This is a simply written but deeply layered novel that works both as an unsettling quasi-horror story, and equally as a timely meditation on the long reach of the Holocaust and the insecurity Jews still feel. There were lines I re-read and underlined because of their quiet power. As another reviewer mentioned, I had not heard of this author before, but I will read all of his work now as I connected deeply with this. Deserves to be read widely and thought about at all levels of society

When a young boy at a Jewish youth camp in civil war-torn Guatemala wakes to commotion and the sounds of screaming his life will never be the same again.Though this is a short novel - clocking in at under 200 pages - it is epic in theme and scope, spanning forty...ish years and journeying from the remote mountains of Guatemala to France and Berlin in the late 2010s via 1980s Miami, the Łódź Ghetto and the Nazi Concentration Camps. The long shadow of the Holocaust covers its pages, seeping into every word and forcing us, the reader, to grapple with the many complex afterlives of the Holocaust. What begins as a nightmarish horror story about the worst camping trip imaginable becomes a novel about memory, family, trauma - individual and shared - and what it means to be a Jew in a post-Holocaust, post-20th century world. To do this well is hard enough. To do it in under 200 pages is a marvel.I'm almost ashamed to admit that I'd never heard of Eduardo Halfon until this book appeared on my radar. It is safe to say that he's on my radar now.

Beautifully written, vulnerable, reflective, multi-layered, exploring family, history, generational trauma. Classed as translated fiction but reads like an autobiography, difficult to review but in a good way. The horror-like story of a kids summer camp gone horribly wrong, interposed with Eduardo's experiences as an adult meeting up with a fellow camper, as well as the person at the centre of his nightmare. Eduardo has this way of questioning his own memories, but being honest that he's choosing the ones he perhaps wants to be true. Will we ever know the full truth? The story highlights the generational impact of the Holocaust that is still felt by Jews today, and perhaps for many generations to come. A short book that packs a lot in. I had not read any Halfon before, but shall now be making up for that after reading Tarantula.

Halfon’s borderline-addictive writing style keeps you flipping through this beautifully reflective piece about life for Jewish individuals and communities after the holocaust. Adeptly tackling both old fears and new ones, we see young Eduardo struggle with his identity, both as a Latino and a young Jewish man in the 1970s. I hung on to almost every word of this novel, and think for those interested in post-conflict society this is a must read!

This book was multi layered and complex with an incredible style of writing that encaptured the emotions that the characters felt and how they went on in their lives after the jewish summer camp so painfully and was a thought provoking and raw read