Tumble

Tumble follows the journey of 12-year-old Adela “Addie” Ramírez as she meets and learns about her biological father and his family, a dynasty of luchadores. Lucha libre, as a cultural form of storytelling and entertainment, is an important aspect of the story, and Pérez uses it to draw out important themes in the book.

The origins of lucha libre date back to the late 19th century, when a Mexican wrestler developed this particular style of wrestling modeled on Greco-Roman traditions. It grew in popularity over the next couple of decades, leading up to Salvador Lutteroth Gonzalez—known as “the father of lucha libre”—establishing the Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre or EMLL, the Mexican Wrestling Organisation. The organization eventually became the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre or CMLL, the World Wrestling Council (“Lucha Libre—An Introduction to Mexican Wrestling.” Lonely Planet).

Lucha libre gained mainstream popularity largely due to two events: the advent of television and the appearance of the masked wrestler El Santo, el Enmascarado de Plata (the Saint, the Silver Masked Man), in 1942. After winning an eight-way battle in his first appearance, El Santo went on to have a decades-long career, emerging as the most popular luchador in history. El Santo kept his true identity a secret throughout his career, only removing his mask in his very last battle; he passed away a week later and was buried with his mask (“Lucha Libre”).

By mentioning El Santo’s famous story to Addie in the book, Gus emphasizes the importance of masks in the lucha libre tradition; in fact, this is what differentiates lucha libre from American wrestling. Although there are luchadores who fight without masks, such as Apollo or even the Bravos in their prime, there are a number of enmascarados, too. The biggest matches are those between two masked wrestlers, which involve the stakes of the loser having to reveal his mask. Being able to keep one’s identity a secret contributes to the luchador’s status (“Lucha Libre”). While the match between The Eagle and The Scorpion in the book doesn’t involve such a stake, they are nevertheless seen trying to rip off the other’s mask. Furthermore, in the book, The Eagle’s unmasking is seen as a way for this character to die and Manny the Mountain to return; thus, the unmasking is not a negative thing for Manny, as it otherwise is in the lucha libre world.

As is the case with American professional wrestling, lucha libre is a mixture of sport and entertainment; in particular, the Mexican form with its masks and elaborate costumes can almost be seen as a form of theater (“Mexico - Christian Feast Days, Day of the Dead, Literature, and Muralist School.” Britannica). The world of lucha libre is populated with characters that fit certain stereotypes of “heroes” and “villains,” and the matches are written and choreographed toward certain outcomes (“Wrestling - Freestyle, Greco-Roman, Submission.” Britannica).

Pérez highlights these aspects of lucha libre through the book’s recurring motifs of different storytelling traditions and weaves them all together in scenarios like Addie’s mythology project or the wrestling match inserted as a twist in the school production. She also uses the luchador’s mask, an important object in the lucha libre world, as a way to symbolize and explore ideas surrounding identity and authenticity. Thus, lucha libre seamlessly becomes an essential part of the landscape in a story where a Mexican American girl is on a journey of discovering her roots.