The Dinosaur and the Cockroach

By Jonathan Lee

This is the story of a group of primary school boys and bullies from another school. But read the next paragraph and you will see that there is another story hidden within this story. There is the impatient and go-getting Mun, the skinny and swift-footed Soon, and the fun loving and stubby Mok. The three of them rally around Cheng, the smart one always brimming with ideas, and ... most of all, Lam the confident and articulate natural born leader, . The five of them are confronted by three teenagers from a nearby school. Will they bow their heads in shame or will they transcend beyond their tender years to out-wit their bullies? Through this journey, they discover the bonds that bind them together, and also the forces that drive them apart. In their own little ways, they show us what leadership is, and what it is not.

This story was written at a time when street violence on political issues has been relegated to the distant past. Even then, it was evident that politics develop in an uneven progression. Political development in some countries has appeared like a dance : one step forward, and two steps backwards. If this is true of other countries, it was also true of Singapore. This story won a merit award at a Singapore national short story writing competition. In the award giving ceremony, this story was described as a political parable. This is obvious, once you know who is the man in white. It is a sign of political maturity in Singapore that this story can be enjoyed by one and all without fear or favour.

This story begins with the imagery of the dinosaur and the cockroach. It ends by recalling this imagery. Will Lam be the dinosaur or the cockroach? And what about the man in white?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jonathan Lee
• Release date: Apr 2, 2016
• ISBN: 9781311213242

Jonathan Lee

I grew up believing that Singapore history starts with Sir Stamford Raffles. That is the official narrative. But I think there is more than meets the eye. There is a hidden history.My writing journey started with a short story : Dinosaur and the Cockroach -- a metaphor for the evolution of politics and leadership approach in Singapore, written at a time when communism was on its death throes and Catholic "activists" were jailed for communist activities. The short story was described as a "political parody". Since then, I have written several short stories. The Lion City is a veiled commentary on gender politics dressed up in the founding legend of Singapura. It begs the question : who benefits from polygamy, and which will make our society stronger : monogamy or polygamy? Sex Lies and Videotape is about sexual relations within a marriage. It begs the question what is the relative merits of nature vs nurture in sexual relations. The Kent Ridge Caper is about gender relationship, and how society tries to calibrate sex into that relationship.Escape to Temasek and Fall of Singapura are my current passion. I have researched, written and edited this two novels for the past five years. It has spawned a documentary film (Hunt for the Red Lion). And I am still researching other aspects of Singapore history. These two novels rub against the grain of Singapore society. It is a re-interpretation of Singapore history. Most of my friends asked : Are these two novels credible? Were there people in Singapore before Stamford Raffles arrived? Were there Chinese in Singapore at that time? Was the lion really red? Was there really a pirate army? Who attacked Palembang? Was there any connection between the boy hero and the death of a princess? Was she really impaled on a public square? Who attacked Singapura? Was it a Majapahit army or a Tai army? And what happened on Forbidden Hill? To answer these questions, I have compiled two Historical Analysis available on my website (www.jonathanleebooks.com).My message for you, the reader : just sit back and enjoy a good read.The important point is : Singapore had a history, where none existed before.Jonathan Lee

Book preview

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