The First Fools: B-Sides of Lee Kuan Yew’s A-Team

by Peh Shing Huei

Singapore’s founding fathers are the stuff of legend. Much has been written about the indomitable Lee Kuan Yew who transformed a nation from mudflats into metropolis, as well as his fellow Old Guard who left their stamp on almost every aspect of Singapore’s DNA, from the economy to diplomacy to housing. But that is not the whole story.

See, the 10 larger-than-life personalities who signed the Separation Agreement in 1965 were the nation’s founding fathers. But they were also men — men who fell in love, who kept secrets, who wrote ghost stories, who played sports (not just golf). They were businessmen, bitter men, and some of the best men Singapore has ever seen. Their names are:

Lee Kuan Yew
Yong Nyuk Lin
E. W. Barker
Goh Keng Swee
Jek Yeun Thong
Lim Kim San
Ong Pang Boon
Othman Wok
S. Rajaratnam
Toh Chin Chye

From the authors of The Last Fools: The Eight Immortals of Lee Kuan Yew comes The First Fools: B-Sides of Lee Kuan Yew’s A-Team. Each chapter in this anthology offers readers a different slice of the same story, one that, in the case of many of the Old Guard, has largely been forgotten. Instead of Lee Kuan Yew, the leader, comes Lee Kuan Yew, the lover; instead of S. Rajaratnam, the diplomat, comes S. Rajaratnam, the fiction writer. Many of these stories are relatively unknown to the public, and yet they are gems in history that capture a softer, more intimate side of Singapore’s first-generation leaders. It is a timely read as the nation they helped build commemorates its 60th year of independence.

237 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2025

Reviews

[Matthew Neo · Rating 4 out of 5]

insights into the people who signed the separation agreement.

prefer this over The Last Fools. there is a bit more soul in this, since more real estate could be given as the book didnt focus on achievements but more of the personal lives of the politicians. after all if we seek their monument, we simply look around us.

thought the personal lives aspect made these legendary figures more.. real.

nice easy bite sized read as well. nothing too heavy that will make you lose interest.

[Vidhya Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read but not a perfect one as each personality is written by different people so it’s not consistent. Some read better than others. The worst ones read like a straits times report, full of quotations & lifted words which drops your interest. All of the people written about are inherently interesting because they had personalities and each was different in life experience too. The pieces on Othman Wok & S Rajarethnam were the weakest. My favourite was the Lim Kim Sam piece. Both the “fools” books also remind you that such personalities are dead in Singapore. It reminds us to mourn this loss too.

[Muhammad Nizam Bin Mohtar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent. A well-researched book. ⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Kifah Maseeh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I embarked on this book to understand Singapores first political titans. Having on had heard of LKY and Singapores largely successful policies (HBD, import substitutions, diversity harmony, etc).

Though this book as the name suggests doesn’t dive into the most famous examples of their time in office, it shows their passion, how they thought process functions and most importantly how many had successful “side quests” in life. It also provides a great introduction of their lives.

The chapters that engaged me the most are the ones about Goh Keng Swee, Lim Kim Sam and Toh Chin Chye, S Rajaratnam and E W Barker.

It also showcased important figures of Singapore though playing a supporting role in the book. By the likes of Yusof Ishak, Lee Hsien Loong, Tony Tan and Goh Chok Ton.

If there is a sequel to the series (other than the last fools), i would surely look into reading it.

[Shan · Rating 4 out of 5]

how i feel about reading this book: buying tickets to watch movie A but took a wrong turn to the theatre watching movie B and ended up really liking the latter movie. this book is a window to who the 10 leaders were beyond their political achievements - and it is really a nice read to see them from a more personable lens. this is perfect for those who scroll to "personal life" on wikipedia pages. it is also really interesting to see what the different authors led the story with. one tiny gripe is that the pronouns can be unclear at times (not sure he/she referring to who).

[Danielle Hong · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gives a good insights to some unsang heros of Singapore, or their less well-known aspects.