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enadeline's review
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.75
The best part about this book is Teo You Yenn’s ability to make a mostly academic book, (in reference to the way it is written, its format as a series of essays, references to other studies, etc.), personal and moving in ways that most research papers can’t. When you talk about inequality you are ultimately talking about people - real people, whose lives should not just be subject to a research paper. To talk, write, read about inequality is deeply uncomfortable and Teo’s personalisation (inserting herself in her academic research), makes this book so great.
Minus points because while she covers a breadth of issues and people (public policies, housing and living spaces, youth / kids, social workers, and much more), a couple pages on race (a single short chapter) omits a large chunk of the conversations that should be had about inequality, especially in Singapore. Race and inequality, everywhere but especially in a country like Singapore that masks itself behind racial harmony and multiculturalism to avoid topics about race, are inextricably linked to class and inequality.
Minus points because while she covers a breadth of issues and people (public policies, housing and living spaces, youth / kids, social workers, and much more), a couple pages on race (a single short chapter) omits a large chunk of the conversations that should be had about inequality, especially in Singapore. Race and inequality, everywhere but especially in a country like Singapore that masks itself behind racial harmony and multiculturalism to avoid topics about race, are inextricably linked to class and inequality.
yvkhan's review
5.0
I admit that I find it difficult to review this. Maybe Teo’s work is so impactful that it fundamentally shaped the GP discussion of meritocracy at my school, maybe I’ve already been pilled about people of all backgrounds wanting to work hard and rely on themselves because of Twitter communists, but I didn’t find her work intensely illuminating on a personal level, I suppose. But then again, not everyone follows leftists online and such, and this is undoubtedly an accessible text for the regular Singaporean to whom these opinions may seem revolutionary,
I think I tend to give higher ratings to non-fiction books that trigger fundamental shifts in worldview for me (eg The Dawn of Everything), but I suppose the revelations Teo’s book have brought me are more subtle than that. I feel that I’ve learnt more about the way in which one-room flats are built, the living conditions of such rental flats (the smell, the displays), and my own ignorance with regards to my idea of privilege (i.e. perhaps my privileged head can acknowledge that going to poly could actually be a privilege that not everyone can have? TIL that about 1/3 of the population aged 25+ didn’t finish post-secondary education: https://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/reference/ebook/population/education-and-literacy).
I think I find myself most struck by ideas of dignity and how much emphasis Teo places on them over more material disadvantages. Perhaps I will start saying hello to and nodding at cleaners and foreign workers after all.
I think I tend to give higher ratings to non-fiction books that trigger fundamental shifts in worldview for me (eg The Dawn of Everything), but I suppose the revelations Teo’s book have brought me are more subtle than that. I feel that I’ve learnt more about the way in which one-room flats are built, the living conditions of such rental flats (the smell, the displays), and my own ignorance with regards to my idea of privilege (i.e. perhaps my privileged head can acknowledge that going to poly could actually be a privilege that not everyone can have? TIL that about 1/3 of the population aged 25+ didn’t finish post-secondary education: https://www.singstat.gov.sg/publications/reference/ebook/population/education-and-literacy).
I think I find myself most struck by ideas of dignity and how much emphasis Teo places on them over more material disadvantages. Perhaps I will start saying hello to and nodding at cleaners and foreign workers after all.
fengyuseah's review
4.0
an incomplete picture of inequality in singapore (a chapter on race doesn't make up for the rest of the book not addressing how race factors into one's experiences in singapore, especially re: perceptions of deservedness) but an important book nonetheless. i wish singaporeans were more willing to engage with points of view that disrupt their worldview, but alas,
poxav's review
3.0
The first half of the book is, without a doubt, a must-read for every Singaporean. It provides a perspective into a troubling reality that many of us would choose to blissfully ignore. Indeed, by reading, you are forced to admit not just systemic inadequacies that you might have refused to consider, but also might have to admit your unconscious compliance in facilitating this problematic milieu.
However, despite its strengths, the second half of the book is remarkably different from the first. While This Is What Inequality Looks Like never pretended to be academic in nature, the second half abandons objectivity and nuance for highly opinionated streams of consciousness. Much needed elaboration on certain topics is oftentimes not offered, and certain issues are not discussed in any satisfactory way. While it is good for the author to recognize the issues with not discussing the impact of race, sidestepping the issue in such a manner still makes the text feel incomplete in a sense.
"One has to make conscious effort to move beyond defensiveness and ideology." In the context the author presents this statement in the last chapter of the book, I completely agree. However, this same quote, when considering the backdrop of the latter half of the book, is, dare I say, just a tad bit hypocritical.
However, despite its strengths, the second half of the book is remarkably different from the first. While This Is What Inequality Looks Like never pretended to be academic in nature, the second half abandons objectivity and nuance for highly opinionated streams of consciousness. Much needed elaboration on certain topics is oftentimes not offered, and certain issues are not discussed in any satisfactory way. While it is good for the author to recognize the issues with not discussing the impact of race, sidestepping the issue in such a manner still makes the text feel incomplete in a sense.
"One has to make conscious effort to move beyond defensiveness and ideology." In the context the author presents this statement in the last chapter of the book, I completely agree. However, this same quote, when considering the backdrop of the latter half of the book, is, dare I say, just a tad bit hypocritical.