Tafolla Toro

Three Years of Fear

The great lie of our society is that mental health and mental illness are the same.

Lorenzo Gomez wants to dispel that notion for good. In his new book, Tafolla Toro, he reaches back in time to share stories of his turbulent, traumatic, and often violent middle school years in one of San Antonio’s most crime-riddled neighborhoods. He opens up to reveal the fear, anxiety, and hopelessness he felt as a teenager and how those forces shaped his life until he began taking steps as an adult to improve his mental health.

Alternating between shocking stories from his youth and letters written to his 12-year-old self, Lorenzo shows young people how to retake the battle of their mind by dealing with what is true and dismantling the lies that lead to self-deception. In Lorenzo’s journey, readers will see someone who understands what they feel, knows what they’re going through, and is standing up to tell them: Decide today that you are worthy.

Relationships | Parenting & Personal Development | Parenting & Families

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“A thoughtful, entertaining memoir of a troubled youth.”

KIRKUS REVIEWS

★★★★★

Tafolla Toro is full of wisdom for parents and students alike. Lorenzo’s writing invites us to develop a self-knowledge about who we are, reflect on how our experiences shaped us and to grow beyond the coping strategies and defense mechanisms that helped us survive as children.

Courtney D

★★★★★

From fear, to anxiety, being comfortable with who you are as a unique individual, to faith, Lorenzo touches on it all. This book helped me initiate a few very insightful conversations with my own middle-school child and I am forever grateful for the knowledge I’ve gained.

Priscilla

★★★★★

After you are done with this book, you’ll realize that even when life is at its hardest, there are strategies you can use to find peace, so that ultimately you can keep moving forward.

Steve Cunningham

★★★★★

Although Lorenzo & I went to two different middle schools separated by 1,400 miles, his story of fear, uncertainty and self doubt is mine. In this book he masterfully weaves a narrative from his current self to his 12-year-old self explaining that those feelings were/are normal and that we need to be able reconcile the painful memories from our youth so that it does not impact our adult lives.

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Podcasts & Radio

Hear Lorenzo speak about Tafolla Toro on these podcasts and radio stations.

Video

Listen to Lorenzo Gomez talk about Tafolla Toro.

Tafolla Toro: The Play

A selction of Tafolla Toro was adapted for the stage by students and theatre teachers at The Centers for Applied Science & Technology’s (CAST) Science, Technology, Engineering and Math School. Read more about the students’ experiences on San Antonio Report and watch the performance on YouTube.

Buy "Tafollo Toro"

Other Books by Lorenzo

The Bully in Your Pocket

Within these pages, Lorenzo Gomez not only imparts practical wisdom for dealing with the scourge of cyberbullying but also shares poignant narratives illustrating how this issue has profoundly affected today’s youth and even himself.
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The Rack We Built

In 1998, the thought of launching a startup in San Antonio was ludicrous—but that didn’t stop Rackspace’s founders from planting their flag in the heart of Texas. Just over two decades later, the scrappy little underdog that no one believed in is a billion-dollar business with more than 6,000 employees worldwide.
Read More ›

Cilantro Diaries

Lorenzo went from the stockroom of a grocery store to the boardrooms of two private companies without a formal higher education. In his inspiring and humorous true story of hope and accomplishment, he shares the steps he took up the ladder and the guiding principles that got him to the top.
Read more ›