- Description
- About the Author
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The Complete Sonnets from the Singlish is a collection of 88 poems on love, language and the pursuit of laughter. The poems are loosely translated from the English-based creole language colloquially spoken in Singapore, widely known as Singlish.
The poems were originally composed in the sonnet form, an archaic italian fourteen-line rhyming verse form that follows the rhythmic rules of iambic pentameter. People still write like this primarily for ease of formatting. The poems are most tolerable when read out loudly in a Singaporean accent.
This edition of The Complete Sonnets from the Singlish is introduced by Dr Ann Ang, Assistant Professor in English Literature, NIE/NTU, and includes a new Preface by the poet.
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Dr Joshua Yap aka Joshua Ip, is a Singaporean poet, editor, literary organiser, and former public servant / military officer [SLTC(NS)]. He has published seven-ish poetry collections, winning the Singapore Literature Prize for his debut, sonnets from the singlish (2012), and Book of the Year and Best Literary Work at the Singapore Book Awards 2025 for ownself say ownself (2024). He won the Golden Point Award for English Prose in 2013, was second for English Poetry in 2011, and received an honourable mention for Chinese Poetry in 2015. He received the Young Artist Award from Singapore’s National Arts Council in 2017. He has co-edited eleven literary anthologies. He co-founded the literary non-profit Sing Lit Station in 2016, and joined it as Executive Director / Station Jaga in 2026. He served in the Singapore Armed Forces for 26 years as an artillery officer and eight years in the Ministry of Defence. You can find more of his work at joshuaip.com.
Cover Type: Paperback
Page Count: 146
Year Published: 2026
Size: 195mm x 130mm
Language: English