epigram

Christmas in Singapore is special, with families all over the island celebrating in their own unique ways. Come join a young boy and read all about his family traditions. From visiting Orchard Road and marvelling at all the Christmas lights to leaving cookies and carrots in anticipation of Santa and Rudolf—there is so much fun to be had!

With bold and beautiful illustrations that capture the spirit of Christmas, this story reminds us of the importance of family and family traditions.

Shortlisted for NUS Singapore History Prize 2021
Winner of Singapore Literature Prize 2018, Fiction
Shortlisted for Singapore Book Awards 2018, Best Fiction Title
Finalist for the Epigram Books Fiction Prize 2016

Siew Li leaves her husband and children in Tiong Bahru to fight for freedom in the jungles of Malaya. Decades later, a Malaysian journalist returns to her homeland to uncover the truth of a massacre committed during the Emergency. And in Singapore, Siew Li's niece Stella finds herself accused of being a Marxist conspirator.

Jeremy Tiang's debut novel dives into the tumultuous days of leftist movements and political detentions in Singapore and Malaysia. It follows an extended family from the 1940s to the present day as they navigate the choppy political currents of the region. What happens when the things that divide us also bind us together?

Finalist for the 2015 Epigram Books Fiction Prize
Shortlisted for the Singapore Book Awards 2017 (Best Fiction Title)
Shortlisted for the Popular Readers' Choice Awards 2016 English (Adult) Books category
The Straits Times Book Of The Month (August 2016)
Shortlisted for Singapore Literature Prize 2018 

Pin must not become like her mother, but nobody will tell her why. She seeks clues in Ma’s cooking when she’s not fighting other battles—being a bursary girl at an elite school and facing racial taunts from the bus uncle. Then her meddlesome grandmother moves in, installing a portrait of a watchful Sikh guru and a new set of house rules. Old secrets begin to surface but can Pin handle learning the truth?

🎁Recommended for ages 3 and above

In this latest instalment of the popular picture book series, Asia's Lost Legends, the story travels to the steppes of Mongolia, where lives a young fiddle player named Suho and his beloved horse, Khuur. The two friends are insearable until a cruel king tries to tear them apart. But the bond between Suho and Khuur is so strong that it cannot be broken. Instead, it inspires the creation of Mongolia’s national instrument.

Superworm solves the mystery of a missing eye.

When Mr Pig’s left eye disappears, Superworm springs into action! A sneaky snake with a habit of hoarding seems to be behind it all. But as more things go missing, Superworm discovers an unexpected truth about the snake—one that changes everything.

A zany, adventure-filled graphic novel that tells a heartwarming tale of friendship and forgiveness.

Recommended by the National Library Board Singapore and Ministry of Communications and Information

A woman learns of a friend’s illness and wonders if she ever truly knew him. A boy who sees ghosts heeds the advice of a fortune-teller, with surprising consequences. A girl wakes up and realises everybody in her Bedok neighbourhood has vanished. From Cyril Wong, award-winning author of The Last Lesson of Mrs de Souza, comes another beautiful book about characters in crisis, with two stories crossing intriguingly into creative autobiography.

Shortlisted for the 2020 Singapore Book Awards (Best Illustrated, Non-Fiction)

This comic by award-winning graphic novelist Sonny Liew and Hsu Li Yang from National University of Singapore Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health answers questions and dispels the myths and misconceptions about antibiotics.

Can antibiotics be used to treat the common cold? How much antibiotics should we be taking?

In this easy-to-read book, Liew and Hsu break down the complexity of the medication, effects of overusage and its adaptation in the farming industry.

⭐ Features three unique cover designs, packed at random.

Sonny Liew’s triple Eisner Award–winning The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye chronicles the life of Chan Hock Chye, a pioneering but largely forgotten comics artist whose career spanned over five decades, mirroring Singapore’s political and social transformation. Translated into nine languages, this internationally acclaimed work blends fact and fiction, reimagining history through Chan’s striking illustrations, paintings and sketches. Now returning in a special edition, featuring new material marking its 10th anniversary, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye is a must-have for collectors and new readers alike.

Shortlisted for Singapore Literature Prize 2024 (Comics/Graphic Novel)

When COVID-19 started to spread around the world in early 2020, Singapore’s readiness to deal with a global pandemic was put to the test. There were both wise decisions and missteps along the way, while questions about scientific consensus, trade-offs and vaccines swirled about in our hyperconnected age of social media. The Pandemic Cookbook revisits those early days of unprecedented global disruption, including social distancing rules, Circuit Breakers, migrant worker dormitory lockdowns, elections and TraceTogether controversies.

Based on interviews with front-line workers, journalists, policymakers, academics, migrant workers and more, infectious diseases expert Dr Hsu Li Yang and Eisner-winning graphic novelist Sonny Liew present a unique recollection of Singapore’s pandemic experience.

"[A] brilliant book telling the story of Singapore’s fight against COVID 19." - Professor Tommy Koh, Former Chairman of the National Art Council

Finalist for the 2021 Epigram Books Fiction Prize
Winner of Singapore Book Awards 2022 (Best Book Cover Design)

Behind the golden façade of a land filled with opportunities dwell two destitute souls, shipped to Singapore in the late 1800s. Oseki, an ingenue forced into prostitution as a karayuki, grapples with being betrayed by her own father and transforms into a monster she can’t recognise. Gobind, a deaf convict from India, serves his sentence as a punkhawala to a British hunter obsessed with killing Rimau Satan, a man-eating tiger of mythic proportions. Whenever Gobind hunts with his master, his butchered memories lurk in the darkness, aching to pounce. When Oseki’s and Gobind’s paths intertwine, they begin to face their inner demons to find their humanity—and their way back home.

🎁Recommended for ages 3 and above

In this illustrated ode to books and reading, literacy and libraries are promoted and celebrated. A little tree and a little boy form a friendship over their love of books. In time, the tree is adorned with every book the little boy reads to the tree. Soon, a whole community of people can enjoy the magnificent tree of spectacular books. But with time, both the tree and the boy grow older. Now the boy is an old man and must say goodbye. What is to become of the grand old tree?

Nominated for the 2019 Singapore Book Awards, Best Literary Work
Winner of the 2017 Epigram Books Fiction Prize

Questions abound in the aftermath of the Little India riot. Hashwini wonders if she triggered the chaos. Jessica asks if she should reveal what truly happened in the ambulance. Sharon thinks that the catastrophe could be what she needs to boost her political career.

The lives of three women intertwine when accident and coincidence collide. In Gimme Lao!-style hilarity, they become wrapped up in a web of truth, deception and political connections. This is a perceptive, fast-paced romp that asks “what if” of the riot that recently shook Singapore.

Winner of Best Young Adult Title for Singapore Book Awards 2016
Winner of the Hedwig Anuar Children’s Book Award 2015
Winner, Royal Commonwealth Society Essay Competition 2009, First Prize, Class A

There once was a rock which stood old and alone amidst a stretch of sand. For a long time it knew nothing except the lapping waves of the sea. Then one day a noisy bird came to rest on the rock—and began to annoy the rock with its endless chatter. Despite their hostile beginnings, the two began a friendship that evolved and changed over many years. Then one day when the bird did not return to the rock, the rock knew that his friend had died. And his world would return to what it once was, though now it was also filled with memories of his dearest friend.

Patriotism: do you have it? How does one express it? Is it worth it? The Singapore Trilogy—consisting of Are You There, Singapore?, One Year Back Home and Changi—has raised questions since the seventies about nationhood that we are still asking today. Influential in steering early English-language theatre in Singapore away from its colonial roots, Robert Yeo conceived of characters that are believably local in speech, thought and behaviour, and provided a dramatic platform for the dialogue of politically sensitive issues. Yeo’s trilogy continues to link to an exciting time of sociopolitical flux in Singapore’s history, and engages by provoking us to explore the meaning of being Singaporean.

This edition of these three landmark playscripts is accompanied by a new introduction from the playwright, as well as a reappraisal by Nah Dominic and Adeeb Fazah, who restaged the entire trilogy in one single condensed adaptation in March 2021.

Shortlisted for Best Young Adults' Title for Singapore Book Awards 2016
Shortlisted for the Hedwig Anuar Children’s Book Award 2015

After a successful fundraising effort, I was off to Sarawak, Malaysia with my bros Alvin and Anthony for an exciting jungle trek! And, more importantly, I’d get to see my dear friend Jolin. (Mum calls her the “object of my infatuation”.)

Our guide, Jolin’s weird “jungle man” Uncle Jufri, warned us to never let our guard down, for the rainforest is full of secrets and surprises. After getting drenched in a thunderstorm, and some icky encounters with mussels, toads, leeches and ants, we thought we’d seen and survived it all. But then there were those footprints, BIGGER THAN A HUMAN’S, that just couldn’t be explained.

Winner for the Singapore Book Awards 2025 - Best Young Person's Fiction Title

Talking plants, evil scientists, and mobile book vans—Maizey doesn't know where to start!

Imagination loss has hit everyone over 35, but 11-year-old Maizey Lee has bigger problems that that. Her life is turned upside down when her father disappears in a fire and mother decides to take them globe-trotting in a library on wheels. She has to get back to Singapore in time to sit for PSLE, or she'll be stuck in primary school forever! But with her mother determined to visit the world book capital to keep her Imagination alive, her plant friend Curie causing havoc with her powers, and an sinister pharmaceautical company chasing after them, will she ever be able to get her normal life back?

In this first foray into the world of travelling libraries, talking plants and scientific espionage, it's up to Maizey to save Imagination. As she goes swimming with turtles, plucks coconuts with monkeys and races across Bangkok on a far-too-small scooter, Maizey is about to learn that every encounter she picks up along the way will guide her to understand the power of stories and the importance in keeping Imagination alive.

Since 2015, Mekong Review has provided a fresh perspective on Asian histories, lives and cultures. The Very Best of Mekong Review brings together thirty-two of the finest essays and reviews published between 2019 and 2022 in the quarterly magazine, selected by its editor, Minh Bui Jones. A diverse crop of esteemed and emerging writers such as Bernice Chauly, Sunisa Manning, Sudhir Thomas Vadaketh and Richard Javad Heydarian delve into the promise of Anwar Ibrahim, the legacy of V.S. Naipaul, the 2019 protests in Hong Kong, the military history of Myanmar, dining out in Tokyo, and more. They offer insight and nuance to the rich cultural and political landscape of Asia.

A man seeks resolution when the spirit of his abusive mother calls from the grave. A sex worker finds temporary salvation with a returning Australian tourist professing his love. The afterlife plays host to a vast museum dedicated to jetsam from the living world. In this debut fiction collection, these imagined worlds are set variously in plural Singapores, Southeast Asia and beyond, and illuminate the urgent need to connect even after death.

Book of the Year, 2020 Singapore Book Awards
Winner for the 2020 Singapore Book Awards (Best Illustrated, Non-Fiction)

Food writer, cooking instructor and author Christopher Tan is back with the definitive book on Singapore’s kueh, sharing everything you need to know about local kueh culture.

Much more than just a collection of recipes, The Way of Kueh delves into the topic with a lyrical, insightful and practical approach. It traverses kueh families and genres, key kueh-making techniques, the seasonality and social significance of kueh, and the importance of both tradition and innovation. Local kueh artisans from all walks of life share their stories and perspectives in interviews, while short essays muse on the histories, regional and colonial influences, science and symbolism behind this most diverse of food genres.

Helpful glossaries on key ingredients and essential kitchen tools will equip you to tackle over 100 detailed and precise recipes for kuehs from across Singapore’s communities, from ang koo kueh to kueh bakar, kueh kaswi to jian dui, steamed and baked kueh lapis varieties, and many more, including rare and endangered items such as sesagun, putugal and bak kueh.

Making kueh is truly and traditionally a labour of love. The Way of Kueh was born from a desire to inspire and encourage Singaporeans to make and enjoy kueh together with their families and friends, to celebrate, preserve and progress this unique and rich part of our national food heritage.

The fun and furry characters are back with a lesson about staying true to oneself.

Chick Bee has just learnt to do the cha-cha! She tries to wow everyone with her charming moves. But when her friends think her dance needs improving, Chick Bee doesn’t know what to say. Will Chick Bee perform her cha-cha in her own charming way? Or will she listen to the advice of her friends? The Womps is a series about a bunch of friends who don’t always get things right the first time.

Meet the Womps–Pinto, So-ya, Kofi, and Chick Bee–a fun and furry bunch of characters who don’t always get things right the first time. Pinto Womp enjoys locking fingers and making pinky promises with all his friends, but can he follow through on all of his promises?

How does one rise above the trauma of child sexual abuse?

Sofia Abdullah is now an international women’s and children’s rights champion, fighting for equality and fair treatment for disempowered groups all over the world. But she comes from a painful past—one in which she was sexually abused as a child by a family member. Taking many years to heal from the trauma, these are pages from her notes documenting her journey of coming to terms with what had happened. This is her journey of moving on.

🎁Recommended for ages 3 and above

There was a Peranakan woman who lived in a shoe. 
She made so many nyonya kueh, she didn’t know what to do.

In this book of modernised nursery rhymes, original rhymes are recreated with local flavour and humour.

Traditional food, local places and festivals are the essence of the rhymes! This is a book that resonates with our time, country and culture, and will surely last for generations to come.

Sequel to There Is No Such Thing as a Skinny Bibik, longlisted for the 2021 Epigram Books Fiction Prize.

Nonya Charlie has found love, or so she thinks.

Rebel that she is, Charlie Neo has chosen love over her family when she decides to leave Singapore and move to Penang to be with her ex-spy boyfriend. Charlie struggles to build a new life, working various jobs, including the role as assistant for a TV news anchor, and reuniting with a grandaunt who is her own brand of hot-blooded bibik. She becomes embroiled in a kidnapping of two genius hackers and gets into trouble involving money laundering, sending her running back to her Peranakan roots.

Longlisted for the 2021 Epigram Books Fiction Prize

Charlie has always been too tall, too skinny and too wild to ever be considered a proper nyonya. Her mother, grandmother and great-grandmother are always looking on in disapproval, yet Charlie knows she must follow her heart in career and in love. That becomes complicated when three men fight for her affection, a major smuggling ring must be investigated and the paparazzi cannot get enough of her!

A pair of twins tries desperately to survive their education. A sentient oyster ponders the concept of making time. An unemployed man devises a social experiment with ants. A runaway sees a vision. From the 1990’s to a future where people access information through chips implanted in their heads, from the Singaporean heartland to London, San Francisco and the moon, these stories hold in tension the strangeness of displacement and a deep yearning for connection in their relentless search for who and what to call home.

Those Who Can’t, Teach turns the spotlight on the madcap lives of teachers and students in a typical secondary school in Singapore. As the teachers struggle daily to nurture and groom, the students prefer to hang out and “chillax”. With upskirting and Facebooking, griping and politicking, school takes on a whole new meaning as the colourful characters struggle to prove that those who can, teach. 

Written by Singapore’s most prolific playwright Haresh Sharma, Those Who Can’t, Teach was first staged by The Necessary Stage in 1990 to critical acclaim. Twenty years later, Sharma revisits this classic to revitalise it for the Singapore Arts Festival 2010, transforming it into a powerful portrayal of the pressures and challenges facing teachers (and students) in schools in the 21st century.

🎁 Recommended for ages 3 and above

Tiko and his toy lizard are inseparable, until he chances upon a real lizard. Tiko traps it, names it Dragon and convinces his parents that he’s responsible enough to look after it. But keeping an outdoor lizard as an indoor pet requires dedication, and Tiko is too distracted by computer games. Now, what is to become of poor Dragon?

A vibrantly illustrated portrayal of childhood antics and a reminder of pet responsibility.