Up Close With Lee Kuan Yew: Insights from colleagues & friends: Insights from Colleagues and Friends

by Various

Up Close with Lee Kuan Yew gathers some of the vivid memories of 37 people who have worked or interacted closely with Lee Kuan Yew in some way or other, from when he was at Raffles College in 1941 right up to his demise in 2015. Among these are his 13 Principal Private Secretaries and Special Assistants, and Mdm Yeong Yoon Ying, his Press Secretary of over 20 years. The others include former President S.R. Nathan, Puan Noor Aishah who is the widow of President Yusof Ishak, former Chief Justice Yong Pung How, and friends such as Robert Kuok from his Raffles College days. This book captures an unvarnished look at what it was like to interact with the serious and no nonsense Mr Lee, both at work and outside of work

Contributing Robert Kuok, Yong Pung How, Othman Wok, Puan Noor Aishah, S.R. Nathan, J.Y. Pillay, Lim Chin Beng, Wee Cho Yaw, Chn’g Jit Koon, Sidek Saniff, Philip Yeo, Jennie Chua, Liew Mun Leong, Lim Siong Guan, Jagjeet Singh, Ng Kok Song, Lam Chuan Leong, Bilahari Kausikan, Stephen Lee, Li Ka-shing, Tan Guong Ching, Dr S. Vasoo, Moses Lee, Ho Meng Kit, Yatiman Yusof, Yeong Yoon Ying, Alan Chan, Peter Seah, Heng Swee Keat, Leo Yip, Andrew Tan, Peter Tan, Cheng Wai Keung, Lee Seow Hiang, Chee Hong Tat, Anthony Tan, Lim Teck Kiat

Genres: Nonfiction

328 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 15, 2016

About the author

Various is the correct author for any book with multiple unknown authors, and is acceptable for books with multiple known authors, especially if not all are known or the list is very long (over 50).

If an editor is known, however, Various is not necessary. List the name of the editor as the primary author (with role "editor"). Contributing authors' names follow it.

Note: WorldCat is an excellent resource for finding author information and contents of anthologies.

Reviews

[Trung Nguyen Dang]

The books are what the title is, insights from people who know the great man. Nothing in the book is particularly new, just reinforcement of what the public already knew. Perhaps the most interesting to me is the devoted relationship with his wife.

[Kwang Wei Long]

Accounts given by Mr Lee close friends and colleagues provided a humanize glimpse to the greatest statesman ever lived.
The accounts covered him as a leader, boss and a friends to his social circle.
He is known for his discipline in his daily exercise among those that worked with him closely which translated to his dedication in building Singapore up.
This book also provides a different perspective to Mr Lee compared to the hard headed and strong character that he displayed in public.
Worth a read into how the country's best leader operated in private.

[aixin]

Stumbled across this book in Kinokuniya and later borrowed it online to read. Although I've read most books that Lee Kuan Yew himself wrote ( The Singapore Story , , etc.), this is the first one where it's other people writing about him. Many entries were enlightening, particularly those from his former PPS (Principle Private Secretaries) as well as the media-shy moguls such as Robert Kuok and Li Ka-Shing. All of them had similar themes: LKY's kindness, his love for and extraordinary marriage with his wife, and his discipline in all areas of his life. However, I glossed over some parts where the details got too repetitive. Ultimately, the one that still tugged at my heartstrings was Heng Swee Keat's "Mr. Lee's Red Box".

[Hasala Perera]

Anyone who wants to know about the affinities and working ethics of Lee Kuan Yew, would love it, what is interesting here is that each chapter is written by those who were closely acquainted with him.

Most of them have written about the role played by Mrs Lee Kwan Yew in his life, giving some insights on her personality as well, in addition to that many of the chapters are written by his Principal Private Secretaries.

Under certain footnotes, there are brief descriptions on agreements where Singapore has been a signatory, so would recommend it for those keen in reading about South East Asia in general. Hence it is a great book and an inspiring read.

[PL]

This book has given insights into the building of Singapore. Renewed respect to Lee Kuan Yew and the founding team of men and women who had devoted their lives for this little red dot! #singapore

Discovery from "Up close with LKY book"
- Feb 2015 - LKY apparently was still having Chinese lessons right down to day b4 he was last admitted to hospital
- Jan 2015 - Altho weak he was lucid at his last dinner with his inner circle.
- Aug 2014 - LKY conducted an interview to recuit his last special assistant

LKY's contentious last will was executed on Dec 17, 2013!
#mentalfood #taitaireads #taitaieats&reads #leekuanyew #foundingfather

[Tianze]

A lot of anecdotes which I relish. They paint a vivid picture of an extremely bright man who worked faithfully and diligently for his country. I learnt many traits of the late Mr. Lee that I never knew before. These anecdotes are consistent with each other even told by different acquaintances of him. Much respect to Mr. Lee’s dedication and pragmatism in successfully bringing Singapore to the first world. All those spoke in the book are good storytellers, worth a read.

[Sheryl Faith]

forever supporting the Lee's family.. victorious leader alive or not. :) kudos and throw my hats to respect Mr Lee Kuan Yew. Awesome and highly recommended book to know more of his insight life based on his colleague's perspectives...

[Anthony Neils]

Five stars is probably a bit much but this book is really cool. I wish I knew more history about the region before reading. Also, this taught me that to be happy all you have to do is care for plants, love your wife, and dedicate your entire being to the glory of Singapore

[Elwin Xavier]

Get the personal side of Lee Kuan Yew from account from close friend, and some untold story. He is truly a selfless person and always putting Singapore before himself..

[Aravind Nagarajan]

Personality cult that I wouldn’t mind being a part of.

[Travis Gwee]

Many sides of LKY that were revealed through his friends and staff member. Truly well loved and respected, so real on & off working hours

[Vivek Raj]

5 points for the man he is. And 3 points for the repeated info in the book.

[Fany Ayuningtyas]

Orang terdekat saya pun tidak banyak yang tahu bahwa 'leadership' adalah salah satu topik yang sangat menarik untuk saya. Saya memliki ketertarikan yang mendalam tentang leadership tapi bukan hanya sekedar leadership yang kaku dan klise.

Leadership that matters to me is not only about leading with passion; it is also about having a clear sense of direction, practicing wisdom and humility along the way. To me, humility in leadership is often misunderstood. Many people associate it solely with empathy or unconditional compassion, but true humility is far more complex than that. Being a leader is never an easy role. It requires the courage to make difficult decisions, the wisdom to recognize one's limitations, and the willingness to keep learning. At its best, leadership is a responsibility that challenges everyone involved to grow and for me, that is humility in leadership: a willingness to grow.There is no perfect leader, but the willingness to grow, accept criticism and feedback, and correct oneself when wrong is a quality that goes beyond the ordinary—especially in a leader of Lee Kuan Yew's caliber. I have been learning all of those from Lee Kuan Yew through this book, not only for a leadership role but also for life. For me, he is one of a kind leader and more importantly, one of a kind human in modern times. This book shows not only his leadership side but also his human side that is deeply personal and humbling.

Deep down, I am also a romantic realist, so it surprised me a little that one of the most inspiring love stories I have encountered came from a stern ENTJ man like Lee Kuan Yew. We undoubtedly process our emotions very differently. As an INFJ, even though my feeling and thinking functions are relatively balanced, my natural inclination is still toward feeling. Because of that, I never expected to find such an inspiring example of love in someone as intensely logical and pragmatic as Lee Kuan Yew—a man whose natural disposition is, in many ways, the opposite of mine. Reading and watching his love story with Kwa Geok Choo moved me to tears in a way that no romantic novel or K-drama ever has (damn, Jane Austen can't even beat this).

Yet perhaps that is precisely what makes his love story so compelling. It reminds me that genuine love is not only defined by personality type or emotional expressiveness, but by steadfast commitment, loyalty, and the quiet choices made over a lifetime. In this book, the story is told through the perspectives of the many people who knew or encountered Lee Kuan Yew and Madam Kwa (people from different backgrounds, different nationalities, different genders, different races and different religions). Their recollections are so detailed, personal, and sincere that it is easy to tell these are not merely formal tributes, but genuine reflections shaped by firsthand experience. This is an incredibly moving book for me, and spoilers alert: I cry a lot reading this book.

[WR]

The stories from the contributors have given us a glimpse of a far lesser known side of someone who is so well known as a public figure.