The Good, The Bad and the PSLE - Trails of an Almost Kiasu Mother ( Inspired by Real Events)

This is one book, The Good, The Bad and the PSLE - Trails of an Almost Kiasu Mother by Monica Lim, that I recommend for parents of Primary school going children. Even if your child /children is/are not in the primary school yet. This is a good read. It gives some insight of what to expect for Primary 1. Some of the stories are extractions from the author's blog. I find them rather amusing and funny.

If you find the name Monica Lim familiar, that's because she is the co-author of the Danger Dan series whom she wrote together with her daughter, Lesley-Anne Tan.

I could relate to Ling, the main character of the story, partly because she is a mother of a Primary One (P1) child, Noah. She is also the mother of  April who is in Primary 4 (P4). The story covers the course of 3 years, which meant that it covers the experience of a mother through somewhat 6 years of a Primary School life. I totally can relate the happenings in Year 1, Term 1. The first day of school. The inability to count money. The struggle with Chinese. The homework battle.

I could not stop laughing whenever I read the book though I tried to muffled my laughter when I am in the public places. I truly enjoy various chapters, just to mention some, they are "Irregular English", "A State of Disorder" and "Just the Way You Are". These issues mentioned in the book are day to day issues, problems we faced as a parent and yet the author finds ways to introduce humor into it. What I like is one of the advice given: When you don't take yourself too seriously, you're more likely to enjoy life to the fullest.

Hiccups in school, such as friendship woes (I can see it coming even though my girl is in P1 this year.) and issues such as whether there is a need for tuition? How about some moms with high expectation? Being a parent volunteer in school? All these sounds familiar, aren't they?

In some ways, my girl is akin to Noah. She is big hearted, blur at times, happy go lucky and she submits work that looked like kiam chye despite that she has a file and uses it. (unlike Noah). Hence, it was truly enjoyable reading material. It was somewhat like reading about my own child. Yes, the book makes me relook at my attitude towards disciplining and academic chase in this rat race.

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Foodie Read :Durians Are Not the Only Fruits (notes from the Tropics)

I do not usually read adult books except cookbooks or craft books. However, this book, Durians Are Not The Only Fruits by Woon Yoon Wah was recommended by a librarian. This book , I believe was written in Chinese by the author and is being translated to English by Jeremy Tiang.

Durians is a delightful read about the tropics. It is a mixture of memoir, essay and nature writing. Food related topics covered slightly more than half of the book. Beside durians, tropical fruits like mangosteen, rambutans and banana, and food like Lei Cha ( Thunder Rice Tea), Yusheng (a dish normally we ate during Chinese New Year), Nonya Dumpling, Nanyang Curry are mentioned too.

Yusheng (3 plates on the right), an auspicious dish in Singapore.

It offers insight how petty durian trees are and when they would be harvested. The king of fruits is often growing together with his queen (mangosteen) and concubine (rambutan). The mangosteen is cooling effect and is best eaten with durian to combat its heatiness. Rambutan, his heaty concubine, will turn bad after 5 to 6 days after plucking. An interesting rumour is that the rambutan tree will bear sour fruits if touched by a female.

Food evolution is being mentioned in Thunder in a Bowl, that refers to Leicha. It was originally a tea drink, now has become a meal complete with rice and finely chopped vegetable.  The dish is now associated with healthy eating. You may want to find out by reading how the food acquire this name.

Leicha is believed to  be a very healthy food choice

Immigrants evolves just the same as food. Those who come to this part of the world, brought over their food and culture. These food and culture changed over the years.

You will find yourselves getting bonus by reading because some recipes were also mentioned.

The rest of the book is dedicated to the trees and animals in the tropics.  Did you know rain tree can tell the time and the behaviour of ants can tell when a monsoon is about to arrive? I like the topic on Mosquito Mystery. As mention in the book, how is it possible that "the more we eradicate them, the faster they infect us?" It sets me thinking whether the constant spraying of pesticide had created some kind of "super mosquito". Probably the best way is still to use natural repellent.

After reading, I do agree this book is indeed an interesting read although it takes me a pretty long time to complete. I learnt more about the fruits and food we eat and also the trees and animals we live with. If you found this book, do give it a read to more about the tropics.

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