Summary

The ninth and final story in the collection is called “Light.” It opens in a bar in Florida with a man reading a children’s book. He asks a woman for a light and Lindsey tells him she does not smoke. He calls her a “Stupid bitch” (289) and tells her he wants a light. She tells him she is a children’s librarian and wants to know why he is defacing the book. Lindsey overhears a woman named Caroline talking about over-the-counter shadows and babies who are born with two shadows. Lindsey and the man end up back at her place and “their four shadows fell across her double bed” (292). The next morning she finds his amputated shadow and strong-smelling towels in the bathroom. She cleans up and puts the shadow down in the disposal.

Lindsey lives in Florida Keys and there are lots...