From Third World to First: The Singapore Story: 1965-2000
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- Author：Lee Kuan Yew
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Summary
Few gave tiny Singapore much chance of survival when it was granted independence in 1965。 How is it， then， that today the former British colonial trading post is a thriving Asian metropolis with not only the world's number one airline， best airport， and busiest port of trade， but also the world's fourth–highest per capita real income？
The story of that transformation is told here by Singapore's charismatic， controversial founding father， Lee Kuan Yew。 Rising from a legacy of divisive colonialism， the devastation of the Second World War， and general poverty and disorder following the withdrawal of foreign forces， Singapore now is hailed as a city of the future。 This miraculous history is dramatically recounted by the man who not only lived through it all but who fearlessly forged ahead and brought about most of these changes。
Delving deep into his own meticulous notes， as well as previously unpublished government papers and official records， Lee details the extraordinary efforts it took for an island city–state in Southeast Asia to survive at that time。
Lee explains how he and his cabinet colleagues finished off the communist threat to the fledgling state's security and began the arduous process of nation building: forging basic infrastructural roads through a land that still consisted primarily of swamps， creating an army from a hitherto racially and ideologically divided population， stamping out the last vestiges of colonial–era corruption， providing mass public housing， and establishing a national airline and airport。
In this illuminating account， Lee writes frankly about his trenchant approach to political opponents and his often unorthodox views on human rights， democracy， and inherited intelligence， aiming always "to be correct， not politically correct。" Nothing in Singapore escaped his watchful eye: whether choosing shrubs for the greening of the country， restoring the romance of the historic Raffles Hotel， or openly， unabashedly persuading young men to marry women as well educated as themselves。 Today's safe， tidy Singapore bears Lee's unmistakable stamp， for which he is unapologetic: "If this is a nanny state， I am proud to have fostered one。"
Though Lee's domestic canvas in Singapore was small， his vigor and talent assured him a larger place in world affairs。 With inimitable style， he brings history to life with cogent analyses of some of the greatest strategic issues of recent times and reveals how， over the years， he navigated the shifting tides of relations among America， China， and Taiwan， acting as confidant， sounding board， and messenger for them。 He also includes candid， sometimes acerbic pen portraits of his political peers， including the indomitable Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan， the poetry–spouting Jiang Zemin， and ideologues George Bush and Deng Xiaoping。
Lee also lifts the veil on his family life and writes tenderly of his wife and stalwart partner， Kwa Geok Choo， and of their pride in their three children –– particularly the eldest son， Hsien Loong， who is now Singapore's deputy prime minister。
For more than three decades， Lee Kuan Yew has been praised and vilified in equal measure， and he has established himself as a force impossible to ignore in Asian and international politics。 From Third World to First offers readers a compelling glimpse into this visionary's heart， soul， and mind。
The story of that transformation is told here by Singapore's charismatic， controversial founding father， Lee Kuan Yew。 Rising from a legacy of divisive colonialism， the devastation of the Second World War， and general poverty and disorder following the withdrawal of foreign forces， Singapore now is hailed as a city of the future。 This miraculous history is dramatically recounted by the man who not only lived through it all but who fearlessly forged ahead and brought about most of these changes。
Delving deep into his own meticulous notes， as well as previously unpublished government papers and official records， Lee details the extraordinary efforts it took for an island city–state in Southeast Asia to survive at that time。
Lee explains how he and his cabinet colleagues finished off the communist threat to the fledgling state's security and began the arduous process of nation building: forging basic infrastructural roads through a land that still consisted primarily of swamps， creating an army from a hitherto racially and ideologically divided population， stamping out the last vestiges of colonial–era corruption， providing mass public housing， and establishing a national airline and airport。
In this illuminating account， Lee writes frankly about his trenchant approach to political opponents and his often unorthodox views on human rights， democracy， and inherited intelligence， aiming always "to be correct， not politically correct。" Nothing in Singapore escaped his watchful eye: whether choosing shrubs for the greening of the country， restoring the romance of the historic Raffles Hotel， or openly， unabashedly persuading young men to marry women as well educated as themselves。 Today's safe， tidy Singapore bears Lee's unmistakable stamp， for which he is unapologetic: "If this is a nanny state， I am proud to have fostered one。"
Though Lee's domestic canvas in Singapore was small， his vigor and talent assured him a larger place in world affairs。 With inimitable style， he brings history to life with cogent analyses of some of the greatest strategic issues of recent times and reveals how， over the years， he navigated the shifting tides of relations among America， China， and Taiwan， acting as confidant， sounding board， and messenger for them。 He also includes candid， sometimes acerbic pen portraits of his political peers， including the indomitable Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan， the poetry–spouting Jiang Zemin， and ideologues George Bush and Deng Xiaoping。
Lee also lifts the veil on his family life and writes tenderly of his wife and stalwart partner， Kwa Geok Choo， and of their pride in their three children –– particularly the eldest son， Hsien Loong， who is now Singapore's deputy prime minister。
For more than three decades， Lee Kuan Yew has been praised and vilified in equal measure， and he has established himself as a force impossible to ignore in Asian and international politics。 From Third World to First offers readers a compelling glimpse into this visionary's heart， soul， and mind。
Reviews
Oshin
，
One of the best book for knowing political history。
Priyankar Sarkar
，
The first part of the book is a must read。 He is a role model。
Harsha Varma
，
Lee Kuan Yew is one of the first CEOs of a country。 He ran Singapore like a startup， attracting investments and talent， making it one of the world's most prosperous countries。 He is one of the most influential leaders of the 20th century， given the influence he had on Deng Xiaoping。 There are numerous lessons in the book， especially for city mayors who want to attract investments and talent。He also talks about managing ethnic conflicts， promoting racial harmony， making Singapore a green city， bu Lee Kuan Yew is one of the first CEOs of a country。 He ran Singapore like a startup， attracting investments and talent， making it one of the world's most prosperous countries。 He is one of the most influential leaders of the 20th century， given the influence he had on Deng Xiaoping。 There are numerous lessons in the book， especially for city mayors who want to attract investments and talent。He also talks about managing ethnic conflicts， promoting racial harmony， making Singapore a green city， building an army， building Changi airport， addressing traffic congestion， reforming the judicial system， maintaining rule of law among other things。 It is a treasure trove of wisdom。 On attracting investors:1。 We had established the Economic Development Board by statute in August 1961。 It was a one-stop agency so that an investor need not deal with a large number of departments and ministries。 This agency would sort out all an investor’s requirements whether relating to land， power， water or environmental and work safety。2。 Investors should be treated like valued friends who needed guidance through the maze of their bureaucracy with its landmines and other traps。3。 I would tell the minister what I wanted him to achieve， and leave him to get on with the task; it was management by objective。 。。。more
Chandrasen Rajashekar
，
Book recommendation from Balaji Srinivasan The Tim Ferris Show: #506@2:15:00This person is the one who built Singapore
Aminul Haque
，
Chronicles of the making of Singapore Inc。， by the master of realpolitik。 Lee found a right role at the right time and place， and took advantage of the patronages available during the early cold war era。 He built Singapore as an island state not only geographically but also as an anomaly among Asian and ASEAN neighbors。 It is a fascinating story though， how he pulled an itinerant fisherman/farmer community into a country of industrialists， traders and bankers with ruthless efficiency and resolve Chronicles of the making of Singapore Inc。， by the master of realpolitik。 Lee found a right role at the right time and place， and took advantage of the patronages available during the early cold war era。 He built Singapore as an island state not only geographically but also as an anomaly among Asian and ASEAN neighbors。 It is a fascinating story though， how he pulled an itinerant fisherman/farmer community into a country of industrialists， traders and bankers with ruthless efficiency and resolve。It was interesting to read Lee taking shots at other Asian development aspirants such as India。 I wonder how much "Vision" and "Statesmanship" he could have retained if he had to deal with the challenges of size， diversity and inequality such as was in India。 Fittingly， the foreword was written by Henry Kissinger。 。。。more
Malik Bedar Bakht
，
Perhaps the greatest man of 20th century。 What stood out in his remarkably accomplished life was that he always followed the dictates of rationality， and remained flexible。 Never giving way to theories。 He read widely， learned from his own mistakes， as well as others' mistakes。 In the latter way， he was wise enough to stand on the shoulder of giants。If Lee Kuan Yew's life can be summed up in one word， it is rationality。 It is reflected in all of his courses of action， domestic as well as in fore Perhaps the greatest man of 20th century。 What stood out in his remarkably accomplished life was that he always followed the dictates of rationality， and remained flexible。 Never giving way to theories。 He read widely， learned from his own mistakes， as well as others' mistakes。 In the latter way， he was wise enough to stand on the shoulder of giants。If Lee Kuan Yew's life can be summed up in one word， it is rationality。 It is reflected in all of his courses of action， domestic as well as in foreign relations。 He always chooses the course of action that has most benefits and the least cost， after assessing several courses of action。 Further， he tries to address the cons of each of his decisions as well so as to minimise its downsides。 。。。more
Никита Тимошенко
，
Интересная личность， но около 70-80% книги посвящено тому， какие отношения были с другими странами， с полным описанием всех глав этих государств за все время。 Самая интересная информация в начале и в конце книги） В целом， очень интересно читать， как из крошечного городка сделали такое чудо
Dan
，
One giant grain of salt/disclaimer: I am hoping to talk to some friends of my who are actually from Singapore to see if the picture painted in the book is reflective of their lived experience。 Seeing as it’s a memoir I’m sure there will be discrepancies and I’m excited to engage on them。What a neat read。 I will steal the first sentence because it frames the story so brilliantly: “There are books that teach you how to build a house， how to repair engines， how to write a book。 But I have not seen One giant grain of salt/disclaimer: I am hoping to talk to some friends of my who are actually from Singapore to see if the picture painted in the book is reflective of their lived experience。 Seeing as it’s a memoir I’m sure there will be discrepancies and I’m excited to engage on them。What a neat read。 I will steal the first sentence because it frames the story so brilliantly: “There are books that teach you how to build a house， how to repair engines， how to write a book。 But I have not seen a book on how to build a nation。。“ Lee Kuan Yew is maybe the closest real world example of Plato’s philosopher king and his memoirs capture what made him， and by extension Singapore， so singularly successful in South East Asia。 In 1965， the year when Singapore emerged from former British colony into sovereign nation-state， South East Asia was not a very safe place to be。 Spheres of influences were being exerted by the Cold War powers， and I couldn’t help but picture Singapore as a small pontoon raft， forced to navigate these political and revolutionary currents far beyond its control。 It’s in this environment that LKY not only helped Singapore survive， but prosper and grow into one of the most dynamic economies in the region。A few interesting points that I’m struggling to put into a paragraph:- National forced savings system as a social safety net。 He says he’s very anti-handout （which explains why the forward and reviews on the cover of this book include Kissinger， Thatcher， Bush and other conservative world leaders）， but he pairs this with a really thoughtful and calculated alternative。 The system includes an employer and gov （I think？） contribution and it means all individuals have money put away for downturns。 Think like 401（K） but you can use it for more things and it’s made available by the government and the employer is forced to match。- Huge emphasis on making sure all Singaporeans were equity holders in the success of Singapore。 From this forced savings program， individuals were encouraged （nearly forced） to buy property and invest in Singaporean firms。 Think about what that does for the incentives of labor。 All citizens of the country were invested in the success of the country， and stood to benefit from it。 Made labor organizers and management work more closely together， and truly ensured that a rising tide lifted all boats。- Had to deal with a markedly diverse population， especially as compared to other SEA countries。 Majority were Chinese， and then two large minorities （~20% each I think） Malay and Indian。 He was a big proponent of forced integration even going so far as to set maximum a minimum quotas （reflective of the population demographics） for each race in neighborhoods。 So no only Chinese or only Indian housing tracts。 Seemingly super odd， but worked well in Singapore。- He also banned chewing gum？ Again weird， but worked there。 One of the most green and clean cities on the planet。Not sure how many of these hold lessons for larger countries， but interesting and creative none the less。One final point that I don’t agree with- he talks a few times about how well-educated men in the country were marrying poorly educated women and it was a problem both for the well educated women and for the progeny of these “mixed-intelligence” couples。 He goes as far as to quote The Bell Curve， a pretty widely criticized book on the topic。 Obviously modern genetics does not support the idea of heredity for general intelligence。All in all though amazing read。 Highly recommend。 。。。more
Xia
，
3。6Split into 3 distinct thirds， the first， in 1st-ish person， describes the formation of Singapore。 The second， in 3rd-ish person describing the global international development。 The third， back in 1st-ish person， describes the maintenance of the country he built。The first third is fascinating on a tactical level， attending to each tree involved in making his country。 The second， and bulkiest third， edifies on the strategic level， seeing the forest in relation to every other forest in the world 3。6Split into 3 distinct thirds， the first， in 1st-ish person， describes the formation of Singapore。 The second， in 3rd-ish person describing the global international development。 The third， back in 1st-ish person， describes the maintenance of the country he built。The first third is fascinating on a tactical level， attending to each tree involved in making his country。 The second， and bulkiest third， edifies on the strategic level， seeing the forest in relation to every other forest in the world。 The third and last section comes back to the tree level to find a replacement for himself and his administration。It is interesting to feel the fit of Lee Kuan Yew's views。 His judgements on the different countries and leaders he's had to work with reveals much more than just the intricacies of statesmanship changing throughout the decades。 Though what it is exactly can't be said for by anyone but the reader himself。 。。。more
Eugène G
，
Bedtime read
Hugo Chang
，
This is a rare gem。 We rarely get to read about the founder of a country from the first-person perspective。 I cannot say I agree with everything Mr。Lee said but the view is honest and direct。 A very good read。
miremnao
，
Душная книга для успешного начальника ЖЭКа。
Adam Junid
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Read this a while back circa 2004， but from my recollection， useful lessons recalled are:1） Ensure citizenry get world class education。 Then they can be helpful to valuable investors & draw in longterm FDI。 This includes mandatory reasonably high standards of widely used languages2） Try to regulate housing to minimise racial clicques， i。e。 encourage citizenry from different backgrounds/culture to live nearby & mingle as neighbours3） Try encourage strong sense of belonging via national service， w Read this a while back circa 2004， but from my recollection， useful lessons recalled are:1） Ensure citizenry get world class education。 Then they can be helpful to valuable investors & draw in longterm FDI。 This includes mandatory reasonably high standards of widely used languages2） Try to regulate housing to minimise racial clicques， i。e。 encourage citizenry from different backgrounds/culture to live nearby & mingle as neighbours3） Try encourage strong sense of belonging via national service， which enforces standards of fitness， drive and gives practical lessons in psychology4） Try learn from the best， yet learn critically， i。e。 meld / filter what is taught using direct observation/experience 。。。more
Cristian Predan
，
Excellent written and a must read for anyone who is interested in the Singapore story。
Toshi
，
When I saw LKY's passing and funeral， former US President Clinton was attending in person， and learned Bill Clinton considered LKY as his mentor。 Barack Obama as well。 This book is his personal memoire and reflections as he led the Singapore of British colonial state， under Japanese occupation in WWII， British return， then independence as part of Malaysia， then ousted out of Malaysia to be independent in 1965。 From there， Singapore progressed to the first world under his leadership as Prime Mini When I saw LKY's passing and funeral， former US President Clinton was attending in person， and learned Bill Clinton considered LKY as his mentor。 Barack Obama as well。 This book is his personal memoire and reflections as he led the Singapore of British colonial state， under Japanese occupation in WWII， British return， then independence as part of Malaysia， then ousted out of Malaysia to be independent in 1965。 From there， Singapore progressed to the first world under his leadership as Prime Minister for 31 years （1959-1990）。I expected to read in this book was how he initiated and worked through on many aspects of development in Singapore， beautiful garden city， attracting world-class talent in every sectors of society （industry， academia， service， military excellence）， established harmonized multi-racial/multi-religious/cultural/multi-language society， that are probably the safest place in the world to live， and the cleanest （corruption free） government。 Singapore itself prove to be such place attracting many multi-national corporations， placing their Asian headquarters in Singapore。 Well， he explains in great detail of how they experimented， learned from failure and moved on。 Today's beautiful "city in the garden" was started as he dispatched people to the countries of similar climate around the world to bring back plant seeds， to experiment which ones are suitable in Singapore soil。What I was astonished the most was his discipline of finding right people （capable， character， temperament， motivation and drive） and place them in challenging positions， in building his political party and government。 He had such sense。 On top， when he started to find younger generation leaders to succeed founding generation， he learned from Royal Dutch Shell how they recruit and promote people "helicopter view" - ability to see problem in broader perspective and yet be able to zoom in to greater detail， and adopted it for recruiting candidates to stand for election。 He was a perpetual learner。More than half of this book is spent on his diplomatic details in all countries in Southeast Asia， Japan and China。 He had great friendship as person-to-person with many head of states in this regions over 30+ years （even after he stepped down from Prime Minister）。 He was the influencer to stabilize the world in this region from the end of WWII， through Vietnam war。 I would think his word to Deng Xiaoping "Singaporeans are descendants of peasants。 Scholars and mandarines remained in China。 We could do this （third world to first）， why China can't" ignited Deng Xiaoping to learn from Singpaore for open economy to eventually to social-capitalism policy for great success。 LKY predicted that China will be world largest or second by 2050 （this book was published in year 2000）。 His world view （he wrote another book "One Man's View of The World" in 2013） was quite accurate。It's unfortunate that there is no Japanese version available。 。。。more
Nguyễn Quốc Nam
，
Indonesia đã nhiều năm xích mích với Singapore， Indonesia muốn lấy Singapore làm bàn đạp để chiêm hết cả Malaysia nhưng điều đó chưa bao giờ thực hiện được。 Dân dần Indo bỏ ý định đó và tập trung vào việc cải cách và phát triển hợp tác kinh tế cùng Singapore。Năm 1967， Họ thành lập nên Asena nơi có Thái Lan， Malai， Philipn và Indo， nơi gắn kết về mặt kinh tế và cũng là mặt trận chống lại sự bành trướng lớn mạnh của phe cộng sản ở Đông Dương。Việt Nam， Myanmar và Campuchia thì sẽ cùng hợp tác với S Indonesia đã nhiều năm xích mích với Singapore， Indonesia muốn lấy Singapore làm bàn đạp để chiêm hết cả Malaysia nhưng điều đó chưa bao giờ thực hiện được。 Dân dần Indo bỏ ý định đó và tập trung vào việc cải cách và phát triển hợp tác kinh tế cùng Singapore。Năm 1967， Họ thành lập nên Asena nơi có Thái Lan， Malai， Philipn và Indo， nơi gắn kết về mặt kinh tế và cũng là mặt trận chống lại sự bành trướng lớn mạnh của phe cộng sản ở Đông Dương。Việt Nam， Myanmar và Campuchia thì sẽ cùng hợp tác với Singapore， trong đó ông ấn tượng với Việt Nam với thiên nhiên và con người nơi đây。 Đây hứa hẹn sẽ là một nước phát triển hơn nữa trong thời gian tới。Trong các quốc gia xung quanh thì Singapore ưu tiên hợp tác với các cường quốc lớn trên thế giới như Mỹ， Châu Âu， và Nhật Bản。 Sau này có Hàn Quốc， Trung Quốc， Đài Loan， ÚC， New Zeland và các quốc gia khác。 Cho thấy Singapore không bỏ bất cứ cơ hội nào mà họ có được thể phát triển。Về gia đình ông Lý thì chỉ có con trai cả Lý Hiển Long gặp bất hạnh khi vợ đầu có con bị tự kỷ nhẹ và vợ ông mất 2 năm sau đó。 Sau đó 10 năm thì ông bị ung thư dạ dày-ruột nhưng được hóa trị khỏi。 Kế tiếp sau thì ông Long đã lấy vợ 2 và hạnh phục tới bây giờ。 Con trai thứ 2 Yang lấy vợ và có 3 người con。 Con gái út không lấy chồng và sống một cuộc đời dành cho nghiên cứu các bệnh về thần kinh。 Ông Lý cũng là người con trai cả trong các anh em và ông vẫn duy trì sự gặp mặt gia đình để ôn lại chuyện cũ và gắn bó tình anh em trong gia đình。 Thực sự thán phục cuộc đời và sự nghiệp ông Lý đã trải qua và cống hiến hết mình cho một Singapore được như ngày hôm nay 。。。more
Mykola
，
Історія створення Сингапуру надзвичайно цікава。 Друга частина книги присвяченна ролі Сингапуру на міжнародні арені для мене була важкою для читання。
Sasha
，
Way too nitty gritty
Simonas
，
Nebūtina pritarti viskam， kad knyga negalėtų būti 5*。Knyga yra pusiau Singapūro istorija， pusiau jo ilgamečio premjero biografija。 Lee Kuan Yew buvo pirmas nepriklausomo Singapūro premjeras， šias pareigas užėmęs 25+ metus ir po to toliau aktyviai dalyvaujantis valstybės valdyme （valstybė nėra pilnai demokratiška， kaip ne kaip）。 Knygoje jis detaliai aprašo įvairiausius sprendimus， kurių dalis lėmė Singapūro valstybės sėkmę， kita dalis yra demokratinio pasaulio kritikuojama （spaudos draudimai， opo Nebūtina pritarti viskam， kad knyga negalėtų būti 5*。Knyga yra pusiau Singapūro istorija， pusiau jo ilgamečio premjero biografija。 Lee Kuan Yew buvo pirmas nepriklausomo Singapūro premjeras， šias pareigas užėmęs 25+ metus ir po to toliau aktyviai dalyvaujantis valstybės valdyme （valstybė nėra pilnai demokratiška， kaip ne kaip）。 Knygoje jis detaliai aprašo įvairiausius sprendimus， kurių dalis lėmė Singapūro valstybės sėkmę， kita dalis yra demokratinio pasaulio kritikuojama （spaudos draudimai， opozicinių jėgų griežtas reguliavimas， kišimasis į šeimos planavimą ir valstybės aktyvų dalyvavimą versle）。 Ypač patiko detalės， kaip buvo sprendžiami socialiniai klausimai， kaip išsilavinusių moterų vienišumas ir vaikų negimdymas （spoiler alert: pakūrė valstybinę pažinčių tarnybą）， valdžios pareigūnų ruošimas nuo vaikystės， tarptautiniai santykiai ir kt。 Prieš kokius 10 metų buvau aktyvus Singapūro sėkmės advokatas， kol nepasikalbėjau su profesoriumi valstybių raidos tyrėju， kuris mane įtikino， kad 50 metų yra per trumpas laikas spręsti， kas yra gerai， o kas ne。 Bet kokiu atveju， šita Lee Kuan Yew knyga labai gerai įsipaišo į paveikslą pilnai suprasti， kaip Singapūras veikia。 。。。more
Kyth Palma
，
The top of the list among the memoirs read。 The book was well-written。 It showed the struggles of Singapore。 Lee Kwan Yew， a man of vision，supported by amazing leaders perfectly placed leading the country， rose to power and led Singapore to its greatness。 A good book for people curious of how Singapore came to be。
Isaac Chia
，
'The book would never finish if it were in chronological order'。 A lack of narrative may have made it less gripping， but provides insights into Singapore's early years of independence。 Chapters outline our geopolitical & economic relations with the world， almost like a crash course in regional history。 I must caveat that LKY can come off as paternalistic， hence keeping critical at the commentary will make this read valuable。 'The book would never finish if it were in chronological order'。 A lack of narrative may have made it less gripping， but provides insights into Singapore's early years of independence。 Chapters outline our geopolitical & economic relations with the world， almost like a crash course in regional history。 I must caveat that LKY can come off as paternalistic， hence keeping critical at the commentary will make this read valuable。 。。。more
Wezi Kaonga
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Great book that every african leader should read
Chingachguk Mohikan
，
I should read this book at my 20。。。Speechless。
Kharlanov Sergey
，
Потрясающий человек и отличная книга。 Читаешь и понимаешь какие чудеса могут происходить в стране， когда к власти приходит умный и нежадный человек。 А вот когда читаешь про строительство Сингапуром парка в Китае - сразу вспоминается Украина и становится довольно грустно。 Но книга обалденная и вселяет надежду и веру в то， что возможности человека практически безграничны。
Oscar Balcells
，
I really enjoyed reading this book。 There are no eloquent speeches， no grandiose descriptions about Lee's vision for Singapore， it's pure substance （at least the first half）， and it is filled with specific details about the policies that were undertaken by the PAP's government to protect and grow Singapore。The book is separated into topics and not ordered chronologically。 This is good if you're more interested in the political side， since it makes the information easier to absorb。 However， it ma I really enjoyed reading this book。 There are no eloquent speeches， no grandiose descriptions about Lee's vision for Singapore， it's pure substance （at least the first half）， and it is filled with specific details about the policies that were undertaken by the PAP's government to protect and grow Singapore。The book is separated into topics and not ordered chronologically。 This is good if you're more interested in the political side， since it makes the information easier to absorb。 However， it may make it a bit more difficult to read if what you want to learn about is gradual development and the evolution of the country。 It was sometimes difficult for me to have a clear understanding of what was happening at each point in time。 The 30 years between 1960 and 1990 are kind of condensed in my brain as one big phase where a lot of things happened in Singapore， but I don't really know in which order they happened。The first part of the book was for me the most interesting one。 It's just about Singapore and the reforms that were undertaken。 The other half is about foreign policy。 It's interesting too， of course， but it's maybe a bit too detailed and it deals too much with the individual foreign politicians that Lee had contact with。 The problem is that there are too many of them and so it's hard to remember anything about their individual characteristics。 However， this last half is useful to contrast Singapore with its neighbours and other countries and so to highlight what made Singapore so special。I really recommend the book。 Lee is probably the first politician who made me become excited about politics。 I had read about "meritocracy" before， but this is the first time that I see something that truly resembles what meritocracy stands for。 。。。more
Olga Teslenko
，
Excellent！
Paulo
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Lee Kuan Yew's autobiography is a veritable tour de force。 The book covers Singapore's history from colonial times to the early 2000's—a most eventful period that saw British colonialism， Japanese occupation， decolonization followed by independence from Malaysia， and Singapore's meteoric rise to the first world from modest beginnings—when the country's very viability was in doubt—and under severe threats from larger， more powerful neighbors bent on expansion。The author recounts a treacherous jou Lee Kuan Yew's autobiography is a veritable tour de force。 The book covers Singapore's history from colonial times to the early 2000's—a most eventful period that saw British colonialism， Japanese occupation， decolonization followed by independence from Malaysia， and Singapore's meteoric rise to the first world from modest beginnings—when the country's very viability was in doubt—and under severe threats from larger， more powerful neighbors bent on expansion。The author recounts a treacherous journey fraught with risk， including to his own life。 During his political career， Singapore not only built a modern economy from scratch， but also raised an army from scratch， fought an undeclared war， faced down communist subversion， and navigated through high-stakes diplomacy involving the entire world。 At the time of writing， Lee Kuan Yew believed that Singapore was still under threat and must keep on guard。 After facing so many challenges， it's understandable that LKY sometimes comes across as highly pragmatic and even paranoid。 This mindset pervades his sometimes hard-edged， paternalistic approach to government and his highly rationalistic worldview。The organization of the book reflects the author's orderly， paternalistic mindset。 Each issue has its own chapter， a bit like in a textbook。 I was struck by his relentless attention to detail， boundless energy， raw passion， and singlemindedness。 Interestingly in a book that deals mostly with statecraft， he often dwells on discipline， effort and individual character， both in Singapore and in other nations。 One curious aside is his discussion of the case of Michael Faul's caning， where he emphasizes the need to uphold the law in the face of foreign pressure and mentions a rather irrelevant detail， ie。， that Mr。 Faul was addicted to buthane when he committed the crime he was caned for。 In contrast， more controversial cases such as J。B。 Jeyaretnam's ouster from parliament and Johannes van Damme's hanging are given short shrift—JBJ is dismissed as "foolish" in a few lines; van Damme isn't mentioned at all。 I ended up wondering whether LKY's narrative was selective in other aspects as well。One theme that pervades the entire book are so-called Confucian values。 Lee Kuan Yew believed that Confucianist societies such as Singapore， China and Japan value order and harmony and are more accepting of strong， centralized authority。 LKY is unapologetic about Singapore's famous nanny-state regulations and candidly admits to more controversial measures such as tutelage of the press， threats to union leaders， increased use of the death penalty， and detention without trial of communist activists。 Unfortunately he does not elaborate on his beliefs or address alterntives or opposing views。 Instead he simply affirms that he was vindicated by events， including Singapore's stunning economic success and his party's sweeping electoral victories over several decades。Another of his politically incorrect beliefs， more common among people of his generation， is that there are innate differences between peoples; he even said that he believed that "the Japanese have a higher IQ，" but stopped short of claiming actual superiority of one race over another or of attributing Asia's successes to Asians' higher innate ability or other countries' failures to racial inferiority。 That said he strongly emphasized meritocracy and often appointed people of other races to important posts。I particularly enjoyed LKY's thorough assessments of dozens of countries and world leaders， including American presidents， British and Japanese cabinet members， Soviet and Chinese premiers， African leaders， and assorted Asian aristocrats。 Most relevant today are his meetings with Deng Xiaoping and Vietnamese leaders。 Both admitted to being inspired by Singapore and were actively seeking to emulate the country's success。Singapore's disproportionate impact on Asia means that Lee Kuan Yew casts a longer shadow than most people realize in the planet's fastest-growing region。 As the epicenter of world geopolitics continues to shift eastwards， Lee Kuan Yew's views should be carefully studied by anyone interested in understanding Asia and the world itself。 。。。more
Rasheed Ghassan
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Great book to read for an ordinary citizen or a fresh politician， it is a book that teaches you how to build a nation from scratch and maintaining it。
Andrei Blaj
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 The book is structured in 2 parts: first part is about how to build a society （the Singaporean Society）。 Kuan Yew is very thoughtful in retrospect about the ideas they had on different fields like welfare， health services， education， multi-culturalism。 The second part （much longer） is about the interaction of Singapore with the relevant global players: Malaysia， Indonesia， Britain， US， European Union， The Commonwealth and others。 There are a couple of things that sticked: Kuan Yew never desired The book is structured in 2 parts: first part is about how to build a society （the Singaporean Society）。 Kuan Yew is very thoughtful in retrospect about the ideas they had on different fields like welfare， health services， education， multi-culturalism。 The second part （much longer） is about the interaction of Singapore with the relevant global players: Malaysia， Indonesia， Britain， US， European Union， The Commonwealth and others。 There are a couple of things that sticked: Kuan Yew never desired to be politically correct， he wanted to create a great society based on productivity and on independent individuals。 He understood early on the dangers of communism。 He also took what was best from each society he interacted with （Britain， Malaysia， Indonesia， US， Japan etc） and applied what he thought best to the Singaporean society。 The second part of the book， although pretty long， is full of insights about how Kuan Yew and Singapore interacted with other nations。 You can see how thoughtful Kuan Yew was， he had a reason and a mission with every nation Singapore interacted。 He also had an instinct and understood where power resides。 I got a chance to better understand world history after WWII through a south east Asia lens。 It is amazing how he managed to switch from a British influence to a US influence （and also a lot of investments） in a short time。 They had a lot to win as a nation。 Kuan Yew， although leader of a small nation， was in the center of a lot of political meetings because of his smartness and thoughtfulness。 。。。more
Julian Schrittwieser
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