英文

Big Hearts, Big Dreams gathers the stories of the 21 winners and nominees from the first two years of the Singapore of the Year award. Each profile captures the determination and drive of those who have made an impact on the community.

Since 2015, The Straits Times has recognised unsung heroes and inspiring dreamers with the Singaporean of the Year award. Supported by UBS Singapore, the annual award celebrates individuals who made headlines not because of their status or fame, but for their selfless acts of goodwill. It recognises the triumph of the human spirit, and the myriad ways in which common men and women can shape the lives of those around them for the better.

A lecturer turned banker, Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam never expected to become a politician, much less a president. Challenged to join Singapore’s nation building efforts in 1979, he set aside personal ambitions for a quiet life to serve the nation, beginning a political career that would eventually span nearly four decades and take him to the nation’s highest post at the Istana.

Written from Dr Tan’s point of view, this book offers a personal perspective of policy- and decision-making on a national level, giving a behind-the-scenes look at key decisions and policy changes in the fields of education, finance, security and defence through his years in government and public service.

Among other things, he reveals the deliberations behind the 1979 overhaul of the education system, the scrapping of the graduate mothers’ priority scheme, the 1986 Central Provident Fund rate cut, the management of investment losses at GIC, and his entry into the 2011 presidential race, while sharing his personal insights on the lessons learnt in the journey of building and growing a nation.

From exuberant rallies on Bangkok’s shopping streets to tear-gasfilled alleyways echoing with gunshots, from democracy-debating farmers to kitten-fostering Buddhist nuns, Unquiet Kingdom is a gripping portrait of Thailand’s many faces, revealing the complexities of a country that is far more than its tranquil tourist-brochure stereotype.Veteran journalist Nirmal Ghosh takes readers past the serene facade of Thailand’s steadily-cruising economy and undaunted tourism industry. He exposes the uncertainty of a country in the throes of transition, a deeply-divided land that has just lost a father. ‘Unquiet Kingdom’ gives you an engaging account of what he experienced from that ringside seat. 

About the Author

Nirmal Ghosh, a Foreign Correspondent for The Straits Times since 1994, has lived in Singapore, Manila, New Delhi, and Bangkok where he spent 13 years, first as Thailand Correspondent and then as Indochina Bureau Chief covering the region. He is currently United States Bureau Chief, based in Washington, DC. This is his fourth book.

The Malaysia That Could Be tells of one man’s belief in his country – and how it can be so much more than what it is today. In this compilation of columns from the New Sunday Times in Malaysia, Dato’ Seri Kalimullah reminisces the Malaysia of yesteryear when ordinary Malaysians lived modestly and harmoniously together. He bemoans the decline in ethnic and religious tolerance in recent times, amidst a rise of rhetoric of racism and bigotry. 

Having been friends with former Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi since 1980, and part of the team who helped with Abdullah’s speeches at the annual Umno General Assembly, Kalimullah also gives an insider’s view of Abdullah’s years in power and the events which led to his resignation. 

In 1998, wracked by financial turmoil and political upheaval, Indonesia seemed like a country on the brink of collapse. Yet it has more than turned its fortunes around.

"Resurgent Indonesia From Crisis to Confidence" is the gripping inside account of Indonesia’s steep decline after the Asian financial crisis and its improbable recovery and rise in the ensuing two decades.

It charts the country’s difficult journey from a failing state to a confident young democracy and a fast-growing economy. Today, Indonesia is a powerful global symbol of how globalisation and democracy are perfectly compatible in the world’s largest Muslim nation. Indonesia’s post-1998 leadership and the country’s 260 million people have figured out the “secret sauce” of blending democracy, stability, globalisation, and modernity -- providing powerful lessons for the world that the book describes as ‘Indonesia Rules’.

About the Author

Vasuki Shastry was a well-known business and economics journalist in India, Singapore, and Indonesia before joining the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1998.

His last assignment as a journalist was in Jakarta, where he was bureau chief of The Business Times between 1996 and 1998, covering the Asian financial crisis and the fall of President Suharto. He worked extensively on Indonesia during his stint at the IMF, starting as Asia Pacific spokesperson and in other roles.

Fresh, easy to cook and home-style delicious - Pauline Dawn Loh brings us great food that celebrates the act of cooking for our loved ones. From contemporary Asian favourites to French classics, Love, Food presents irresistible recipes for any moment of the day, whether it's a quick breakfast, hearty brunch or mouthwatering dinner treat.

Simplicity and innovation are the keynotes of these recipes, from mirin-marinated beef tenderloin smothered in wasabi mayonnaise - perfect for couch potatoes during the football session - to sambal prawns, nasi lemak and an elegant spinach quiche or pear chocolate tart.

Love, Food includes essential techniques, easy-to-follow instructions and time-saving kitchen tips, dispensed with Pauline's characteristic warmth and impeccable culinary sense. The perfect volume for cooking well and eating well. Love, Food will delight Pauline's many fans and make you fall in love with food all over again.

About the Author

Award-winning author with 30 years of writing experience who has published 14 adult non-fiction books, 5 youth books, 3 junior chapter books and 9 children’s storybooks. Creative writing teacher with 40 weekly students. Storyteller and workshop speaker.

This book is a collection of some of Tan Hsueh Yun favourite recipes from her fortnightly cooking column, Hunger Management, which has been running in The Sunday Times since 2008.

This book, Cheat Sheet: How to navigate the food world like a pro compiles 60 of the best columns. Covering everything from pantry staples such as salt and eggs, beverages like milk and wine, to kitchen equipment like thermometers and whisks, each Cheat Sheet offers bite-sized pieces of information about everything you may find in your kitchen larder.

About the Author

Christopher Tan Yu Wei is a writer, food consultant, and cookbook author who was raised in Singapore, partly in London, and mostly in the kitchen. His cookbooks include Inside the South East Asian Kitchen.

Betty Saw's Ultimate Herbal Cookbook shows you how to blend the natural benefits of herbs and roots with the tastes of today, minus the fuss. Using ingredients readily available from supermarkets and Chinese medical halls, these easy, straightforward dishes stay true to Betty Saw's trademark commonsense approach to cooking. "Heaty" and "cooling"' yin and yang - the ingredients in each dish come together to achieve that perfect balance.

About the Author

Betty Saw is a veteran chef informed by more than 30 years of experience. She is a well-loved and respected food consultant, as well as a household name in Malaysia, where she lives. Betty has appeared on a number of television programmes and is a prolific author of more than 15 cookbook titles, including Betty Saw's Best Noodle Recipes, The Asian Fish Cookbook, Asian Retro Food, The Asian Tofu Cookbook, Cupcakes, Cookies and The Best of Malaysian Cooking.

Ask the Foodie is a wonderful compilation of Christopher's valuable culinary
heritage. He has helped to bring back the authentic and nostalgic flavours of his
childhood, restoring Singapore heritage cuisine - our common interest. He shares
his knowledge of food generously, with authority, and best of all, with charm and a
sense of humour.

In Asian Larder, veteran food journalist Sylvia Tan, with several cookbooks to her name, opens up her larder to readers and demystifies common and notso- common ingredients found in a typical Asian kitchen. She describes the characteristics of some 130 Asian food products that are indispensable when cooking Asian food – from bottled seasonings, sauces and pastes, to dried food products, spices and herbs. Aside from traditional and well-known standbys such as soya and oyster sauces, Sylvia has also included newer pastes such as laksa, mee siam and green curry that have conveniently come up over the years to cook these very dishes, which our parents had to make from scratch.

The chapters are organised around groups of ingredients, such as sauces, soya bean products, dried vegetables and seafood and so on. And most ingredients will be supported by at least one recipe that illustrate their use in the kitchen. These recipes, which number around 120, can be either traditional or updated; some will illustrate new ways of using the ingredient, but they are all well-loved and valuable standbys in an Asian kitchen.

Whether you are a novice share investor, a seasoned one or a professional, ‘Your First Million – Making It In Stocks’ by Dr Michael Leong, founder of online share investment portal ShareInvestor, will set you rethinking about share investing. The book offers credible information that sets you on the path of being a share investment guru, and makes the convincing argument that you can make your first million in stocks if you adopt the right approach.

“An invaluable rudder for investors to overcome their fears and boost their conviction and courage to invest when, as they say, ‘there is blood in the streets’. Read it now, and re-read it again when the next crisis comes. It will be a good antidote to counter the paralysis of fear, for we can be sure that when that time comes, our resolve to invest will fall as fast as the market.” —David Gerald, President/CEO, Securities Investors Association (Singapore)

“Hooi Ling has the uncanny ability to write with impressive clarity and her hallmark brevity. … comprehensive, in-depth and objective analysis of the securities and investment instruments. I would highly recommend all and sundry who aspire to be an intelligent investor to read the latest book by Hooi Ling and all her earlier books.” —Robson Lee, Partner, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP

$how Me The Money is a series about learning how to grow your money. Teh Hooi Ling brings to both layman and seasoned investor important economic concepts and the investment strategies of the world’s leading financial experts. Using real data, Teh shows how these strategies would have worked in the Singapore market over the years and signposts the lessons to be learnt and pitfalls to avoid.

In $how Me The Money Book 3, Teh brings us the big picture. She gazes into the crystal ball of market timing, shows us how to fight the paralysis of fear and brings home the importance of a clear plan to overcome inertia in the darkest hour so that we won’t miss out on any market recovery. Book 3 is indispensable both for the macro-view and the intricacies of good investing.

Ideas and Philosophies to Navigate Life and the Markets

$how Me The Money (Book 4) is a series about learning how to grow your money. Suitable for both the layman and seasoned investor, Teh Hooi Ling introduces important economic concepts and investment strategies of the world’s leading financial experts, supported by real data and against the context of the Singapore market. Signposting lessons to be learnt and pitfalls to avoid, the book is an ideal, easy-to-follow guide to investment.

Book 4, the last of this series, is an incisive assessment of the things which underlie our financial success. It covers issues such as the randomness that accounts for success, the impermanence of any condition and the natural tendency to share our good fortune with the less fortunate.

Goh Eng Yeow, author of the bestselling ‘Small Change: Investment Made Simple’, has written a second book to demystify investing and make it interesting to the layperson. In this book, he teaches us how to make informed decisions on what we should or should not invest in. A guide that will make navigating and knowing where to find the right investment information easier and simpler. Eng Yeow has an unusual knack for offering simple solutions that get to the core of a difficult financial issue while cutting out distractions which could cloud judgment, perfect for any person entering into financial management for the first time.

About the Author

Goh Eng Yeow, The Straits Times’ senior markets correspondent, has kept an eagle eye on the financial markets as a markets writer for much of his working career spanning almost three decades. In 2014, he compiled some of his columns into the book Small Change: Investment Made Simple which made it to The Sunday Times Life’s nonfiction bestsellers list for 18 weeks. He was named the Best Financial Journalist of the Year in 2006 by the Securities Investors Association of Singapore (Sias), receiving the Sias Outstanding Award in 2013, and again in 2014. He has also spent some years as a stock market dealer with Morgan Grenfell Asia Securities, been an executive director in a public-listed company, and has helmed the “Market Talk” column for US wires agency Dow Jones Newswires.