The Tiger Came to the Mountains - Silvia Moreno-Garcia - ★★★.½

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AUTHOR: Silvia Moreno-Garcia

GENRE: Short Story
RATING: 3.5 stars.

In a Nutshell: A short survival story based in Mexico in 1917 during the revolution. Good story, bad title.

Story Synopsis:
Our first-person narrator is a brave young girl who loves adventures and playing with boys. Her elder brother, contrary to her, loves books. Living at a time when revolutionary soldiers have made their routine life difficult, the siblings know to escape into a nearby cave in the mountains when the soldiers come around with their demands. However, one night in the cave, there is a mysterious visitor…


Imagine how nice it would have been if reading my synopsis would have made you curious to know who the visitor was. But thanks to the silly title, you can already guess its identity. Sheesh! The “visit” doesn’t even happen until the final section of this tiny 28 page story, so the title somewhat kills the entire suspense.

If I hadn’t been waiting for the tiger to pop up, I would have enjoyed the scene setting even more. The life of ordinary Mexicans in that time of turmoil is depicted well. The first-person writing has a strong narrative quality that keeps us hooked on to the events though we know what’s yet to come.

The story feels more special when you learn that it is based on the author’s recollections of her own great grandmother’s story. Whatever parts I had assumed were farfetched (a Mexican girl indulging in taxidermy in the 1910s or circus animals escaping from a derailed train) were based on facts!

All in all, this is an engrossing story of two teens’ experiences with a dangerous tiger and its aftermath on their lives. A good read for a quick break.

Keep in mind that it is more of historical fiction and not a fantasy, unlike what the GR tags suggest.


This story is a part of the Trespass Collection, and is available to Amazon Prime subscribers.

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