Story about Stillwater, the Zen Buddhist panda, and his three young friends, siblings Michael, Karl, and Addie. That theme of duality is at the heart of the storyteller’s tale about a young woman who seemingly lives in two places at once. In an author’s note, Muth discusses Zen koans, and as a whole, this title feels more like a vehicle for the meditative tale rather than a developed, integrated story. But Muth grounds the book’s esoteric elements with humor, everyday details from a child’s world, and extraordinary watercolor-and-ink scenes that contrast the fiery shades of autumn with silvery moonlight and utilize a ghostly, simplified palette to amplify the koan’s elemental mysteries. A beautiful, contemplative offering.