Noldo, kid hero of the four-part series, The Adventures of Noldo, is older – and bolder – in this clash of barrio warriors against an evil wizard bent on controlling San Antonio’s source of water, the Blue Hole−headwaters of the City’s famous river. Noldo teams up with Don Manuel, a barrio curandero, and his feisty niece, Lupe, to do battle against Fausto, the evil wizard. An old rival of Don Manuel’s since they were growing up in Mexico, Fausto seeks to take revenge by destroying the City. Noldo discovers he holds a wizard’s power over ancient magic stones. Will this win the day? Noldo must either vanquish Fausto or leave the city undefended. The struggle takes them down the Blue Hole into the watery caverns of the aquifer. The story depicts San Antonio in the 1950s, family ties, traditions and values of the Mexican American community, and how a young man stands with his friends to fight evil, risking their lives to save the City and its people. An eye-opening thriller of historical fiction for all ages.
About the Author: Armando B. Rendón
Armando Rendón, a native of San Antonio, Texas, grew up in its Westside barrio during the 1940s in the house built by his grandfather, a full-blooded Kickapoo Indian, and was raised by his grandmother, who was Coahuiltecan from the state of Coahuila, Mejico. Though he only spent the first ten years of his life there, all the memories, the values, the traditions and the people around him stayed with him and make up the foundation of his Noldo stories. The Wizard of the Blue Hole is his fifth Noldo novel. He authored Chicano Manifesto (1971, Macmillan, 1996, Armando Rendón) chronicling the Chicano Movement, the first book about Chicanos by a Chicano, and after retiring from a career in public affairs in 2004, turned to writing for young adults, notably the four-part award-winning series, The Adventures of Noldo and his Magical Scooter (2013-16). In November 2009, he launched Somos en escrito The Latino Literary Online Magazine –www.somosenescrito.com – to publish and promote the spread of Chicano and Latino literature. He can be reached at somossubmissions@gmail.com. He now lives near Berkeley, California.
