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The Singapore Story: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew
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Visionary? Authoritarian? Model for the West? Lee Kuan Yew, the long-time leader of Singapore, has been called all these things, and more. In these vivid memoirs, Lee takes a profoundly personal look back at the events that led to Singapore's independence and shaped its struggle for success. And, as always, he lets the chips fall where they may.In intimate detail, Lee
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Hardcover, 680 pages
Published
October 7th 1998
by Pearson Ed Asia
(first published 1998)
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Unfortunately I was unable to finish this book and thus my review remains incomplete.
This autobiography was a fascinating view into a bygone era: the decline of Britain's empire and the struggle of Asian colonies for independence and against the spread of Communism. It's difficult to truly understand the significance of the twin challenges of Imperialism and Communism, so far removed are we from those times.
Lee accomplishes three things here: he states his principles, he tells the story of his ...more
This autobiography was a fascinating view into a bygone era: the decline of Britain's empire and the struggle of Asian colonies for independence and against the spread of Communism. It's difficult to truly understand the significance of the twin challenges of Imperialism and Communism, so far removed are we from those times.
Lee accomplishes three things here: he states his principles, he tells the story of his ...more
He is too fascinating a man, and has left far too large an imprint on modern Singapore history for this to be an uninteresting book. Having lived through many of the climactic moments surrounding the foundation of the modern Singapore state, this first volume of memoirs would have value in itself as a historical account of what happened. Still, one gets the sense in reading this of a didactic lecturer not seeking justification - he never has felt the need - but closer to that of a stern father
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https://pricelesseconomics.wordpress....
(a few pictures are included in the blog post, link above)
I recently visited Singapore and read Lee Kuan Yew’s (LKY) “3rd World to 1st World – The Singapore Story” to get a feel for the history, culture and politics. What an incredible character and an intriguing place! LKY is an unusual mixture of free-market advocate, state interventionist, anti-communist but adherent of socialism and yet he’s also against the welfare state.
NO NONSENSE, NO AID, NO ...more
(a few pictures are included in the blog post, link above)
I recently visited Singapore and read Lee Kuan Yew’s (LKY) “3rd World to 1st World – The Singapore Story” to get a feel for the history, culture and politics. What an incredible character and an intriguing place! LKY is an unusual mixture of free-market advocate, state interventionist, anti-communist but adherent of socialism and yet he’s also against the welfare state.
NO NONSENSE, NO AID, NO ...more
I'm a 3rd generation Singaporean and have great reverence for LKY (I've work on a small project directly involved with him and partly also due to the propaganda in school.) Hence, I find it hard to reconcile the fact that my grandparents disliked him and my parents (and their siblings) find him bearable. This book is a candid memoir of his early life as well as his political journey which led to the separation of Singapore and Malaysia. I got to know LKY better and the reason why some may
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Overrated book, i think, but still very interesting, since the author was leader of Singapore for almost half a century. His comments on politics and economics are often very smart and iteresting to read, as well as his comments on many famous politicians, but at times are boring and superficial (or maybe it is just eastern politeness). The book is worth to read for everybody who is interested in history, politics and economic policy.
Oct 26, 2019
Ali Al-Mansoori 🇦🇪
rated it
did not like it
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review of another edition
In the beginning it was interesting however it gets boring due to details that are not needed at all. I could not finish it accordingly
More than I wanted to know (or could ever remember) about Singapore's independence and political beginnings.
Lee Kuan Yew recounts the first half of Singapore’s history, focusing on its short-lived marriage with Malaya. The attempted merger was awfully complex. Its failure was simple. The power dynamics and racial divide were too much to overcome.
Amazing man, amazing story. The world can learn a lot from Singapore. That being said, this book gives way too much detail about that story, way more than I wanted to know, so for that reason I stopped reading it halfway.
It was a good read to understand what happened before the formation of Singapore and the hardship that Lee Kuan Yew and his team faced internally and externally during this period.
But what I really wanted to know was how Lee Kuan Yew transformed Singapore from a struggling island to a thriving developed country.
Perhaps my expectations from the book was something else.
But what I really wanted to know was how Lee Kuan Yew transformed Singapore from a struggling island to a thriving developed country.
Perhaps my expectations from the book was something else.
The growth of Singapore is almost always presented as the rapid transformation from a dilapidated fishing village to bustling city state. As a child, I've largely been left to my imagination to fill in the gaps as to what transpired in order to create the modern Singapore.
In this book, the late LKY shares in intricate detail the hardships that he & his fellow party members endured from the Japanese occupation to the final separation from Malaysia. The memoir is not only an extremely ...more
In this book, the late LKY shares in intricate detail the hardships that he & his fellow party members endured from the Japanese occupation to the final separation from Malaysia. The memoir is not only an extremely ...more
Absolutely fantastic
This book sheds so much light on so many things that we barely notice. Apart from the fact that Lee Kuan Yew was a great politician who made Singapore into a prosperous country, it seems to me he was a great mind first and foremost.
At the beginning of the book there’s this anecdote about why LKY chooses Choo, who is couple of years older than him to be his wife. He explains it to her along these lines: “I don’t want to look after someone. I want someone who can look after ...more
This book sheds so much light on so many things that we barely notice. Apart from the fact that Lee Kuan Yew was a great politician who made Singapore into a prosperous country, it seems to me he was a great mind first and foremost.
At the beginning of the book there’s this anecdote about why LKY chooses Choo, who is couple of years older than him to be his wife. He explains it to her along these lines: “I don’t want to look after someone. I want someone who can look after ...more
A good read generally. The book is an account of developments as told by LKY himself - straight-talking and opinionated. Obviously there are disagreements - even with those closest to him - some not just of opinion but fact. The English language used in the book is definitely of its time, with a rhythm and phrasings no longer encountered. But all in all a chunk of valuable history for pretty much everyone who wants to know about Asia generally and development in the second part of the 20th
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THE SINGAPORE STORY: MEMOIRS OF LEE KUAN YEW - Vol. 1
In one video clips that’s been trending lately, Tyler Perry, uses a great example of the amount of work, resources and effort that goes into the foundation of a building as an invaluable life lesson, he says, he learnt helping his father with construction work. About half the labour, material and time goes into the foundation of an ordinary house. And ALL of that work is buried under the ground never to be seen again, certainly never admired ...more
In one video clips that’s been trending lately, Tyler Perry, uses a great example of the amount of work, resources and effort that goes into the foundation of a building as an invaluable life lesson, he says, he learnt helping his father with construction work. About half the labour, material and time goes into the foundation of an ordinary house. And ALL of that work is buried under the ground never to be seen again, certainly never admired ...more
Last night I finished reading the first volume of Lee Kuan Yew's autobiography - The Singapore story. The book had such a poignant ending that I had to just close the book and just sit for a moment to feel unburdened. After all the months of fighting that LKY and his political party had to endure against opposing powers, he found himself in an unenviable position - of a leader of a country that was pushed out of a federation and left to fend for itself.
That is how overwhelming the ending of the ...more
That is how overwhelming the ending of the ...more
A very good memoir book, full of the history and politics of Malaysia and Singapore and with lots of juicy details about the history and politics of 1950s-1960s Britain and Commonwealth countries. The early chapters are as good a history of the British colonial twilight and Japanese occupation of Malaya/Singapore as you're likely to find in English. It's a fascinating part of the Pacific theater that I'd never considered before reading this book. How LKY governs following WW2 is also really
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Fascinating story. I know there are two schools of thought about Lee Kuan Yew and I know the issue is too complex to be answered so simply. But what immediately struck me is that the story of the Singaore riots is uncannily like the story of Godhra. Certain parties wanted to create a communal rift between Malay Muslims and the Chinese and they used the media to malign Lee and take advantage of said rift for ulterior motives. Very similar to what happened in Gujarat when certain elements used the
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Lee Kuan Yew was at once an unabashed political machiavellian - using his wit to out-maneuver the colonialists, the communists, and eventually the Malayan communalists - and a man with high ideals, who prized excellence over pleasure, and who wanted to build a society where every individual, regardless of race or religion, would have an equal chance of making good in life. This is perhaps why opinion of him will always be fundamentally split; why there will be fans and detractors alike, and why
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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This is a very exciting book (volume) not just to learn about the history of Singapore but also about political tactics, which can be applied to daily life and business. We can learn about the good tactics (how to gain people’s support, how to understand and learn from our enemy, etc) to use them in our lives, and the bad ones so we know when to avoid and how to deal with them when people use them. In addition, we learn about different ideological ideals, Lee’s analysis of their good and bad
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Latest at page 100 I started thinking "why am I reading this?"
Well, I visited Singapore in the mid 90's and was amazed by the country. The book grabbed my attention, being published in 1998, because I was curios to know how this became such a clean and beautiful place.
This book is more the personal account of Singapore's first leader, telling his personal political story from his youth and education to Singapore's independence in the mid 60s. The blow-by-blow account of every person involved and ...more
Well, I visited Singapore in the mid 90's and was amazed by the country. The book grabbed my attention, being published in 1998, because I was curios to know how this became such a clean and beautiful place.
This book is more the personal account of Singapore's first leader, telling his personal political story from his youth and education to Singapore's independence in the mid 60s. The blow-by-blow account of every person involved and ...more
Heard Charlie Munger talk about Lee Kuan Yew, so decided to check him out. This book represents the early years, from his youth through Singapore's merger with Malaya then independence shortly there after. It's a good read, but it's far too long. There is too much, a man does this, then that, then there is a vote 20-36, and so on. It's too deep on stuff that isn't relevant to the broader story. That just makes following the main story that much harder. I also found it difficult to keep track of
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3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
This covers one of the most memorable and significant periods for Singapore - its merger with Malaysia and its secession just 2 years later. LKY, having spearheaded this, provides much insight both into his own viewpoint (beginning from his tumultuous childhood) and the entwinement of Singapore with himself.
I can't say I agree with him on everything. In fact, there are several beliefs that I would strongly contest (e.g. inherent racial inequality, economic socialism), ...more
This covers one of the most memorable and significant periods for Singapore - its merger with Malaysia and its secession just 2 years later. LKY, having spearheaded this, provides much insight both into his own viewpoint (beginning from his tumultuous childhood) and the entwinement of Singapore with himself.
I can't say I agree with him on everything. In fact, there are several beliefs that I would strongly contest (e.g. inherent racial inequality, economic socialism), ...more
3/5 (left it at 40%, might come back at some point)
I refuse to believe that LKY's epic journey, to transform Singapore from a sleepy third-world hamlet to the best city state in the world, is as boring as this book makes it sound. While it gives a very detailed overview of this story, it does read like those staid history books from our secondary school days. The good part is, there are more works covering LKY and Singapore's ascendancy, which one can refer to.
In that sense, this book reads ...more
I refuse to believe that LKY's epic journey, to transform Singapore from a sleepy third-world hamlet to the best city state in the world, is as boring as this book makes it sound. While it gives a very detailed overview of this story, it does read like those staid history books from our secondary school days. The good part is, there are more works covering LKY and Singapore's ascendancy, which one can refer to.
In that sense, this book reads ...more
Beautiful book, this is both story about Singapore and story about LKY. One can learn the history of Singapore from the biography of LKY. Although some part is a bit vulgar, for example when LKY describe his "opposition", I get a sense that he is a kind of top leader that always nice to everyone and never say a bad word about something that unnecessary. For example, I found that he never said a bad thing about Sukarno or Suharto. LKY is destined to be the leader of Singapore. I really like this
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First few chapters about Lee‘s early years was very interesting, how he was educated in the uk, married his wife, survived Japan occupation and how he got into politics.
But then, the majority of the book was about power/electoral struggles with communism, Malay, Indonesian and British. A bit repetitive.
Lastly, the book ends when Singapore achieved independence, but I was hoping to learn how Singapore developed post 1965.
But then, the majority of the book was about power/electoral struggles with communism, Malay, Indonesian and British. A bit repetitive.
Lastly, the book ends when Singapore achieved independence, but I was hoping to learn how Singapore developed post 1965.
Not too sure how to rate, but I would give it 5 stars because it's probably the best book to learn about the Singapore story (an accurate title). This books is a record of his personal life, the formation of PAP, and the merger and seperation with Malaysia. It brought to light how difficult the merger and attempts the stay merged was... Done with this phase, will prob be 'third world to first' book next
A really good book about a really amazing leader. For those who don't know, this book is Volume I of a two part memoir series. The second one focuses on post-1965 and PM Lee's economic/social policy. This book focuses on his upbringing in colonial Singapore and how he guided the country to independence and eventually had to take the helm of the country when it was expelled by Malaysia.
Recommended to anyone with interest in history or great leaders.
Recommended to anyone with interest in history or great leaders.
MUST-READ
To say that people like Mr Lee Kuan Yew come once in a generation is a serious understatement! He (and the team he assembled around him) was a pure genius, a man surrounded with incredible threats and unimagined difficulties and yet he managed to stay focused, determined, and incredibly smart to create his masterpiece - a Perfection!!
To say that people like Mr Lee Kuan Yew come once in a generation is a serious understatement! He (and the team he assembled around him) was a pure genius, a man surrounded with incredible threats and unimagined difficulties and yet he managed to stay focused, determined, and incredibly smart to create his masterpiece - a Perfection!!
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| كتاب انصح اي احد يقراءه | 1 | 9 | Jun 23, 2012 03:23AM |
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Lee Kuan Yew was born in Singapore in 1923. He was educated at Raffles College, Singapore and Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, England. He was called to the Bar, Middle Temple, London, in 1950 and practised law in Singapore. He became advisor to several trade unions.
In 1954, he was a founder of the People's Action Party and was Secretary General up to 1992.
Mr Lee became Singapore's Prime Minister ...more
In 1954, he was a founder of the People's Action Party and was Secretary General up to 1992.
Mr Lee became Singapore's Prime Minister ...more
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“The task of the leaders must be to provide or create for them a strong framework within which they can learn, work hard, be productive and be rewarded accordingly. And this is not easy to achieve.”
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“After trying out a number of ways to reduce inequalities and failing, I was gradually forced to conclude that the decisive factors were the people, their natural abilities, education and training. Knowledge and the possession of technology were vital for the creation of wealth.”
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