In Robertson Davies' 1972 novel The Manticore, the story is referred to by the character Dr. Von Haller, in a discussion about the significance of losing one's shadow.
Thamesville is also the birthplace of famous Canadian author Robertson Davies who wrote the Deptford Trilogy of novels (Fifth Business, The Manticore, and World of Wonders), in which Thamesville is fictionalized as the town of Deptford, Ontario.