Maximise Your Culture Pass With These Singlit Books
Let’s talk about books. You know, those papery things bound by a cover, with words printed on them?
I love books. They make great entertainment; there's no need to recharge them; they don’t require connectivity; and they make great gifts.
Plus, the heavy ones can be doorstops. Or used to kill small pests. But I digress.
There’s no better time to get books than now, especially since we can use the Culture Pass (CP) to buy Singapore literature, or Singlit.
So which books can you get? The CP website says these are books that must be “written by Singapore citizens or permanent residents (at the point of publishing)”.
They can be fiction, poetry, plays or literary short essays – sorry, non-fiction books aren't included here. However – and this is important – they must be physical books and possess an International Standard Book Number (ISBN).
Or be like me and look for books that have the Culture Pass sticker.
With thousands of Singlit books available, we know you’re asking: how can we maximise our CP credits? Well, read on to find out. (NB: prices vary from bookshop to bookshop.)
One Culture Pass can get you…
... up to 4 novels
But which novels to get? A recent offering we love is Ng Yi Sheng’s, Utama, a far-out retelling of Sang Nila Utama and his time in Singapura. Told from the POV of Ratu, a scholar, as well as other people in Sang Nila Utama’s orbit, it explores how they were under the thrall of a king whose legend looms larger than the man. It’s a great read if you like alternative universe stories and “what if” scenarios.
We also love Now You See Us by Balli Kaur Jaswal, one of our best novelists. Humorous and heartfelt at the same time, it follows three domestic helpers in Singapore, Corazon, Angel and Donita, whose lives change when a friend is accused of murdering her employer. But what really happened? The trio use all their moxie to find out: after all, no one knows the secrets of Singapore’s elite like the women who work in their homes.
A series that every BookTok should feature is Meihan Boey’s acclaimed trilogy – The Formidable Miss Cassidy, The Enigmatic Madam Ingram, and The Mystical Mister Kay – which recently won the Markono Best Literary Work award at the Singapore Book Awards this year.
The entire series features Miss Leda Cassidy, who arrives in 1890s Singapore and becomes intertwined with the Kay family when she is hired to teach Mr Kay’s daughters. But there’s more to her than meets the eye: not only can she see dead people, she knows how to deal with them expediently, too.
However, as the series progresses, Miss Cassidy and her friends face more adversaries, each deadlier than the last. All three books are fun reads, and who doesn’t love a devilish hantu story, right?
... 4 to 6 Middle-Grade or YA reads
More options here for those who want to gift their kids or other people's kids. Teens and tween book prices range from $12 to $20, so there are more ways to mix and match.
There are also more titles, from series to standalone books, including classics like Gabby Tye's 5-book Run/Hide/Seek "trilogy" (think of this as The Hunger Games, SG-style), or newer titles like Ace Agent Spycat and Ghost Hunters Of Geylang.
You can’t go wrong with the award-winning, bestselling Sherlock Sam series. Across 17 books, Sherlock Sam, “Singapore's greatest kid detective” solves mysteries that baffle others as they go after who-really-dunnit, from missing manuscripts to online madness on Instanoodlegram.
What’s great about these books is that they are not only engaging and funny, they’re informative too – all come with a glossary of terms used in the stories.
Another pick is the Mikaela Kong series by Vivien Teo, the author of the bestselling My BFF Is An Alien series (also CP-applicable).
It follows Mikaela, a girl who wants to be a K-pop star, but her plans go awry when Bai Yulong, a boy claiming to be from the Celestial Realm, appears and asks for her help. They have to avert a possible disaster that threatens the world – but can Mikaela put aside her K-pop dreams for a moment? This take on the Wukong legend is a must for those who like a little twist to their tale.
Slightly older teens should check out the classic Teenage Textbook / Teenage Workbook duology by the late Adrian Tan. Sure, they were written yonks ago, but any tween or teen can still vibe with Mui Ee and her friends from Paya Lebar Junior College, whether it's boy-girl relationships or school rules.
These days, the books come in “Memorial Editions”: the Textbook contains tributes to Adrian, as well as an essay by noted academic and author-poet Gwee Li Sui (author of Spiaking Singlish; The Leeter Tunku); while the Workbook offers a section to empower teens to navigate everyday challenges with confidence and emotional resilience.
... 3 to 5 graphic novels
Let's get this out of the way: these aren’t your DC or Marvel types. With most of these priced from $18 and up, you can get a few titles for your CP.
Unless you’re talking about the updated edition of Sonny Liew’s award-winning graphic novel, The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, which, at about $50, reduces your options, but it's a must-have in our view.
However, apart from telling a reimagined history of Singapore through the eyes of artist Charlie Chan, this now features exclusive bonus material.
Also, it won three Eisner Awards (aka the Oscars of the comic book world), the Singapore Literature Prize for Best Fiction, and the Singapore Book Awards' Book Of The Year.
Plus, the S-tier artwork means this will look great on your shelf.
With Charlie Chan in the bag, another title you could consider is The Showgirl And The Minister. Based on a true story, acclaimed poet Felix Cheong imagines what happened when former Chief Minister Lim Yew Hock went missing for 10 days. And what did a 19-year-old Russia-born stripper, Sandra Nelson, have anything to do with it? We won't spoil the ending, but it's not what you expect.
Another pick that caught our eye is How Are You Feeling?, a comic book anthology collecting the three titles by the good folks at Difference Engine: A Drip. A Drop. A Deluge: A Period Tragicomedy; Bearing Witness; and Worlds Apart: A Conversation About Mental Health.
Whether it's a girl wondering about changes to her body, a mother's unexpected loss or a woman grappling with mental health, the stories move from humorous anecdotes to deeply personal experiences. It's an eye-opening dialogue about issues that we usually don't talk openly about, even in our enlightened times.
... up to 5 award-winning books
If you're looking for books that have made an impact, then we say, do yourself a favour and pick up an award-winner. Like Amanda Lee Koe's Ministry Of Moral Panic, which won the Singapore Book Award (SBA) and the Singapore Literature Prize (SLP) for best fiction.
Not bad for a debut collection of short stories that look at left-of-centre life in the Lion City. The stories include that a chambermaid who may or may not be the Maria Hertogh; two conservative middle-aged women seeking solace with each other in the Galapagos, a high-stakes fantasy starring the lead of the 1990s TV hit serial, The Unbeatables.
Speaking of double winners, a book for younger readers you may want is Amazing Ash & Superhero Grandma, by Melanie Lee & Arif Rafhan.
Book 2 was the winner of the 2024 Hedwig Anuar Children’s Book Award and Best Young Person’s Title at the 2023 SBA, but this whole series, which tells the heartwarming tale of the special relationship between a girl and her grandmother, is a must for those who like a compelling superhero story about coming to terms with growing up and growing old.
While Ash juggles being a responsible superhero, Ah Ma’s dementia appears to be getting worse. And they still have to deal with a new nemesis and save the neighbourhood from certain doom. How's a girl to do it all?
Another Hedig Anuar winner also deals with learning to live with an older person in the family. In Mist-bound: How To Glue Back Grandpa, Alexis has to make Memory Glue if she wants to save her grandpa’s shattered memories.
To get the ingredients, Alexis must travel to the strange land of Mist, where the fabled creatures from Grandpa’s folktales come alive, and not all of them are friendly. She must do this by Spring, otherwise Grandpa’s memories will be lost forever.
Being a stranger in a strange land is what Lemonade Sky by JH Low is all about. It follows a boy who takes a journey of self-discovery as he tries to escape from a society that has everything mapped out for him, only to be met by kaiju-like creatures on the way.
This 2022 Hedwig Anuar winner isn't just a delightful picture book; it also encourages the young ones to find out what it means to be truly free.
Someone who doesn't appear to be free is a character in Nine Yard Sarees, Prasanthi Ram’s debut collection, which won the SLP fiction prize in 2024.
It is a multigenerational portrait of a fictional Tamil Brahmin family, comprising 11 interlinked stories, that traces the lives of nine women from 1950 to 2019. These include Raji, the matriarch who lives in seclusion; her daughter Padma, who struggles to raise her family the traditional way; and Padma’s daughter, Keerthana, who is about to be married.
While the stories are fiction, the situations reflect very real issues, such that the publisher even included a trigger warning. But that doesn't mean the tales aren't masterfully crafted. If you love Jhumpa Lahiri and Alice Munro, you will love these stories.
To get more info on where to get Culture Pass books, click here.
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