Good Morning Yesterday – Book Review

Should you buy and read “Good Morning Yesterday?” Yes, unless you like reading it in a blog format (individual posts, and long columns of text).

Good Morning Yesterday is an anthology of anecdotes about life in Singapore in the 50s/60s (before independence). It’s literally the physical version of Good Morning Yesterday, Singapore’s most prominent nostalgia blog, but written and organised into a book, sort of like a memoir. Written by Lam Chun See, it also includes snippets from James Seah, Freddy Neo, and several others.

A very kindly old uncle gave me this book, as it’s not my usual fare (my usual fare being things that explode). But I am interested in Singapore and how we got to where we are today. and I’m proud of my country. So it’s interesting to see how a true blue Singaporean grew up before there was a political Singapore.

Also, this is semi-work-related, so I’m slightly nervous about reviewing it (no, no, I’m not selling the book). But I think it’s worth a read, especially since the dramatic impact is much stronger when the anecdotes are compiled by topic, instead of reading it post by post on a blog.

And that’s the major selling point of this book – it’s a book. It’s the story of a young Singaporean boy’s life in the 50s. Good Morning Yesterday, the blog, is a great resource for Singapore’s history, but the book has a much greater impact. Of course this is due to the format – if the blog were organised online as a book, you’d never know when new posts were updated. So while both have the same content, the blog is like a newspaper, while the book is like a novel. Depends on how you like your content delivered, but I like mine as a book.

I really got into the book in the second chapter, where the author starts talking about his family and friends. There’s this sense of longing and gratitude when he recounts the various adventures and mishaps he had, and it comes across with a lot of sincerity and frankness. That despite what we may think about the older generation, with all their stern seriousness, they were just as playful and human as we were.

And that’s what the book gives you – the perspective of a life lived in the 50s, without the hidden agenda of national education or some sort of moralistic message. It’s not as artificial as some of the supposed heritage or historical talks, tours, and such, simply because it was a project of passion. It was written by a regular guy (and his friends), just like you or me. While guys fight via proxies through DOTA or Starcraft these days, back then their proxies were spiders or fish.

I’d have liked to see more pictures in the book, though, especially when he describes the various workings of the 50s. The photos in the book are interesting but come in two weird sizes – full page photos (for the chapter headings) and pseudo-thumbnails when they appear in the text. Also, I’d liked to have read more about the NS experience (which guy wouldn’t), but it’s out of the scope of the book. Though honestly, it’s the stories of his childhood that captured my imagination more than any picture would have.

You can buy Good Morning Yesterday at most bookshops like Kinokuniya and Popular. But if you are incredibly lazy, you can buy it via Kino’s book web at this link.

There’s also a Facebook page if you want to receive additional updates (and you’re looking forward to the second edition). And as I mentioned earlier, you can follow the blog (I think posts from November 2012 onwards are not in the book). So much social media support for the book! Wouldn’t have expected it for a nostalgia book, eh?