Stuck for ideas on local literary classics? June Lee selects a sextet of Singapore’s best that any self-respecting bibliophile should read 

The Singapore Story: Memoirs of Lee Kuan Yew 
Lee Kuan Yew (Pearson Education, $36) 
The first volume in our Minister Mentor’s series of memoirs was a smash hit when it was published in 1998. The 680-page hardcover collectable gave a candid, behind-the-scenes look at the making of Singapore, with Lee’s trademark outspokenness on topics ranging from his Hakka childhood during World War II to his eventual appointment as the first prime minister of Singapore in 1959, at age 35. Carefully written to trumpet his achievements and avoid controversy, this is indeed one man’s story of the founding of a nation. This book was followed by From Third World to First – The Singapore Story: 1965-2000. 

Singapore – The Air-Conditioned Nation: Essays on the Politics of Comfort and Control 1990-2000 
Cherian George (Landmark Books, $21) 
Neatly picking up where Lee Kuan Yew left off in his memoirs, former journalist Cherian George compiles 25 of his most compelling articles published in The Straits Times for this collection. Without overtly pointing a finger at the Government, George builds an argument about Singapore’s development model, akin to ‘selfish’ air-conditioning technology that ultimately produces an increase in heat. The essays have been reworked to address themes of social consciousness – hence its tagline as the book for ‘every thinking Singaporean’. 

The Bondmaid
Catherine Lim (Orion , $19) 
Catapulting to fame in the 1990s, Lim is arguably Singapore’s most renowned novelist. Her stories are invariably rooted in the nation’s early independence years, and The Bondmaid – the first of her works published overseas – is no different. In the story, Han is a female bondmaid (slave) in 1950s Singapore who falls in love with the master of the house. The New York Times opined that the ‘love-between-the-classes plot may be a chestnut, but Lim enriches it by painting in many of the daily details in the life of a Singaporean Chinese household of the period.’ With a core of faithful female fans, Lim continues to pen thoughtful stories revealing Singapore to the world. 

No Other City: The Ethos Anthology of Urban Poetry
Editors Alvin Pang, Aaron Lee (Ethos Books, $19)
Weighing in at 64 contributors, this is the ultimate list of poets who call Singapore home. From the early discussion of national identity by pioneers Lee Tzu Pheng and Arthur Yap, to the provocative work by Alfi an Sa’at and Ng Yi-sheng of the New Romantic school, urban Singapore comes alive through verse. Thematically arranged poetry pointing out local incongruities – from temporary trees in a self-professed garden city, to lamenting the loss of heritage in the quest to modernise – shapes this bold tapestry of artistic voices. 

Singapore: A Pictorial History 1819-2000
Gretchen Liu (Editions Didier Millet, $64) 
One of the largest Singaporean archives in print, Liu’s lovingly compiled tome is a homage to the island during the first and second waves of immigration. Rare photographs, sketches, watercolours and engravings – presented chronologically with captions – attempt to answer the perennial question: what is Singapore? Later chapters on nation-building are a bit stilted, but overall, the book is a treasured keepsake for history buffs . 

The Almost Complete Collection of True Singapore Ghost Stories, Book 1
Russell Lee (Flame of the Forest, $10.50) 
Singapore’s longestrunning book series (with a total of 17 volumes) started with this simply designed short-story collection in 1989 – all hyperbolic, breathless investigations of the paranormal. Author Russell Lee has never been unveiled, appearing completely covered up in public, as part of the ghostly persona behind the series.