A Trinity of Budding Stories

By Roland

Telling it like what it is through the lens of a Singaporean on the ground. Famed for her Merlion, “Crazy Rich Asians”, “Money No Enough”, here is a lowdown on living in Singapore beyond the tinsel. Having lived through the carefree childhood of the late 1960s, the nation building of the 1970s, the economic miracle of the 1980s, the saturated successes of the 1990s, the remaking attempts of the 2000s and the spiralling costs in the last decade, this collection of a personal recount, an essay story and his mini-biography, depict the writer’s journey into awareness of self and society. It is a trinity of conflict, control and clarity.
There are many levels of reading the book. Besides the light humour, the more insightful reader will recognise the satire woven into the stories. Greed is often disguised under false modesty. Rules are unquestionably followed even the reason for their being, has long disappeared. The book ends with “Budding into Being” where conflict and control fade into clarity. A new level of understanding and a rallying call for the Aspergers rise above the horizon. The three stories are knitted into a continuum round where the end justifies the beginning.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Partridge Publishing Singapore
• Release date: Apr 1, 2024
• ISBN: 9781543781519

Roland

The writer has published many feature articles, personal recounts, though largely a closet writer of fiction stories. A graduate from the National University of Singapore (NUS) with a BBA in 1987, he is an NIE-trained (Nanyang Technological University) teacher with a PGDE (Credit) in 2012. In addition, he successfully completed and attained a Diploma in Creative Writing from “Writers Bureau (UK)” in 2008. He spent his formative 6 years’ education at Raffles Institution, where his spark for the language first ignited. A self-taught learner in the finer aspects of the language for much of his adult life and though from a much more modest background, he believes it is possible to aspire to the Asian standard bearer of the command of standard English - as exemplified by our late founder of modern Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew - by having a meticulous eye for grammar, constant exposure to the language, and a lifelong humble learning attitude. A private tutor by profession, it is his fervent belief that all fellow Singaporeans should strive for proficiency in standard English; thus, Singlish is avoided wherever possible in his writings. Email address - [e-mail] Website - www.teachwellasia.com

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Copyright © 2024 by Roland.

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PREFACE

The three books within the book were written over a span of 20 years in different seasons.

My Life Story was written as a resume when I was asked to write an introduction and background on myself explaining why I thought I would be the right person for the writer position I had applied for. The magazine editor called me for an interview, and I was duly hired as a contract writer in 2007.

The Last Line of Defence was recorded after my 1993 overseas military training as a journal entry in my diary, which had been my constant confidant for a good 15 years during those muted years of my life. Come, Play Monopoly With Me was crafted in 2008 to bring awareness to a phenomenon in society that might echo an Orwellian ring.

Together with the above two stories, My Life Story, a prelude to Budding into Being, formed the trio that I put together while on a working holiday in Haiphong, Vietnam, in December 2023.

This stream of consciousness, from an army recount, an essay story to a mini-biography, is a collection of experiences. Finally, in the many sleepless winter nights of 2023 and early 2024, the three seemingly discordant stories of the same DNA were stitched into a tapestry, where a bold narrative emerged to order the inner chaos.

Having to put up with my foibles, I am greatly indebted to family members, including my lovely wife and daughter, Huyen