Through his critical essays on ten key figures in Philippine history, Nick Joaquin provides a fresh point of view on Philippine heroes and their role in the Philippine revolutionary tradition.

"The Revolution of the Ilustrados There were two distinct but simultaneous revolutions in 1896, linked only by the Katipunan. The first was the Maileños' and it actually lasted only a week:; the second was the Caviteños' and it lasted about five years. Which one do we mean when we speak of the 'Unfinished Revolution'? But from a larger view, there was only one revolution in 1896-and it was not Bonifacio's, though he tried to ride it. This larger view compels us to see the entire period from the Propaganda Movement to the Philippine-American War as a single event: the Revolution of the llustrados." -- Nick Joaquin