LETTERS FROM GAZA is more than a book – it’s a voice from the silence, a heartbeat in the wreckage. Through poetry, letters, and monologues, 30 Gazans lay bare their fears, grief, and relentless hope amid devastation.
Since October 2023 the world has been witnessing the unfolding of the largest humanitarian crisis of this century. And the men, women and children spoken of around the world, fight being silenced through their written words.
While we lamented at the visuals of unimaginable destruction, loss, and unsurmountable pain, there were people living that reality.
Surviving genocide isn’t a blanket experience; there are many facets which remain unheard. This collection, the first of in-the-moment reflections, is pertinent in bringing focus to the human stories behind the crisis, the emotions that rang loudly in the silence of the night, when the shutters went down and the dust had settled.
Throughout the year, 30 people living in the Gaza strip, of varied ages and ethnographies, penned their feelings, fears, memories, thoughts, and hopes on the tempestuous days of war. Each story is a reminder of the world held within every person and how humanity at large is at stake with them.
Collected and compiled by Mahmoud and Mohammed, two prolific writers in Gaza, this collection stands as a testament to unparalleled resilience and unveils the unimaginable emotional scars of war; leaving us overcome with tenderness and compassion.
In this part-memoir, part-manifesto, body image, identity and relationship to self come under scrutiny in the microcosm of Asia’s hot house—Singapore, playground of the crazy rich and OCD capital of the world. Written by former model turned dermatologist Dr Teo Wan Lin, this book is the hot (meaning, sweltering) girl’s guide to keeping cool while staying beautiful…like a tropical extraterrestrial.
Seriously.
Set in the early 2000s, Wan Lin, then a medical student moonlighting as a model, finds herself developing obsessive rituals—endless mirror checking, constant ruminations and self-doubt. Paid to party with the rich while pretending to be hot, what she tells no one, is that all she wants to do is perch under the air-con. She spins often in posh tutus in 6-inch stillettos, only to realise that pretense often isn’t enough, when she finds out she isn’t believed.
Along the way, she compiles a model’s guide to surviving society events for B-listers like herself —she wasn’t exotic Eurasian, but Singaporean Chinese; becoming an A-list Eurasian model’s sidekick, learning to haunt like a polite ghost (who really wasn’t on the guest list) and a doppelgänger known by a different name—these she called, tricks of the trade.
Through a heartfelt telling of one Singapore girl’s story, this book attempts to unravel the complexities of beauty standards, whether self-imposed or societal—it is dangerous to fall for stereotypes. Not just in the world of fashion and beauty, but also academia. Her message? Singapore’s obsession with labels has a price tag, too.
Dynamic meditations on adulthood, mortality, and ageing as told by an unprepared Gen-Xer. WTF: Woman Turning F*fty is a collection of savagely personal ‘postcards’—or eclectic experiential essays—from a former journalist on the margins of middle age.
Pondering timeless questions about life, maturity, and loss, Marga Ortigas dips into universal truths that not even hormonal changes can alter. Or can they? These rants—oops, we mean, writings—will hopefully help others on the cusp of, gulp, middle age (or other life transitions) feel less alone.
And you, yes you who have read this far, surely you are also grappling with uncertainty—don’t we all? So if you’d like some company . . . or perhaps simply want a laugh, WTF are you waiting for? This is for you, too.
On the brink of her thirties, Amanda Oon moved with her ang moh husband from London to Singapore—the country of her mother’s childhood; neighbour to the white cliffs and colonial shophouse streets of Ipoh where her father grew up. As they carve a new life in an unfamiliar country, she tracks down her family’s history and shares their stories of growing up in Singapore and Malaysia. The food, culture, and people that shape the identities of these two countries paint a vivid and nuanced portrait of their life and culture.
This is a story of family, race, identity, and self-discovery. But, above all, it is a cultural portrait of Singapore and Malaysia’s rich heritage and history.
When Malaysia’s sixth prime minister Najib Razak was sentenced to twelve years in prison and fined RM 210 million for stealing billions from the 1MDB state investment fund he had himself set up, it exposed a chain of events that began decades ago, and which continues to reverberate economically, financially and politically, bleeding the treasury and inflicting immeasurable pain on taxpayers for generations to come.
Malaysian journalist Leslie Lopez’s first book, The Siege Within, delves into the writer’s own archives of previously unpublished material to go back in time and show exactly how it was possible for a Malaysian prime minister to envisage his treacherous crime, and then to execute the dastardly deed. From its most ‘innocent’ beginning in a north Malaysian state, Lopez charts how Najib and his warlords set up the investment fund for the sole purpose of stealing from it.
Lopez’s literary debut goes on to show how 1MDB is not just about Najib. The book brings into sharp relief the Machiavellian schemes of a prime minister who sat at the top for more than two decades, and came back from retirement to become PM again in 2022, at the age of ninety-two. The Siege Within paints Mahathir Mohamed as the chief architect of a political system that paved the way for a criminal such as Najib to lie, cheat and steal his way to power, a system which then protected him from scrutiny and prosecution.
One-time central bank governor Zeti Aziz, and the extent of her relationship with the man who delivered billions to Najib on a silver platter, Low Taek Jho, come under a forensic spotlight as Lopez exposes the shocking series of events that culminated in the monstrous enormity of Najib’s deeds. It also depicts how the earth shook for the main players—in Malaysia, Australia, Singapore, the US and Middle Eastern states—once news broke of the biggest case of corruption in world history.
The Siege Within is the untold story behind the political crime that continues to make world headlines, and why a nation so full of promise has been brought to its knees.
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.
If you’re looking for a way to make a positive impact on the world, Matthew S. Friedman’s inspiring book is the perfect guide. Through his incredible experiences and tireless activism over 35 years, he shows us that one person truly can create a ripple effect that leads to global change.
As you read his powerful stories, you’ll be reminded of the immense suffering in the world, but you’ll also be uplifted by the sheer strength and determination of those who fight against it. Friedman’s message is clear: we each have the power to make a difference in our own unique way.
This captivating sequel to his previous memoir, ‘Where Were You: A Profile of Modern Slavery,’ is bound to leave a lasting impact on you. It will ignite your passion, challenge you, and encourage you to take action toward bringing about meaningful change.
In this book, you’ll learn how a once-shy boy from a New England town dedicated his life to battling the scourge of human trafficking in over 40 countries.
Join us on an unforgettable journey with a man whose compassion and relentless dedication to justice have made him a global force in the fight against modern slavery. Together, we can create a brighter future for all.
“I’ve found that there is always some beauty left—in nature, sunshine, freedom, in yourself; these can all help you.’
Anne begins her diary entries at the age of thirteen in June 1942, recording all her experiences until August 1944. All people have the right to freedom, but Anne wasn’t sure that idea included her. During WWII, Anne and her family were forced to go into hiding like many other Jews.
Vivid snippets of two years of living in an annexe, without seeing the sun, are journalled by Anne. From their bones dwindling to her emotional growth all is reflected in her writings. She writes of her passion for literature and art, her desire to travel, the struggles of family ties in hiding: showing her incredible emotional resilience.
How does she keep her spirits alive through imagination, hold onto the hopes of free life, when they weren’t allowed to bring attention to themselves?
- A powerful firsthand account of resilience during World War II.
- Chronicles two years of life in hiding through Anne’s eyes.
- Reflects on hope, dreams, and the struggle for freedom.
- Captures the emotional growth of a young girl in adversity.
- A timeless testament to the strength of the human spirit.
As technology rapidly replaces rote learning in education, Gumption becomes a critical skill in everyone’s survival in the future.
This book demonstrates how you can use Gumption to leverage other people’s assets and resources, and mobilise them into achieving common goals at exponential scale.
This story tell of how Jack Sim who was born poor and failed academically, became a successful serial entrepreneur and an ultra-successful serial social entrepreneur, changing the world by mobilising global movements. He also eventually became a professor with an Honorary Doctorate Degree.
This is a life-changing inspirational book that you will benefit abundantly while reading it.
Tracy was at the start of her law career and at the cusp of life when she got a debilitating brainstem stroke that affected her breathing, swallowing, speech, eyesight, and severely weakened her left and paralyzed her right. She found herself effectively a thinking statue at the age of thirty-five.
This is an account of her journey to recovery. As her brain is reset, she finds, so is her life. Like a growing child, she learns the most basic things anew, and more insightfully, the second time around. She sees the world in a different dimension this time?as wheelchair-bound. She discovers what faith means when it is all that is left.
In amusing and heart-wrenching anecdotes, Tracy finds that there is a life to be had, even in the cracks.
