Be careful growing up in the green, wet, mango-sweet Mexican village
of Rosario, where dead corpses rise up out of the cathedral walls
during July when it always floods; where vast silver mines beneath
the town occasionally collapse causing a whole section of the village
to drop out of sight; where a man with a paintbrush, to wit Mr.
Mendoza, is the town’s self-appointed conscience.
Magic realism, you
say to yourself. Luis Urrea affirms to the contrary, “Not magical
realism. It’s how kids grow up in Mexico. Especially if you’re a
boy.” And the part about Mr. Mendoza is really really true: he
brandishes his magical paintbrush everywhere, providing commentary to
singe the hearts and souls of boys who are looking to get into
trouble. If he catches you peeping at the girls bathing in the river,
he’ll steal your pants and paint PERVERT on your naked buttocks.
And one day, he performs a painterly act which no one in Rosario ever
forgets!