I took a class taught on this book, it was fantastic. The things I learned through reading this book, and the knowledge I can now share people is great. Learning the truth behind who REALLY founded Singapore, the details of the Japanese Occupation in Singapore, the British's impact on Malaya, and the many religions practiced was made extremely interesting through Baker's words and thoughts. The facts and Baker's views were portrayed brilliantly, a must read.

This is a wonderful book as Jim Baker knows what he is talking about as he has lived in Singapore his entire life (60-70 years). So, naturally, some of the history of Singapore he knows first-handed, as he acurately describes how the nation became a first world country. This gives the truthful and honest facts of both Singapore and Malaysia as it is a must read for anyone looking for the best info. on these two nations.

This book is wonderful, as it fully explains the history of Singapore and some wonderful facts, not commonly found within many other books on Singapore. Jim Baker is an excellent teacher and writer, talking about the thing he knows best, Singapore, as he has lived there his whole life. This is the book to go to for the true and honest facts of both Singapore and Malaysia. A must read.

Written for Malaysia, this book skimps on very little when it comes to tropical gardening.

Writer acknowledges that Malaysia's seasons (Hot/Wet and Hot/Very Wet) are not necessarily the same as, say, Indonesia's or Hawaii's. Therefore, the section on cacti and succulents is a bit scant. And I wished for a little more variety in palms. What nearly makes up for this is the completeness of all the other categories... shrubs, flowering plants, foliage plants, water plants, so on. Amazing detail is given for each plant and, often, its variations. Holtum can always be relied upon to comment on, say, a plant's success at high altitude or near the sea.

Lots of suggestions for how a plant should be used in relation to other species or what size garden it requires. But no landscaping sketches... this is all imparted through the text and sometimes photos. With each listing, the reader will be able to learn rates of growth, most appropriate methods of propagation, etc. Photos excellent but not always inserted RIGHT next to the appropriate text, and sometimes a plant is listed/written about in more than one place (without any good note to this fact). All in all, though, it's a useful reference book without extraneous chit chat.

Bonus for Indonesia and Malaysia: along with plants' common English name and Latin name, we get the Malay name (usually same as Indonesian). Extremely useful for dealing with local suppliers.

I have been very happy with this huge and generally well organized book. None of the gorgeous looking Periplus or smaller tropical plant books come close to the usefulness of this book.

This is a rather large book specifically written for gardeners in tropical regions of the world such as Malaysia and Singapore. It contains numerous plant photos and descriptions as well as basic gardening information relevant to those in tropical climates

However, it is a valuable resource for those growing tropical plants outside of these climates as well due to the number of photos and descriptive information on each plant. The book covers such topics as tropical climates, garden planning, pests, disesases and weeds in addition to information on topics such as bonsai.

I found some of the reading to be a bit in-depth for the typical indoor grower and was hoping to find plant by plant propagation information instead of a chapter of general information on the subject but as a plant reference book, you cannot go wrong with this one.

Finally a book about tropical plants for people living in the tropics. The main focus is on ornamental plants, however there are also informative sections on fruits, vegetables and garden care. The information is detailed, practical and, as I have discovered, accurate. In my opinion the style is very easy to read. The many photographs are invaluable for selecting appropriate plants. Originally the book was written for Malaysia and Singapore. However, my experience has been that the advice is also appropriate for Caribbean conditions.

Set in the exotic Pacific Rim, this book is a must read for expatriates and their spouses. The characters are interesting and easy to identify with, especially for readers who have shared the experience of living outside their home countries. The situations in which the characters find themselves will also be of particular interest to expatriates, many of whom will feel that the writer is speaking directly to them.

Even if you've never been to Singapore, you'll feel like you have after reading this book. The descriptions of the places are so colorful that you are immediately transported there. The characters stay with you.

The intertwining of three women is fascinating to watch, especially as each must face a particular challenge.

This book examines an area of life in Singapore that rarely sees daylight -- in more senses than one! Its attention to detail is quite eye-opening, and contains many, many surprises even for Singaporeans, I suspect. Let alone tourists and visitors who would normally associate Singapore with a strict, sterile, squeaky clean image. I would have thought these "ladies of the night" would be deported faster than they can say "No money, no honey"! Less you think this is a sensational, lurid, "tell it for the money" kind of book (ie only passably-written and mainly for thrill-seekers), nothing could be further from the truth. Brazil has written it in a pacy, journalistic style and combines hard facts (there are lengthy interviews with 12 actual workers) with delicious details (decor of a brothel, prices, prejudices against certain types of clients and modus operandi)that are all the more rivetting because it is happening in Singapore. There are also actual behind-the-scene photos taken by the author. How he gained access might be another tale in itself? It is really an authoritative, yet enjoyable in-depth look at the surprising, thriving Singapore for-sale industry. Possibly NOT a book to recommend for Father's Day though!

A colleague of mind recommended this book to me during my second visit to Singapore last month (my first time there was in 1996)and told me "you would have a hard time putting it down."

In all honesty, he was right. I was intrigued with the descriptive insight that Brazil presented in the book with his interviews with the ladies, and visuals of the places that the sex trade takes place in Singapore.

The only downside to the book is that he didn't talk to many of the men who associated with the ladies. For instance, he highlights how some of the ladies expresses distaste for black men. As a African-American man, I never had a negative experience there as I had little trouble with the ladies (especially the Thai ladies he spoke to) as they showed the utmost respect and kindness. Not to brag, I never had a sense of rejection. I wished that I had Mr. Brazil's contact information as I wouldn't mind collaboring with him on a sequel and share my worthwhile experiences in Singapore.

Aside from that, this book is a "must read" and should be required reading before your visit there. Highly recommended.

I am a newcomer to Singapore, and this book was recommended to me by a friend. I owe that person my gratitude, because this book has changed my life. I was a shy and introverted fellow who had trouble with women and girls, but all that will be changing soon thanks to my new location and the insights gained by the book. I am confident that my "lady problems" are a thing of the past, and I feel more radiant and purposeful than ever before. Look out world (especially you ladies), here I come!

I purchased this book in Singapore, a tiny city-state with a society that is more western compared to equally prosperous neighbors to the north. The book takes a humorous look at a group of ethnic Chinese Singaporean women who stake out joints catering to white expatriate men. The book illustrates one of the bad side effects that a once traditional nation going through dramatic westernization in a short period had to suffer.

Frommer's info is well-written and clear but 228 out of 299 pages deal only with Singapore and this book has no information at all about Sarawak and Sabah, the best places in Malaysia in my opinion.The info on Taman Negara Park and it's activities, such as rafting were scanty and there was no info on the islands of the eastern peninsula.

I just spent a month on business in Singapore and couldn't have made it without this book. Everything was right on, from restaurant reviews to prices for hotels. Jennifer has a great sense of humor and is right on with her recommendations and insights. I travel a lot and will buy Frommers from now on.

You would never expect that a travel book would actually be interesting. But suprise suprise! Jennifer Eveland's writing style tells not only fun things to do, but gets into socio-economic descriptions of the areas she visits, as well as bringing history and religious input about the areas as well. Whether you're going to Singapore or Malasia, or just facying the idea, this book will proove great reading, and create interesting dinner conversation.

This is a long series of accounts of the severe caning of deserving young women and is essential reading for anyone interested in this topic. All the caning is performed by the female author or by other women so it is exclusively F/F. However, the accounts do suffer from repetition.

This has to be Balfour's greatest, fully focused magnum opus. Every chapter is one girl after another being paddled, all sorts of girls - rich ones, poor ones, fat ones, well dressed ones, white and black ones, and on and on... straddling the 'horse' and being paddled or birched until she pleads for mercy. And over 300 pages of it! I should warn casual observers that this is probably going to be too much for them to enjoy beyond the first 100 pages, but if you have a prediliction for either corporal punishment or obsessive fetishist pornography, go for it! Considering these Blue Moon titles go in and out of print, you never know when you'll see another Balfour when this edition is gone, and buying it now sure beats rifling through used bookstores for a spine-creased copy.

I'll sum it up this way: Six or seven hours of flippant descriptions of wailing women having their bottoms striped. No affection, no lovemaking, no kissing. No filler, and no pretense.

Sounds good, no?

The author is telling the reader of the opportunities she has had of giving the cane to many deserving bottoms. The psychology behind the punishments are explained as well. I'm more of a fan of the paddle, but these girls are left sobbing more times than not. If you like to read about well deserved punishment of girls, then this is a good book for you!!

My wife and I are Americans who recently honeymooned in Singapore, and we were quite impressed by how clean, orderly, and efficient it was. Yet we knew there had to be a catch, and none of the locals we met were willing to talk about it. So, upon returning home, we bought this book and also "Singapore's Authoritarian Capitalism," by Christopher Lingle, to find out. (To be fair, we bought Lee Kuan Yew's "The Singapore Story" as well, but haven't read it yet.)

After reading these books, we now understand Singapore's dark side. And it goes way beyond the prohibition on chewing gum and being caned for vandalism. Both of these books are important reads for those seeking to understand Singapore and authoritarian governments in general.

My only criticism of both books is that they are written for those who can sit down and finish the NY Times Sunday crossword puzzle in 20 minutes or less. The vocabulary, diction, and syntax are unnecessarily tortured (so to speak) in both books. Granted, they're both written by scholarly gentlemen, but I have an Ivy League education, and I can't help but think that both authors' voices would be better heard if their prose was more accessible to the general public. Seow's detention was especially dramatic, but he describes his interrogation by heavy-handed, chain-smoking thugs with a Shakespearean lilt that is completely at odds with the material.

Nevertheless, they're good reads, so make a pot of coffee, grab your dictionary, and dive in.

As a Singaporean, I heard about Francis Seow when I was younger. I remember him as a very eloquent speaker and a potential contender for Lee Kuan Yew's PAP government. I also remember how he was constantly potrayed by the local media as a 'dishonest' tax-evader, a 'collaborator' with the Americans to disrupt Singapore's political stability, a 'womaniser', etc. This book looks into the darker side of Singapore's politics from Seow's point of view. It begins with Seow's account of his early career as a government official, his clash with LKY after becoming president of the Law Society, and his 72-day detention without trial under Singapore's Internal Security Act in the late 1980s. Seow's book is a first-hand account of how a Singaporean has suffered under the PAP government's use of biased legislation and media manipulation to maintain political hegemony. Parts of LKY's speeches in the 1950s and 1960s were cleverly quoted by Seow to show the irony of LKY's government, demonstrating how LKY has become almost everything he used to be against since he came into power. Although the economic success of Singapore since independence is indubitable and has often been attributed to the great leadership and foresight of LKY, this book looks into the lesser known aspects of LKY's regime, and will no doubt, raise many questions for the reader.

Francis Seow is a Singapore hero. By Singapore standards, however, he was flawed in that he was compassionate as he gave legal assistance to political detainees in Singapore. By so doing, Mr. Seow became a detainee, himself.

His account of his imprisonment by the Singapore police is as harrowing as anything written by Kafka. No one so articulate as Mr. Seow has described what it is like to be a detainee in Singapore.

I am an American, but was living in Singapore at the time of Mr. Seow's detention. I was in charge of the computer department of the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS). Many of my colleagues at IRAS were disturbed by the million-dollar budget had been allocated to investigate Mr. Seow's tax matters. Naturally, IRAS determined that Mr. Seow had a considerable tax debt.

Mr. Seow was and is a charismatic and brilliant individual. He had become Solicitor General of Singapore, and President of the Law Society. Had he gone along with the dictates of the Singapore system, he could be living a very distinguished life in Singapore today, in high political office. He now lives in the United States, but has not been forgotten in Singapore.

His generosity, which shows so clearly in his book, was extended to my wife (a Singaporean), and myself recently with his kind review of our book on many of the same subjects, entitled "Escape from Paradise."

As an American having lived in Singapore for much of the past 30 years, it seems to me Mr. Hellander hasn't spent much time there. Much of his 'facts' and 'tips' are out of date, or just plain wrong. His 'tips' on hotels and restuarants in particular seem to be based on marketing data, and not real world experience. If you are planning to go to Singapore, there are many other, better written and more accurate, books to read. This would not be one of them. Insight and Essential Explorer do a much better job.

...We found this book to be a very solid reference for transportation and side trips. Compared to Fodor's Singapore guide, which we also carried, this book has more accurate and helpful information on sightseeing and transportation options, e.g., local places to buy bus or ferry tickets for side trips in Malaysia and Indonesia. The book is also a good source of ideas for exploring outlying islands, forests, and neighboring cities.

We were not impressed with the "Places to Eat" section...With two broad exceptions, the descriptions of "Places to Eat" and "Places to Stay" are too brief to be of much use in choosing a specific restaurant or hotel. However, each publisher covers hawker centers reasonably well...Lonely Planet's treatment of budget and alternative lodging arrangements--such as camping--seems fairly comprehensive. Finally, you will find more shopping advice in other guides, although this book's shopping section is not bad.

The information in the book is well organized and generally easy to find. While it is not a "pocket size" guide, its size (approx. 5 x 7 in. or 12.5 x 18.5 cm) makes it very easy to take along in a backpack, camera bag, or briefcase. At 200 pages plus maps, it is light enough to go almost anywhere.

For getting around in the city and to more remote locations, we found ourselves relying on this book. If you are familiar with Singapore, have already arranged accommodations, or are more interested in exploring and side trips, the options in this book can take you much farther afield without stress. First time travelers to Singapore (other than those with extremely limited budgets) or those who go only for the shopping may find the Fodor's guide more helpful.

Lonely Planet maintains a very good website...which features detailed content, including updates about Singapore and other locations. I have rated this book four stars, a very usable little reference that will likely become more useful the more you visit. Combined with the website, the book can prepare you well for nearly all aspects of a visit to Singapore, especially if you intend to use Singapore as a hub for excursions elsewhere. More detailed descriptions of hotels, including further treatment and recommendations in the top half, and more material in the shopping section would give the book a stronger appeal to a broader audience.

While this guide was useful in all the mundane ways (accomodation, eating), I'm grateful to for the way it got me thinking about some of the less understandable aspects of Singapore. After a couple of days of walking around S'pore I began to wonder at the odd sense of artificiality about the place, and the strange way my hosts and others talked of the city-state. I was glad to be reffered to Stan Sesser's book *The Lands of Charm and Cruelty*, which told me of "the fear that even the best educated Singaporeans feel towards their government." I am also grateful to this guide for steering me towards Ian Buruma's essay "The Nanny State of Asia," in his book *The Missionary and the Libertine*, which went into a lot of detail about the police state behind the facade of Singapore's clean toilets, etc. The guide was useful in all practical matters, but by dealing with some of the unpleasantness that is the reality of Singapore, I came away with a better understanding of the place which grew increasingly creepy the longer I stayed. Lonely Planet Singapore is an excellent, thoughtful guide that did what it was supposed to do, yet also led me to other books which helped enrich my business trip. For understanding some aspects of Chinese behaviour in a business setting, I also recommend Bo Yang's *The Ugly Chinaman and the Crisis in Chinese Culture*. Paul Theroux's *Saint Jack* is a novel set in Singapore - though written in the 70's, I found the attitudes and actions of many of the characters still relevant to locals and expats of Singapore today.

This is a good first reference book for those who wish for a single-volume overview of the Chinese Diaspora. However, there are a number of disturbing issues about this book which need to be brought up if the spirit of enquiry is to be preserved.

First the good points: This is the only volume which summarizes the huge diversity of experience of the Chinese diaspora, and while the volume refuses to use the term (something I will come to later), most of us outside the rabid cultural nationalist camp see very little wrong with using it (it's certainly more convenient then "The Chinese Overseas" - overseas from where? one might ask, are Taiwan and Hongkong somehow magically connected to the mainland by invisible strips of earth that only Pan and her collaborators can see?).

The introductory material presents a solid treatment of "traditional" Chinese culture at the turn of the 20th century and gives a useful overview of some of the important ideas in thinking about or studying the diaspora. There are also some good individual chapters on the various "Overseas Chinese" communities. As a non-specialist in Southeast Asia, I was most impressed with the coverage there, but there were useful contributions on Europe, Australasia and North America too. The treatment of Chinese in the Pacific Islands was a little brief, as were the sections on the Caribbean and Latin America. Had Evelyn Hu-DeHart been given a little more space, she would have been able to do her subject matter much more justice.

Now to the problems: Pan's volume begins with the premise that each of these Diasporan Chinese communities shares something called a Chinese Identity. This is in turn related to a model of Chineseness that is dominated by historical (and genetic) factors. No serious attention (with a small number of individual exceptions) is really paid to the ways in which Chinese communities and in particular, the post-World War 2 generations in these places have changed except to invoke "assimilation" in a thoroughly simplistic fashion.

No mention is made of the roles played by Asian Americans (and Chinese Americans in particular) as gate keepers in maintaining North American systems of racial privilege. Nor are the difficult relationships between Chinese and Malays or Chinese-Jamaicans and Afro-Jamaicans given much attention.

The definitional boundaries utilized by dominant interests within ethnic Chinese communities are often unproblematized so that (for example) the Chinese men who married Maori women in New Zealand and the descendants of those marriages disappear from the "Chinese" community as do many of those who married white people.

Rather than examining these points of fragmentation and conflict, the volume instead focusses on the increasing prosperity of certain segments of Diasporan communities. This coupled with the absence of much in the way of critical analysis tends to produce an overall effect of triumphalism and simple-minded praising of the self-made man ideology which is so dear to the hearts of capitalists and model minorities everywhere.

Such an emphasis is to be expected perhaps in a volume commissioned by the Chinese Heritage Center in Singapore, a body set up to promote Lee Kwan Yew's idolization of Confucian family values as the corner-stone of Singaporean Chinese identity and prosperity. This is one reason perhaps why the editors shied away from using the word "Diaspora" with its intimations of permanent rupture, preferring instead a title which asserts the centrality of "China" as a location and as an idea despite the increasingly disputed and diverse nature of the communities it claims to represent.

In summary, I would say "Buy this book but be aware of its limitations." It's not a book I would rely on for anything more than an introduction to a very complex and dynamic situation.

This meticulously researched book is a must read for understanding the Overseas Chinese community in Asia. But despite their economic dominance of the region, the role of the Overseas Chinese in business is very poorly covered in this encyclopedia and almost leaves you feeling that this role has never been analyzed. I recommend that readers supplement this book with a balanced book on the Overseas Chinese in business: Having just finished "New Asian Emperors: The Overseas Chinese, their Strategies and Competitive Advantages" by George T. Haley et al., I see both books as essential to understanding the role of the Overseas Chinese community as both cover the same area from different, though extremely well-researched perspectives.

It's an excellent book for anyone who is ethnically part or full-blooded Chinese, interested in their place in the extended Chinese diaspora. In this age of easy global travel/change of abode, it gave me, a woman who is half-Chinese, half-Japanese who has lived in HK, NY, CA, Jpn and now London, a good sense of having roots and belonging. It's well researched, covering every imaginable part of the world and is not just a dry academic book, but includes info from pop culture to major historical events that involve Chinese people -- a very well-organised, hard-to-put-down, easy read. I have recommended this book to friends, and intend to give a few copies away as birthday and X'mas presents.