INIAKDA ng isang Kastila na may Philippine passport, aklat na Front Pages of Philippine History, ayon sa publisher nito, “reflects how writers and journalists reported on significant issues and events that shaped the history of the Philippines since the first newspaper was printed in the island”. Ang aklat na ito ang latest work ng aking kaibigan na si Jose r. rodriguez na isang writer at editor-in-chief ng agencia EFE, ang Spanish international news agency, at regional head for Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
Si Mario Vargas Llosa, ang 2010 nobel Prize Winner in Literature, ay inilarawan ang aklat bilang “a compact history of the Philippines through the front pages of its newspapers, the day-to-day events of its colonial experience up to the dawn of its independence. Jose R. Rodriquez has carried out a rigorous investigation and produced an instructive book – one that is entertaining and full of surprises as well. May the author have the many readers he deserves”.
Kinuha mula sa personal archive ng may akda, mababasa ang introduction sa book cover mula kay F. Sionil Jose; mula kay atty. Hermogenes P. Pobre, president and publisher of the Manila Publishing Corporation; ang Prologue: Beginnings; magazines of the period, Spanish and American periods, Japanese Period, Independence, Epilogue: Martial Law – EDSA I. Naroon din ang mga papuri ng mga tanyag na manunulat na Carmen Guerrero-Nakpil, Teodoro L. Locsin, Jr., Vergel o. Santos, at iba pa.
Para sa kanyang pagsisikap na itaguyod ang Philippine-Spanish relations, si Don Pepe Rodriquez, ang ating “Priceless Spanish Connection” ayon kay Chitang nakpil, ay ginawaran ng “Encomienda de Isabel la Catolica” ng King of Spain at ng “order of Sikatuna” ng ating gobyerno. He has a Doctorate in Business administration and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agricultural Technical Engineering. He was conferred a Phd honoris cause in Humanities by the University of Manila, Saint Mary’s University of Nueva Viscaya, and Western Mindanao State University of Zamboanga City.
