Rex Shelley

Rex Shelley
Rex Shelley
Born	Rex Anthony Shelley; 27 October 1930; Singapore, Straits Settlements
Died	21 August 2009 (aged 78); Singapore
Occupation	Author; engineer;
Alma mater	University of Malaya (1952); University of Cambridge;
Period	1984–2009
Genre	Fiction (novels) and non-fiction
Subject	Eurasian community in Singapore; Japanese culture; Singlish;
Notable works	The Shrimp People (1991); People of the Pear Tree (1993); Island in the Centre (1995); A River of Roses (1998);
Notable awards	Bintang Bakti Masyarakat (Public Service Star, 1978; Bar, 1979); National Book Development Council Award (1992, 1994, 1996); Dymocks Singapore Literature Prize (2000); S.E.A. Write Award (2007);

Rex Anthony Shelley (27 October 1930 – 21 August 2009) was a Singaporean author. A graduate of the University of Malaya in Malaysia and Cambridge trained in engineering and economics, Shelley managed his own business and also worked as member of the Public Service Commission (PSC) for over 30 years. For his service, he was conferred the Bintang Bakti Masyarakat (Public Service Star) by the Government of Singapore in 1978, and an additional Bar the next year.

Shelley started writing fiction late in life, publishing his first novel, The Shrimp People, in 1991 at the age of sixty one. The first substantial work by a Singaporean writer about the Eurasian community in Singapore, it was highly commended by The Straits Times and won the 1992 National Book Development Council of Singapore (NBDCS) Award. The books People of the Pear Tree (1993), Island in the Centre (1995) and A River of Roses (1998), on the same theme, followed within a decade; respectively, they won NBDCS Highly Commended Awards in 1994 and 1996, and the Dymocks Singapore Literature Prize in 2000. In 2007 he was the Singaporean winner of the S.E.A. Write Award. Critics have responded positively to his writing, noting its "passionate, humane" style, and observing how his breadth of life experience gave rise to a talent for characterisation plus an ability to blend "a sharp sense of observed commentary with historical detail".^[1]

^ Stephanie Yap (25 August 2009), "Acute observer of life: Author Rex Shelley, who died last Friday, published his first book at age 61, but his works have left their mark", The Straits Times (Life!) (reproduced on AsiaOne), p. C8, archived from the original on 31 August 2009, retrieved 31 August 2009.

[ST_20090825-1] Stephanie Yap (25 August 2009), "Acute observer of life: Author Rex Shelley, who died last Friday, published his first book at age 61, but his works have left their mark", The Straits Times (Life!) (reproduced on AsiaOne), p. C8, archived from the original on 31 August 2009, retrieved 31 August 2009.

[1]

Rex Shelley

Born	Rex Anthony Shelley (1930-10-27)27 October 1930 Singapore, Straits Settlements
Died	21 August 2009(2009-08-21) (aged 78) Singapore
Occupation	Author engineer
Alma mater	University of Malaya (1952) University of Cambridge
Period	1984–2009
Genre	Fiction (novels) and non-fiction
Subject	Eurasian community in Singapore Japanese culture Singlish
Notable works	The Shrimp People (1991) People of the Pear Tree (1993) Island in the Centre (1995) A River of Roses (1998)
Notable awards	Bintang Bakti Masyarakat (Public Service Star, 1978; Bar, 1979) National Book Development Council Award (1992, 1994, 1996) Dymocks Singapore Literature Prize (2000) S.E.A. Write Award (2007)