Many songs and stories have been written about how important mothers are to their children. But what story would you tell if you put pen to paper? Perhaps things you had learned from her that made you who you are today. Perhaps express your gratitude for the sacrifices she had made for you. Or perhaps matters left unresolved that have since become a thorn in your relationship. Insightful and heart-wrenching, packed with poignant anecdotes. These letters testify to the nurturing love that mothers have for their children. In this collection of mini-essays edited by award-winning author Felix Cheong, sons and daughters write letters to their mother about their relationships and articulate what has often not been expressed.

What would you tell your father if you wrote him a letter? Perhaps what you have always wanted to say, but never could. Perhaps things you would like to thank him for, but never had the chance to. Or perhaps sort out disagreements you wished had been resolved more amicably. Heartfelt and moving and full of vignettes about their growing up years, these letters by our contributors show us the pivotal role the father figure plays in their children’s lives.Contributors include: Margaret Thomas, Sadie-Jane Alexis Nunis, Christina Thé, Louis Tang, Alvin Tan, David Kwee, Hoh Chung Shih, Wong Ting Hway, Chee Soo Lian, Natalie Ng, Charmaine Leung, Crispin Rodrigues, Jacintha Abisheganaden, Kelvin Tan, Usha Pillai, Andrew Koh, Patrick Sagaram, Loh Guan Liang, Sarah Voon, Koh Jee Leong

Every boy goes through several rites of passage as he grows up to become a man. He learns from siblings, peers, teachers and other adults. But perhaps no one has as much influence over him as his parents. This is not surprising as they look after their son from a young age and build bonds of trust and love. In this collection edited by award-winning author Felix Cheong, parents (both fathers and mothers) write letters to their sons about the different roles they will go through as son, brother, husband and father. Here are life lessons about etiquette, manners, school life, courtship, marriage, work, responsibilities and everything else you can think of in-between. These mini-essays will show you, through the eyes of writers from all walks of life, the trial and trails of bringing up boys. Contributors include: P N Balji, Nizam Ismail, Darren Soh, Clement Mesenas, Kenny Chan, Olivier Castaignède, Mark Laudi, Anitha Devi Pillai, Lester Kok, Dinesh Rai, Gilbert Koh, Roland Koh, Christopher Ng, Vicky Chong, Sanjay C Kuttan, Chris Henson, Bernard Harrison, Lee Ee Wurn and Anthony Goh

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Read with Jenna Book Club Pick as Featured on Today • As a young mother facing a terminal diagnosis, Julie Yip-Williams began to write her story, a story like no other. What began as the chronicle of an imminent and early death became something much more—a powerful exhortation to the living. “An exquisitely moving portrait of the daily stuff of life.”—The New York Times Book Review (Editors’ Choice) NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The New York Times Book Review • Time • Real Simple • Good Housekeeping That Julie Yip-Williams survived infancy was a miracle. Born blind in Vietnam, she narrowly escaped euthanasia at the hands of her grandmother, only to flee with her family the political upheaval of her country in the late 1970s. Loaded into a rickety boat with three hundred other refugees, Julie made it to Hong Kong and, ultimately, America, where a surgeon at UCLA gave her partial sight. She would go on to become a Harvard-educated lawyer, with a husband, a family, and a life she had once assumed would be impossible. Then, at age thirty-seven, with two little girls at home, Julie was diagnosed with terminal metastatic colon cancer, and a different journey began. The Unwinding of the Miracle is the story of a vigorous life refracted through the prism of imminent death. When she was first diagnosed, Julie Yip-Williams sought clarity and guidance through the experience and, finding none, began to write her way through it—a chronicle that grew beyond her imagining. Motherhood, marriage, the immigrant experience, ambition, love, wanderlust, tennis, fortune-tellers, grief, reincarnation, jealousy, comfort, pain, the marvel of the body in full rebellion—this book is as sprawling and majestic as the life it records. It is inspiring and instructive, delightful and shattering. It is a book of indelible moments, seared deep—an incomparable guide to living vividly by facing hard truths consciously. With humor, bracing honesty, and the cleansing power of well-deployed anger, Julie Yip-Williams set the stage for her lasting legacy and one final miracle: the story of her life. Praise for The Unwinding of the Miracle “Everything worth understanding and holding on to is in this book. . . . A miracle indeed.”—Kelly Corrigan, New York Times bestselling author “A beautifully written, moving, and compassionate chronicle that deserves to be read and absorbed widely.”—Siddhartha Mukherjee, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies