Book Reviews, Commentary, Opinion, Raffles Reviews

A Child’s World, A Mother’s Prison: The Dual Realities of Room by Emma Donoghue
Reading Time: 4 minutes

By Tay Yu Ning (25S07A)

Rating: 4.5 / 5

Emma Donoghue’s Room is a novel that defies easy categorization. On the surface, it’s a harrowing tale of captivity, but beneath that is a story about the resilience of the human spirit, the innocence of childhood, and the bond between a mother and her child. Through the eyes of five-year-old Jack, Donoghue crafts a narrative that is both claustrophobic and expansive, intimate yet universal.

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Commentary, Op-Eds, Opinion

The Weirdness of the Telegram Channel
Reading Time: 6 minutes

By Isaac Chan (25A01B)

Let’s face it — personal Telegram channels are like a game of chess.

What begins as an innocent way to vent and save you the hassle of repeating the same story to seven friends ends as some hopeless strategy puzzle Sun Tzu himself would be proud of — one that has you questioning how close you really are to your social circle, the degree to which you can (or should!) express yourself, and what repercussions removing or adding someone to your channel might have.

How did we get here?

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Commentary, Op-Eds, Opinion

Beyond the Classrooms: Tales of the Rafflesian Spirit
Reading Time: 9 minutes

By Meryl Lim (25S05A) and Peh Zhi Ning (25A01B)

It’s spooky season. The skeletons are out, pumpkins are in, and Fairprice is selling weird rubber faces (has anyone ever bought one?) once more. Halloween’s finally here! 

Now that our promotional examination results are out, it’s time to move on to brand-new, less realistic horror. Instead of having an existential crisis while staring at your DESU, why not have an existential crisis while pondering the existence of the supernatural? Doesn’t that sound like fun? 

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Commentary, Op-Eds, Opinion

Horror Through the Ages 
Reading Time: 8 minutes

By Ng Dawin (25A01D) and Jane Ng (25S03D)

For most of us, our very first horror experience would have manifested in the form of one of the Mr Midnight books, a Youtube play-through of Five Nights at Freddy’s, or if you were really unlucky, a copy of the “Ring” you found in your brother’s wardrobe.

Many of us will remember, albeit not with much fondness, the terror-induced paralysis that came with it—when we’d be too scared to get up for water in the middle of the night, or when we didn’t dare to sleep without the lights on.

However, as we grow older, things change. What was once a scarring film may now be a harmless watch, something you laugh at with your friends on a weekend night. And comparing yourself now to yourself getting all worked up about a Mr Midnight book, it seems that horror might have lost much of its lustre.

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Commentary, Concert Reviews, Raffles Reviews

Spilling Our Guts: How Olivia Rodrigo Perfectly Captures Girlhood and the Teenage Experience
Reading Time: 5 minutes

By Aniqa Norhazry (25S03D) and Chen Ying (25A01C)

For most, 1st October was an ordinary day, perhaps a day of revision for those with the upcoming A-levels. But for a crowd of roughly 10,000 decked out in sequins, pastel purple, and star accessories at the Singapore Indoor Stadium, this was no ordinary day—it was the opening night of Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts Tour in Singapore.

With a 23-song setlist and a full house, the night was certainly one to remember… and here are the highlights!

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