Old California Strikes Back. By Scott Russell Duncan
Old California Strikes Back is a magical memoir and meta-novel that chronicles the journey of its mixed-race author—SRD—as he dismantles the myths surrounding Californios and the Chicano condition. Accompanied by the talking head of the folk hero Joaquin Murrieta, he records his journey on a guidebook by a self-styled Zorro as they race to grab the “Jewels of Ramona” the last unstolen relic of mythic Old California. Through this internal tour of history, personal and collective, SRD reconnects with his Californio Mexican and Native ancestors, who endured two waves of colonization and creates a dream where he can truly belong.
Old California Strikes Back is a magical memoir and meta-novel that chronicles the journey of its mixed-race author—SRD—as he dismantles the myths surrounding Californios and the Chicano condition. Accompanied by the talking head of the folk hero Joaquin Murrieta, he records his journey on a guidebook by a self-styled Zorro as they race to grab the “Jewels of Ramona” the last unstolen relic of mythic Old California. Through this internal tour of history, personal and collective, SRD reconnects with his Californio Mexican and Native ancestors, who endured two waves of colonization and creates a dream where he can truly belong.
Old California Strikes Back is a magical memoir and meta-novel that chronicles the journey of its mixed-race author—SRD—as he dismantles the myths surrounding Californios and the Chicano condition. Accompanied by the talking head of the folk hero Joaquin Murrieta, he records his journey on a guidebook by a self-styled Zorro as they race to grab the “Jewels of Ramona” the last unstolen relic of mythic Old California. Through this internal tour of history, personal and collective, SRD reconnects with his Californio Mexican and Native ancestors, who endured two waves of colonization and creates a dream where he can truly belong.
Old California Strikes Back is that rare thing: a truly original work.” —Cristina Garcia
“This is our literature of replenishment at its best!” —Frederick Luis Aldama
“Duncan kicks up a lot of dust with his novel, unsettling any notion about a fixed and figured out Chicano identity, and pissing off the heroes who were probably just villains all along.” —Matthew David Goodwin
“Laced with sharp insights, bold critiques and acerbic humor, this book is crazy fun.” —Alejandro Murguía
Scott Russell Duncan, a Xicano writer, is senior editor at Somos en escrito Literary Magazine and Press and was editor on the first Chicano sci-fi anthology, El Porvenir, ¡Ya!, which was a finalist in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards. He is director of Palabras del Pueblo, a writing workshop for la raza. In 2016 his story “How My Hide Got Color” won San Francisco Litquake’s Short Story Contest. His nonfiction piece “Mexican American Psycho is in Your Dreams” won first place in the 2019 Solstice Literary Magazine Annual Literary Contest. He is at work on a collection of short stories called Plurality. His novel, Old California Strikes Back, a mix of the reality of growing up mixed-raced and of a fantasy tour of California with the head of Joaquin Murrieta will be published in 2023 through FlowerSong Press.
www.scottrussellduncan.com