The book, Growing up in Lee Kuan Yew's Era, published in Chinese in 2014. [Photo/Agencies]

The passing of Lee Kuan Yew marks the end of an era for Singaporeans.

The city-state transformed from a poor colonial outpost to one of the wealthiest nations in Asia under the governance of Lee, who served as the prime minister from 1959 to 1990, and then as senior minister and "Minister Mentor" until 2011.

Some observers saw Lee as a dictator, although a benign one, while others saw him as a great leader. The book, Growing up in Lee Kuan Yew's Era, published in Chinese in 2014, provides the perspective of an ordinary Singaporean.

"I knew about the severe health situation of Lee Kuan Yew before he died, but when the bad news finally came, I just couldn't stay indifferent," the author Lee Hui Min (no relation to Lee Kuan Yew) says.

The author is a Singapore-based freelance journalist.

"When I saw Lee Hsien Loong (Singapore's prime minister and son of Lee Kuan Yew) holding back tears when giving a speech on television the morning after his father's death, I felt the same sorrow."