Book excerpt: The author joined the History Department of the University of Malaya in 1953, with which he stayed for the next fifteen years, becoming the Raffles Professor in History in 1959. In this paper he chronicles the nature and strength of Asian Studies during this period both within the region and the United States and Australia. The emergence of Singapore and Malaya as independent nations, the communal problems in Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew, Konfrontasi and the formation of Malaysia all form the backdrop for his story.