The adventures of Noldo and his magical scooter on the march with the St. Patrick's Battalion

the long version

"Noldo and his magical scooter on the march with the St. Patrick's Battalion is the story of a Mexican-American boy who is magically transported from 1950's San Antonio, Texas, to the early days in 1847 of the war between the U.S. and Mexico. On his adventure, he gains a new perspective on teh causes of the war and meets some of the Irishmen who became known as the San Patricios, a band of soldiers who forged a bond between the Irish and MExican people that persists to this day. Noldo discovers a century-old treasure that helps him befriend a tough red-haired newcomer to the barrio. Noldo helps us feel whit it was like to live in a community that was still trying to pull itself out of the hard times of the Depression of the 1930s and the war years that followed. His story reinforces the family and social values of a community which had been deprived of many opportunities by the mid-1900s. Finally, the story forges a link for Chicanos to their roots in the Southwest, to the critical importance of a history-changing conflict, and to a history that has been otherwise excluded from school textbooks and the mass media."--Back cover