Book Launch for Nanyang Digest Revisited

Date: 2 December 2023 (Saturday)
Time: 2pm – 5pm
Venue: The POD @ National Library, Level 16（100 Victoria Street, Singapore 188064）

Free admission. Limited seats available, register here!

About this event

Join us at the launch of our new book, Nanyang Digest Revisited 《重温〈南洋文摘〉：回顾半世纪前的星马社会》,  as we revisit the invaluable history chronicled in Nanyang Digest and delve into the development of the Singaporean and Malaysian society.

The book is an extraordinary undertaking that provides an insightful look at the rich contents of Nanyang Digest — the monthly periodical published by World Book Company — as well as Southeast Asian literature and history. 

Share in the profound insights of esteemed writers and historians who have contributed to this monumental project.

Notable features of Nanyang Digest Revisited:

1) Introductory articles written by expert consultants, providing the reader with valuable historical context relating to the history of Singapore and Malaysia.

2) Selected articles from Nanyang Digest, curated by a panel of experts, helping readers to develop an in-depth understanding of the modern history of Singapore and Malaysia.

3) A comprehensive index of all 168 issues of the publication, encompassing 14 years of history that readers will be able to review at a glance.

Readers can access the electronic version of Nanyang Digest, available in the Chou Sing Chu Collection within the electronic resource library of the National Library Board. 

Light refreshments will be served at the event and attendees will receive a complimentary copy of Nanyang Digest Revisited.

Speakers

Teoh Hee La

Teoh Hee La is an acclaimed author and formerly a senior correspondent for Lianhe Zaobao Fukan from August 1984 to January 2022. She has received numerous awards within the region such as the Golden Lion Literary Award, the Hua Zong (Floral Trail) World Chinese Novel Prize awarded by Malaysia’s Sin Chew Daily, the 2000 S.E.A. Write Award and National Development Council of Singapore Book Award. Her published fiction and non-fiction works include The Passing Wind, A Change in Tune, Flower in the Mirror, and As Time Goes By. She was a writer-in-residence at Nanyang Technological University in 2017. 

Lee Ching Seng

Lee Ching Seng is a former head of the Chinese Library at the National University of Singapore. As a subject specialist in Singapore and Southeast Asian collections and resources, he has written bibliographies on Singapore Chinese literature, and several articles on library collections and the overseas Chinese in Singapore and Southeast Asia.

Lee Kok Leong

Lee Kok Leong pursued his postgraduate education in the UK and spent over two decades in the naval architecture profession. He is a Fellow member of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects headquartered in London, UK. With an unequivocal interest in connecting the immigrant history between Singapore and China, he started engaging in freelance heritage researches more than ten years ago. He has since published several Chinese books which, through comprehensive research and interviews, documented the immigrants’ history in Singapore. His books were supported by several national agencies including China’s local government, the National Arts Council, the MCCY and the National Heritage Board. His books were nominated as the best non-fiction publication by the Singapore Book Council. He also curated the Kwong Wai Siew Peck San Theng Heritage Gallery and the Kwong Wai Shiu Hospital Heritage Gallery supported by the National Heritage Board.

Wing Chong

Born in Johor, Malaysia in 1958, Wing Chong resettled to Singapore in the 1980s. A Master’s degree holder in Business Management, he was a Senior Manager in a European semi-conductor manufacturing company before his retirement. As an active member of the Nature Society Singapore, he participates in local conservation works and is a volunteer guide for Bird Watching activities in Singapore. In recent years, he ventured into literature as a writer focusing on nature and environment. He has also begun translating Malay texts into Chinese, some of which have been published in Lianhe Zaobao. He has co-translated with Chan Maw Woh, the Malay novel Duka Tuan Bertakhta by Isa Kamari into Chinese.