Shadow

July 1, 2019
A girl moves into a dusty old house where she encounters Shadow—a dark, shape-shifting figure. As the two play, the girl notices that her mother cannot see Shadow: “Sometimes Ma couldn’t see for days.” After following the being into the woods and becoming lost, the girl finds “the smallest crack of light,” which leads her to her mother, who is searching for her. The two stand together with their silhouettes cast across the snowy ground—their dual shadows present for the first time—then make their way home, which no longer seems looming and unfamiliar. Suvorova’s moody, gray-washed color palette turns from gloomy to full of warmth, and Christopher writes about the trials of liminal states with a light touch and an adept use of familiar metaphors. A well-executed work about the transformative nature of togetherness. Ages 5–8.

July 15, 2019
A child finds a new playmate, but troubles hang like a cloud over the house. After a move, the narrator discovers Shadow, a spectral boy, under the bed. They spend days together, although the narrator's perpetually distracted mother does not perceive Shadow even as his shape changes. Eventually, the two leave and wander into the woods, where Shadow goes off, leaving the child alone in a visually arresting spread that isolates the muffler-clad child on a nearly all-black page. After "a while, a very long while," the child reunites with Ma when they recognize each other's shadows. The white-presenting pair play and invite diverse new friends over for tea, including a cat that could be Shadow, who is not unwelcome. The digital artwork strategically uses grayscale with red and navy accents. The tale is definitely uncanny, featuring a doppelgänger ("In the dark, Shadow and me were the same"), and the characters' washed-out eyes have an eerie look. Rest assured, there is a happy ending, with the mother present for multiple pages after the woods. Dappled edges and scratched textures embellish the dreamlike atmosphere. Whether seen as a metaphor for fear, grief, depression, or something else, this story professes that denial is not the way to deal with one's troubles; it is better to communicate and be together. Sensitively shines a metaphorical light onto scary but nonetheless real emotions. (Picture book. 3-8)

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October 25, 2019

K-Gr 2-In this sympathetic tale, an unnamed girl describes her time spent with a shadow living in the old house she now calls home. Their first meeting occurs under her bed, when "he didn't go away." In this isolating environment, the little redhead naturally becomes close to the amorphous shadow while playing games like hide-and-seek and dancing in the attic. But then, one day, they wander into the woods, where the girl is left alone in a pitch black place. Her mother, who up to this point has been distant, rushes to the rescue, and from then on, the two become closer, and gain new friends. While it has its brighter moments, this picture book has more than one type of darkness to contemplate. First is an underlying apprehension. The shadow may have eased the girl's loneliness, but it is ultimately a hollow relationship that draws her away from meaningful ones. There is also an unspecified "blackness" that looms over the girl's mother. Through the tone, framing, prevalence of contrasting shades, and the actions of the characters, readers get an impression of their circumstances: isolation, possible loss of economic security, or even a change in the family dynamic. Only after their lives take a turn does a smattering of warm, soft colors overcome this. VERDICT This title gently relates the experience of one child coping with difficult times, and possibly points out pitfalls and solutions for others going through similar situations.-Rachel Forbes, Oakville Public Library, Ont.

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