Playing for the Devil's Fire

By: Phillippe Diederich

Narrated by: Ozzie Rodriguez

Thirteen-year-old Boli and his friends are deep in the middle of a game of marbles. An older boy named Mosca has won the prized Devil's Fire marble. His pals are jealous and want to win it away from him. This is Izayoc, the place of tears, a small pueblo in a tiny valley west of Mexico City where nothing much happens. It's a typical hot Sunday morning except that on the way to church someone discovers the severed head of Enrique Quintanilla propped on the ledge of one of the cement planters in the plaza and everything changes. Not apocalyptic changes, like phalanxes of men riding on horses with stingers for tails, but subtle ones: poor neighbors turning up with brand-new SUVs, pimpled teens with fancy girls hanging off them. Boli's parents leave for Toluca and don't arrive at their destination. No one will talk about it. A washed out masked wrestler turns up one day, a man only interested in finding his next meal. Boli hopes to inspire the luchador to set out with him to find his parents.

brutal but true

I lived in Mexico for three years and felt like I was there again listening to this audio book. It was immersive and heartbreaking to follow the main character Boli as he struggles to understand what's happening to his hometown. The attitudes of the people, especially the luchadores, were sentiments I heard among my own friends in Mexico.
The Spanish words were a perfect balance, helping create the story without having to stop and think "what does that mean?"

Fiction that dives into harsh realities

A very thought provoking book about what it takes to be a hero, and its costs. Rodriguez brings the characters alive for someone who wouldn’t be able to pronounce many of the names properly without practice. He was a perfect voice for for the lucha.

Good story, slow burn though

A great story about loss and life in a violence filled world, but it takes a minute to pick up. Absolutely worth a go.