New Books on Singapore History

Chapters on Asia: Selected Papers from the Lee Kong Chian Research Fellowship (2022)

By Faris Joraimi, Liew Kai Khiun, Abhishek Mehrotra and Jesse O’Neill

National Library Board, Singapore (2023), ebook
go.gov.sg/coa22

Chapters on Asia (2022) features papers by the National Library’s Lee Kong Chian Research Fellows. With research based on the collections of the National Library and the National Archives of Singapore, this edition features essays on 19th-century Malay travellers, women’s participation in computerisation in Malaya (1930–65), representation of race in Singapore’s 19th-century English newspapers, and public bathing in Singapore before World War II.

For Arts’ Sake: Memoirs of a Singapore Arts Manager

By Juliana Lim

Talisman Publishing (2023), 264 pages
Call no.: RSING 700.92 LIM

Retired arts manager Juliana Lim provides a behind-the-scenes look at Singapore’s arts scene between the 1970s and the 2000s. Lim joined the Administrative Service in 1973 and was involved in overseeing major arts and cultural policies and initiatives such as the Cultural Vision 1999 and the building of the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay. Her book looks at the ideas, policies and people behind this important period in the history of Singapore’s cultural development.

Sing Musicals: A History of Singapore Musical Theatre

By Kenneth Lyen, foreword by Tommy Koh

World Scientific (2023), 184 pages
Call no.: RSING 782.14095957 LYE

Initially influenced by Broadway and West End musicals, Singapore musicals have evolved into their own unique style. This book dives into the history and development of Singapore musicals since the 1980s, including original Singapore stage musicals, Chinese-language musicals, pantomimes, operas, movies and college musicals.

Sir Charles Bullen Hugh Mitchell G.C.M.G.: 1836 to 1899, The Forgotten Colonial Governor

By Michael Gray

World Scientific (2023), 330 pages
Call no.: RSING 959.5703092 GRA-[HIS]

This is the first known biography of Sir Charles Bullen Hugh Mitchell. As Governor of the Straits Settlements (1894–99), Mitchell steered Singapore to a strong financial position and was instrumental in the implementation of the Federation of Malay States. He was also District Grand Master of the Freemasons in the Eastern Archipelago, and this book contains a rare public account of freemasonry in Singapore during the 19th century.

Sport in Singapore: The Rocky Road to Kallang Park

By Nick Aplin

Sport Singapore (2023), 340 pages
Call no.: RSING 796.095957 APL

The second in a trilogy, this volume contains accounts by Singapore’s pioneer athletes and chronicles the country’s sporting transformation from the late 1940s to 1973, when the old National Stadium officially opened.

新加坡九皇文化: 社群, 信仰与传统 The Nine Emperor Gods Festival in Singapore: Heritage, Culture, and Community

Edited by Koh Keng We et al.

National Heritage Board; Singapore Chinese Cultural Centre (2023), 639 pages (vol 1.), 479 pages (vol. 2A), 397 pages (vol. 2B)
Call no.: RSING Chinese 299.514095957 NIN

Written in English and Chinese, these three volumes are the first nationwide study of the Nine Emperor Gods Festival – the largest Chinese religious festival in Singapore and Southeast Asia. Based on field research conducted at 15 major festival sites and temples in Singapore, the publication covers the 200-year-old history of the festival in Singapore, Southeast Asia and China, including the local temples and communities dedicated to the festival.