Shadow of the Past (Translated by Soledad S. Reyes)

First serialized in Muling Pagsilang in 1906, Anino ng Kahapon by Francisco Laksamana came out as a book in 1907. The novel was a sprawling, multitiered narrative that encompassed the years 1890 until 1896, when the Revolution against the Spaniards began to spread in the country.

The novel’s pivotal moment—the killing of Sergeant Cruz and its violent repercussions on Ilaya, a town already in the grip of fear due to the ruthlessness and cruelty of the military—wrecked lives, separated families, and unleashed a nationwide search for Modesto, the novel’s protagonist. Born to a middle-class family, educated in Manila, Modesto appeared at first as a young man deeply aware of the military’s abuses. But when he killed Sergeant Cruz and later seriously wounded Lieutenant Roca—both symbols of the oppression—his world was turned upside down. Hunted down like a wild beast, he came back to find his father a corpse.

Modesto’s journeys as a fugitive and encounters with various victims of injustice, his temporary alliance with a band of outlaws who helped him attack the Spanish headquarters in Ilaya, among other episodes, forced him to rethink his plan to save his country. The mission remained—to free the people from tyranny. He left for the United States, where he discovered what it meant to be free in a society where equality and the rule of law were deemed fundamental to the pursuit of happiness. He eventually came back in 1896 after the outbreak of the Revolution.

Author: Francisco Laksamana
ISBN/ISSN: 978621090120-7
Category: Literary; Fiction; Novel
Copyright: 2025
Pages: 312pp
Size: 6×9
Type: PB/SP