE, the perfect girl from an old money family with a reputation to uphold and a secret no one can ever find out.
PAPANG, a scandalous girl with hundreds of one-night stand stories.
And QUEEN, a gorgeous yet deadly girl who always gets everything she desires, one way or another.
The three of them are inseparable. Then everything changes when someone murder Queen on a happy April Fool’s Night, leaving the other girls devoid of their memories.
Gale wakes up on her elite boyfriend’s bed and decides to go along with his lies, even though she knows full well the guy who left a kiss mark on her last night was not him.
And as Papang finds herself sleeping on a garbage dump without a clue how she got there, her instinct says she must have been with a guy. What’s worse is that he might be the one she shouldn’t be with.
As all the darkest secrets Queen kept inside are revealed one by one, it becomes clearer that almost everyone has a reason to kill her, including her own best friends who are drowning in their own lies while trying to protect themselves by pointing fingers at each other.
But in the end, nothing is as it seems, and no matter how shocking the truth may be, they will finally see who exactly Queen is.
And why she has to die.

Startup Mindsets

In today’s rapidly evolving and digital world, every global leader must employ a Startup Mindset to thrive and get ahead.
Born in the Philippines, Earl Valencia is an award-winning tech leader and venture-backed startup founder. Dan Gonzales lived through the grind of Silicon Valley as an investor, writer and the host of the popular Startup Mindsets podcast. Together, they have distilled lessons from hundreds of conversations with founders, venture capitalists and ecosystem builders. How do you balance a changing landscape while staying true to your core values? How do you stay relentless in the face of adversity? In other words, how can you think like a startup?
This book unveils the secrets of the Silicon Valley ecosystem and guides readers on the mindsets that differentiate the leaders who were trained from the industrial economy of the past from those who have grown and transcended into a digital-first world. Those who dare to take on the next disruptive shift will see their impact skyrocket to unparallelled heights.
Through compelling stories and actionable strategies, get inspired to apply the Startup Mindset to your own life and lead the new innovation-driven and digital economy today.

Saving the Planet

In December 2022, 40-year-old Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad was appointed as Malaysia’s Minister of Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change (NRECC). A career politician, his first ministerial appointment was a baptism of fire as he was thrust into the complex world of environmental policy.
While “green issues” had previously only been an occasional part of his work and activism, executing the Malaysian government’s ambitious sustainability plans brought home to Nik Nazmi how crucial solving climate change is to the country’s survival. He comes to realise that a key component of this task includes winning public support for the required transitions and changes, especially in the face of rising climate change denialism and pessimism.
Saving the Planet relates Nik Nazmi’s experiences as NRECC Minister [later redesignated as the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES)] and his thoughts on connected issues ranging from water management to climate financing. He stresses that developing countries—which are especially vulnerable to the destruction that ensues from environmental degradation—back climate action but require viable support from their wealthier counterparts.
Ultimately, climate change must be dealt with not only urgently but also inclusively if humanity is to succeed. It is fundamentally a moral and political challenge that will require radically changing our societies to become more just.
Saving the Planet is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the intersections between politics and climate change, as well as for an authentic voice at the frontlines of climate action in the Global South.

Growing Up To Tell The Truth

The son of Syed Jaafar Albar, known as The Lion of UMNO, an inveterate figure in the nationalist politics of pre- and post- independence Malaya/Malaysia, Syed Hamid Albar grew into politics from the experience of the legal profession and an early involvement in social movements.

The Memoirs of Syed Hamid Albar is a lyrical, lucid, historically insightful reflection by one of Malaysia’s most experienced and longest serving cabinet ministers. Having occupied some of the most important positions in various Malaysian administrations, and during some of the most critical periods in Malaysia’s recent history, the Memoirs provide a living testament to the shifting politics, governmental preoccupations and regional and international challenges of a nation- in-becoming.

The Memoirs offer respectful observations of the first generation of Malaysian pubic figures, including Malaysia’s first and second Prime Minister’s Tunku Abdul Rahman and Tun Abdul Razak respectively; candid and forthright reflections on a relationship with Malaysia’s longest serving and most enigmatic Prime Minister, Mahathir Mohamad, and insight into the vacillating fortunes of Abdullah Badawi, Mahathir’s successor.

The Memoirs commences with recollections of lineage and genealogy and is also an intimate remembrance of early family life, of a formative generation of local Malays venturing to study abroad and, most prominently, a narrative of the relationship between father and son, enveloped by the course of history.

Rewrite the Rules

In Rewrite The Rules, Ritu G Mehrish and Rajita Saxena empower Asian women leaders to challenge the status quo and redefine success on their own terms. “Rewrite The Rules” is a call to action that invites you to embrace your power, break free from limiting beliefs, and forge your own path to success.

Drawing from the diverse experiences of over 200 women leaders across Asia, this groundbreaking book focuses on the five core areas essential for thriving as a female leader: Being Confident, Creating Visibility, Building Networks, Finding Balance, and Defining Success.

Whether you’re an emerging or senior leader, this book will equip you with the tools and inspiration to make your mark and reach your full potential.

The Balikbayan Artist

Farm-laborer-turned-artist Vance Igorta returns to the Philippines as a balikbayan after nearly fifty years in the United States. He is a member of the Manong Generation, the largest diaspora of Filipinos who worked physically demanding jobs, mostly in California’s agricultural fields.

Coming home to a country on the brink of becoming a dictatorship, Vance’s paintings shift from abstractions to didactic, political art to better reflect the rebellion that he eventually joins. Didacticism also facilitates his meditations on the impact of leaving his birthland to become a powerless Manong and then an impoverished artist of color in New York.

The Balikbayan Artist—inspired by and dedicated to Venancio C. Igarta (1912–2000), the real-life leading artist of the Manong Generation—takes readers from the early twentieth century to the present day when Vance Igorta’s art is being discovered anew. His legacy is validated for allowing his art to address the tensions of his time instead of keeping it solely entrenched in aesthetic concerns. The artist’s choice reflects what Vance Igorta learned as a voraciously self-educated person: that in circumstances where power corrupts, what makes anyone and everyone dangerous is love.

Ultimate Big Book Library (10 Books)

Ultimate Big Book Library is a collection of ten big board books that form the building blocks of kids’ foundational years of learning.

Why it is a must-have for every little learner:

  • Comprehensive Early Learning Set: Covers essential topics—Alphabet, Numbers, Colors, Shapes, Transport, Animals, Fruits and More—building the perfect foundation for school readiness.
  • Vibrant, Engaging Illustrations: Each book is packed with colorful images that grab children’s attention, making learning playful and visually stimulating.
  • Boosts Vocabulary and Observation: With clear word labels and picture-word association, kids easily learn new words while sharpening their observation skills.
  • Durable Large Format Board Books: The big size and sturdy board pages are ideal for tiny hands and can withstand lots of enthusiastic flipping.
  • Age Appropriate: Thoughtfully designed to introduce key concepts to toddlers and preschoolers at the right developmental stage.
  • Attractive Gift Tuck-Box Set: Comes neatly packed in a durable tuck box, making it a wonderful gift option for birthdays, holidays, or any occasion.

This delightful set makes early learning joyful and interactive, helping little ones take confident steps into the world of words, numbers, and ideas. It is more than just books — it is the start of a lifelong love for learning.

Titles in this boxset:
1. Alphabet
2. Numbers
3. Colors
4. Shapes
5. Transport
6. Fruits and veggies
7. Seasons and opposites
8. Things at home (and around us)
9. Animals (Domestic and Wild)
10. Birds

Skin

‘I’ve seen a lot of things in my time, but nothing comes close to this. I’ve never seen a body in that condition.’

In the heart of Kuala Lumpur, the naked body of a prominent investigative journalist is found in a foetal position with the hands covering her face. As forensic investigators attempt to move her hands, they discover that the entire skin of her face has been surgically removed. Fresh off their last case, Inspector Alysha (Aly) and her partner, Inspector Raj from CID Bukit Aman are assigned to investigate the murder.

As Aly and Raj embark on their investigation, more bodies of young women pile up in the same cryptic manner. Their investigative trail takes them from Kuala Lumpur to the tea plantations of Cameron Highlands and from there on to the quiet, sleepy town of Teluk Intan where they slowly begin to unravel secrets from the past that are seemingly linked to the case.

Before they know it, Aly and Raj find themselves on a quest to hunt their most dangerous adversary yet, someone with a dark past and an even darker mind, who is driven by something that none of us would ever think could twist the human mind to such an outré extent.