Graphic Novel. Latino/Latina Studies. Illustrated by artist Christopher Cardinale. Those who grow up in the Mexican village of Rosario must be wary of dead corpses that rise up out of cathedral walls, vast silver mines beneath the town that occasionally collapse, and Mr. Mendoza who wields his paintbrush as the town's self-appointed conscience. Magical realism you may say, but Luis Alberto Urrea counters, "No, NOT magical realism. It's simply how kids grow up in Mexico. Especially if you're a boy." Mr. Mendoza brandishes his magical paintbrush everywhere, painting graffiti to singe the hearts and souls of trouble-making boys, and, one day Mr. Mendoza's paintbrush creates a miraculous event that no one in Rosario ever forgets! "MR. MENDOZA'S PAINTBRUSH is a rich gift, an off-center, enigmatic tale with a well-coupled balance of narration and art. Urrea and Cardinale are a 'match made in heaven'"—The Bloomsbury Review.

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