Three ST Press titles sweep top prizes at Popular book awards

A collection of 50 essays on Singapore's success story bagged the top prize for English books for adults at the Popular Readers' Choice Awards 2020 yesterday.

The book, titled Fifty Secrets Of Singapore's Success, was edited by Professor Tommy Koh, a veteran diplomat who is Ambassador-at-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

It features contributions from well-known figures such as the Economic Development Board's former executive chairman Philip Yeo and Singapore's first and longest-serving Chief of Defence Force Winston Choo.

The Straits Times veteran journalists Vikram Khanna, Christopher Tan and Sandra Davie also contributed essays to the book, which was published by Straits Times Press (ST Press).

Prof Koh thanked Popular bookstore for holding the annual competition, which is now in its ninth year, and its "long record of promoting reading and Singapore's writers".

Its prize presentation ceremony was held virtually this year.

"Winning this award is a dream come true. It has been my aspiration to write or edit a book which resonates with our readers," he said.

The second-and third-place winners in the Adult English Books Category are also books published by ST Press.

Former ST Invest editor Lorna Tan, who is now head of financial planning literacy at DBS Bank, took second place with her book Money Smart: Own Your Financial Destiny.

"The Covid-19 pandemic has been a wake-up call for us to put in place a robust financial plan to better manage our money matters," she said.

"Money Smart will empower more people to make informed decisions to identify and close their money gaps, and look out for suitable opportunities to achieve financial wellness. Thank you for your votes."

Meanwhile, the second edition of former Cabinet minister S. Jayakumar's book Diplomacy: A Singapore Experience came in third.

Professor Jayakumar congratulated Prof Koh and Ms Tan for their wins and added that he was "delighted to be among their company".

He thanked ST Press for publishing his book and the readers who voted for it.

"I am cheered and encouraged that my book on weighty topics such as foreign relations and diplomacy commanded so much interest and support," he said.

All the titles nominated for the awards can be bought during the BookFest@Singapore 2020 event, which is being held at all Popular outlets till next Sunday.

The three ST Press books are also on sale at website www.stbooks.sg and other major book retailers.

Mr Tan Ooi Boon, supervising editor for ST Press, said: "We are very humbled and heartened by the strong support for our books because 2020 is certainly a very challenging year for not just us but also for every business and individual.

"On behalf of all our authors, we'd like to express our deepest gratitude to all readers for their support and we will certainly work harder to serve them better in the coming year."

Other winners included Secrets Of Singapore: National Gallery by Catherine Nadira Tan, which took first place in the category for English books for children.

Coming in second in the same category was A.J. Low's Sherlock Sam And The Burgled Book In Kampong Glam while Vivian Teo's My BFF Is An Alien clinched the third spot.

The three children's books were all published by Epigram Books.