The History Workroom

So proud to have worked on the YWCA Singapore heritage gallery to celebrate their 150th anniversary. We learned new things and made new friends along the way, and are stoked to be there to witness the official launch of the gallery today by Madam Halimah Yacob. One of the highlights was tasting their new heritage menu, with items from their 1958 (!) cookbook.

But the biggest highlight? Stephanie got to fan-girl (big time) one of her idols, the fabulous Audra Morrice!

Spotted at the SG60 Heart&Soul Experience! 🤘🏻

Can you spot a familiar face? 🤣🤣🤣

Spotted at Tampines Library! Our beloved “Samsui Girl” is now available in Tamil! 😄

"How can we be first world when we go crazy for a soft toy?"
- Dr Jaime Koh

Check out this documentary for a fascinating journey behind some of Singapore's most iconic games and toys in the past 60 years. It features THW's very own Jaime Koh who offers some historical context to these games and toys, and discusses how they reflect changes in Singapore society. Highlights of the documentary include a match-up between the gasing and beyblade, and a look at personal collections of He-man and Hello Kitty!

Ep 4 Games And Toys - mewatch In the last 60 years, generations of Singaporeans grew up playing vastly different games and toys. How has our cultural milieu evolved alongside these playthings? What imprint did they leave on us?

Introducing "The Adventures of Gasing Boy", THW's new book combines the "Gasing Boy" and "Coolie Boys" stories with lively new illustrations. From now till 30 Jan, get a copy for $15 (U.P. $18) when you order direct from us. Scan QR code in post for details.

It seems to have become a tradition for us here at The History Workroom to put out new publications at the end of the year.

So it is - the Adventures of Gasing Boy is finally here! This is a brand new compilation of THW’s boy books — Gasing Boy & Coolie Boys.

Originally published in 2010, Gasing Boy was Lee-Ling’s (aka Stephanie) first book featuring a boy as a main character. Her nephew, Ethan, had just been born, and so she wanted to write a book about boys. Around that time, she had also become interested in the traditional Malay spinning top known as the “gasing”. She had visited a gasing shop in Malacca and learnt how to spin this traditional top with help from the kind shop owner. After that, she was hooked on the gasing (even though she wasn’t very good at it).

Coolie Boys started life as a short story “Coolie Boy” which Lee Ling wrote for the Ministry of Education. She liked the story so much that she decided to expand it into a book, and to give the main character, John, a friend.

It has been more than 10 years since these two books were published, so we thought it was time to produce a new edition. This edition features fun and lively illustrations from Nicholas Ang and history sections that provide background on the Gasing, coolies and secret societies in Singapore.

And of course, we have to thank our great partner, The Lede (thelede.co) for ever being the midwife, delivering to fruition another one of our books.

As usual, we’re having a promotion for these books. If you haven’t bought any Christmas presents for the little ones (8-12 years old) in your life, this is a great deal to be had. Don’t miss it. Details in the last few images (swipe to see)

A hundred years is a milestone in a school’s history, especially in Singapore where so many schools are opened, closed and merged. We, at THW, were privileged to work with the Geylang Methodist School (GMS) on a heritage project for their centenary celebrations this year.

We started our journey with GMS in 2021 researching the founding of the school. Sometimes regarded as the “humble cousin” in the Methodist stable of schools, not much was known about the school’s establishment. And what was know was often hearsay, lacking documentary evidence. For us, this was the most exciting part of the project as we were able to do a deep dive into the past, and in the process uncover some interesting information.

For one, we were able to locate the school’s first principal, Miss Emma Walker, who had been “forgotten” in the existing history. We were also able to correct the name of the Methodist District Superintendent at that time, Floyd Sullivan, which has led to his family recently connecting with the school.

The research we did were then used in two living galleries, a commemorative book, and a graphic novel. We are delighted that the school’s rich history is now well-documented and passed on to the next generation of GMS students.

This has been an enriching project for us, not only for what we discovered and created, but also for the friendships we made along the way. And one of us even re-connected with our secondary school teacher who was posted to GMSP as principal during the course of the project!

Happy centenary GMS!

Thank you Ynok & Yuree for a great night of delicious drinks, tasty eats and invigorating conversations at your beautiful bookshop . It was awesome to start a new year with new friendships and connections!

We are so grateful for all your support! We have been busy sending out “The adventures of Samsui Girl” the last two weeks. A lot of packing and mailing it was! 🤪

We still have some copies left if you are keen to gift the young ones in your life the gift of reading. 📚 We’ll be taking some time off to recharge soon, do get in your orders if you need them in time for Christmas.

Scan QR code for order form.

It’s been a while heh?

17 years, 2 editions and several reprints later, a refreshed Samsui Girl and Wayang Girl have come to say “hi”!

This time, we’ve put them into a single edition, with brand new illustrations from a very talented artist, for a new generation of fans. The well-loved history sections in the OG have been enhanced. A big shout-out to our lovely partner, The Lede, for helping make our dreams come true - again!

Get your copy today at a celebratory price of S$15 each (RRP $18). It includes free delivery within Singapore. Promo ends 31 December 2023.

Scan the QR code (last pic) for the order form, or click on this link: https://forms.zohopublic.com/thehistoryworkroom/form/OrderForm/formperma/hlPOpqThaXI4CZ-6KjPB3wBhPOMZEOQCDNP7hnNym_U