"Kuttu" The Girl from Malaya: A Memoir

An inspirational memoir of Elizabeth "Kuttu" Goh Sharman, from rural Malaya. Given away at birth by her biological parents, she is raised by a saintly aunt, Heok Ee. At birth, she was given the nickname "Kuttu", by her great aunt, the word meaning head lice. The relative explained the name would strengthen her to overcome her weak health and poor prospects. The effect seems to work perhaps leading Elizabeth to great success on a larger stage, however possibly at the cost of an inferiority complex that with the name sticks with her all her life. Initially a poor student, several "guardian angels" come along to encourage her to believe in herself, work hard and persevere. She eventually excels at business school and qualifies for a top job with a UN branch in Kuala Lumpur then in Geneva. In Geneva she marries a renowned international labor organizer, an Englishman. She starts a family and travels the world with her new husband before settling down in the US as her American dream comes true.