---
product_id: 228464838
title: "From Third World to First: The Singapore Story: 1965-2000 Hardcover – Illustrated, 2 Oct. 2000"
brand: "lee kuan yew"
price: "€ 251.23"
currency: EUR
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 8
url: https://www.desertcart.nl/products/228464838-from-third-world-to-first-the-singapore-story-1965-2000
store_origin: NL
region: Netherlands
---

# From Third World to First: The Singapore Story: 1965-2000 Hardcover – Illustrated, 2 Oct. 2000

**Brand:** lee kuan yew
**Price:** € 251.23
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** From Third World to First: The Singapore Story: 1965-2000 Hardcover – Illustrated, 2 Oct. 2000 by lee kuan yew
- **How much does it cost?** € 251.23 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.nl](https://www.desertcart.nl/products/228464838-from-third-world-to-first-the-singapore-story-1965-2000)

## Best For

- lee kuan yew enthusiasts

## Why This Product

- Trusted lee kuan yew brand quality
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## Description

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## Images

![From Third World to First: The Singapore Story: 1965-2000 Hardcover – Illustrated, 2 Oct. 2000 - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71w57+jdJoL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A good read.
*by A***R on 26 June 2025*

So Interesting.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ like that the Vietnam War
*by M***R on 9 December 2015*

This is absolutely fascinating and more people from the Western liberal tradition should read it. We spend a lot of time debating liberalism's merits relative to socialism, or Islamism, but those movements have far fewer adherents and are a far less persuasive alternative to our own choices than the soft, managerial authoritarianism (if that's a fair description) practiced by Lee Kuan Yew.At times, reading the book you can see the limits of his arguments. He points out that alternative centres of power besides the Government (e.g. the press) are self-interested and will often make things hard for a reformist government, without giving proper credit to their genuine ability to check a corrupt or simply tired and incompetent government. The defence is that the Singaporean Government wasn't tired or corrupt but, of course, you cannot establish a society on the basis that your leaders will be (and continue to be) the right people, you plan for the wrong people being in and avoiding them being in too long. But still, the idea that a press that sees corruption everywhere might remove the political rewards for not being corrupt is powerful.In other cases, he makes an argument that at first seems wild but then becomes more and more plausible when you think about it, like that the Vietnam War, for all its faults, bought time for the Asian Tigers to strengthen their societies and then boom into prosperity. That's an enormous upside with implications for billions of people. It is a powerful example of how little we understand the implications (good and bad) of foreign interventions.I cite those two examples to illustrate how I think this book should be read: as a source of stimulation to challenge your own thinking. The structure, around issues rather than purely linear, makes that easier. A vital read.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A great book by a great man
*by A***E on 26 November 2020*

One of the best autobiographies I've ever read. Enjoyable, funny and enlightening. Reading this you learn to respect the man even if you don't agree with everything he did but the results of Singapore speak for themselves. He turned a back water into an economic powerhouse where his people were dragged out of the mire of the third world to live with dignity as an industrialised nation, self reliant and self respecting.The language is simple making it an easy read, the writer is engaging so much so that you want to keep reading. There are interesting anecdotes about various British and Asian politicians from east and south asia..

## Frequently Bought Together

- From Third World to First: The Singapore Story: 1965-2000
- Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master's Insights on China, the United States, and the World (Belfer Center Studies in International Security)
- Deng Xiaoping and the Transformation of China

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*Product available on Desertcart Netherlands*
*Store origin: NL*
*Last updated: 2026-01-23*