Lee Kuan Yew: Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going

Kuan Yew Lee, Fook Kwang Han

Straits Times Press, 2011 - Prime ministers - 458 pages

Presented in Q & A format, and enriched with strong contextual narrative, each chapter features Lee in full flow - sometimes combative, occasionally querulous, but always engaging. His views are articulated forcefully, with forays into history to buttress his point. To him, Singapore is a miracle that could disappear if not for exceptional leadership and safeguards. Here is Lee at 87, an unrepentant believer in strong government, in genes, and in the view that economics trumps freedoms. This book presents the politically incorrect Lee, often impatient and dismissive of those who criticise his worldview. He is not one for regrets. He does not recant. But there are moments when he looks back and thinks he could have done things differently or been more accommodating. Readers will gain insight into Lee's mind as he ruminates, argues, thinks aloud and rebuts