"Shadow lives in the forest . . ./It goes forth at night to prowl around the fires./It even likes to mingle with the dancers". But in the African experience, Shadow is much more, an eerie image that shifts between the beliefs of the present and the spirts of the past. Brown's stunning collages, inspired by her travels in Africa, evoke the atmosphere and drama of a life now haunted, now enchanted--by Shadow.

A full-size reissue of a Caldecott Medal winner offers beautiful collages and an evocative text that capture the elusive mystery of Shadow, a figure from African folklore who lives in the margins of belief and the past.