The Singapore I Recognise: Essays on Home, Community and Hope

Singapore is small, a complex country full of contradictions, inconsistencies and idiosyncrasies. Often held up as a model nation, we sometimes forget that Singapore is seen differently by different people. With a decade of activism and journalism experience, Kirsten Han reveals various aspects of her home country that don’t follow what many of us know as the conventional ‘Singapore Story’. The Singapore I Recognise is Kirsten’s reckoning with civil society’s experiences of Singapore, perspectives that are often unheard, or fall through the cracks. Through researched interviews and heartfelt reflections, Kirsten tells us how parts of Singapore are already moving towards communal care, solidarity, empowerment and hope. This is a resonant portrayal of home in the island city-state.

— from Ethos Books

This book speaks about a Singapore built not just on steel and policy, but on lived experience. Kirsten confronted what it means to belong, to witness change, and to hold onto. Or let go of personal and collective memory. A read to remind us that national identity isn’t monolithic, it’s layered, contested, and deeply human.

— Chris Koh, PS (NRM)