Curse of the ChupaCabra

by Rudolfo Anaya

Is the ChupaCabra mythical or real? Stories of the creature abound in Latino communities. The illusive creature is said to suck the blood of goats. Thus, its name, goatsucker. Whenever a backyard goat or chicken is mysteriously killed, the story spreads in the barrio that the ChupaCabra struck. When Professor Rosa Medina began to research the folklore of the ChupaCabra, she never expected to tangle face-to-face with the monster. Rosa journeys to Mexico to examine a ChupaCabra incident. The creature has killed a campesino in the jungle. And the drug traffickers who have captured the ChupaCabra also control a large drug shipment destined for Los Angeles. The monster is set loose on the streets; so is the meth that is destroying the brains of the young and vulnerable. This fast-paced story moves from Mexico to Los Angeles to New Mexico. Danger lurks at every corner as Rosa fights to protect her students from the forces of evil. Written for young adults, the story has a universal message. Only Rudolfo Anaya can combine the excitement of a thriller and the wisdom of traditional healings to create a page-turner that has lessons to teach us all.
"Rudolfo Anaya is a pioneer of Chicano letters, revitalizing the ground of literature with every new work. Now with The Curse of the ChupaCabra, Anaya enters the realm of pop culture with social-political urgency. The scourge of drugs striking at the heart of all our barrios and the ChupaCabra legend blend and converge in a story that awakens us to the real horrors in our midst. Gracias a dios que tenemos Rudy Anaya." --Luis J. Rodriguez, author of Always Running and Music of the Mill
Ages 14 years and up.

Genres: Horror

174 pages, Hardcover

First published October 31, 2006

About the author

Rudolfo Anaya lives and breathes the landscape of the Southwest. It is a powerful force, full of magic and myth, integral to his writings. Anaya, however, is a native Hispanic fascinated by cultural crossings unique to the Southwest, a combination of oldSpain and New Spain, of Mexico with Mesoamerica and the anglicizing forces of the twentieth century. Rudolfo Anaya is widely acclaimed as the founder of modern Chicano literature. According to the New York Times, he is the most widely read author in Hispanic communities, and sales of his classic Bless Me, Ultima (1972) have surpassed 360,000, despite the fact that none of his books have been published originally by New York publishing houses. His works are standard texts in Chicano studies and literature courses around the world, and he has done more than perhaps any other single person to promote publication of books by Hispanic authors in this country. With the publication of his novel, Albuquerque (1992),Newsweek has proclaimed him a front-runner in "what is better called not the new multicultural writing, but the new American writing." His most recent volume, published in 1995, is Zia Summer.

"I've always used the technique of the cuento. I am an oral storyteller, but now I do it on the printed page. I think if we were very wise we would use that same tradition in video cassettes, in movies, and on radio."

from
http://www.unm.edu/~wrtgsw/anaya.html
and
http://www.gale.cengage.com/free_reso...

Reviews

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

A professor interested in folktales of the ChupaCabra investigates sightings of the real monster in Mexico. She ends up getting caught up in a ring of drug traffickers who seem to be using the monster for their aims. At once a serious exploration of the meaning of story and folktale and also a ripping good yarn.

[Ernest Hogan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's been a while, but the book sticks in my memory, like the monster movies I watched as a kid, only plugged into a different mythology.

[Jenny Werewolf Girl · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really great & suspenseful book!

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fun mystery/thriller with a deeper message.I love Anaya's dedication to the youth. I'm Sure we can all agree 110% with the devastation drugs are causing. Anaya calls out NAFTAs involvment in the story too

Pg.128
"Crystals to burn brains with. Meth cooked in secrecy of kitchens across the country. Recipes on the internet. An entire generation being enslaved while governments in power paid lip service to the devastation."

[Lyda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a quick and spooky read. I loved how it tied in what we are facing today as a society. I also love the professor in this book.