Article in Keene Sentinel

Family saga mirrors region's [I still haven't figured out what this means!]

Swanzey woman's family project turns into local bestseller
By David P. Greisman, Sentinel Staff - published Monday, July 27, 2009

A local author who had sought to ink a biography of her grandfather for an audience of her family has seen that same book become an area sensation.

"Perley - The True Story of a New Hampshire Hermit" is the first book by Sheila D. Swett. It is the nonfiction tale of Perley Swett, a Stoddard man who lived from 1888 to 1973 and who was known as "The Hermit of Taylor Pond."

The book, published through the Historical Society of Cheshire County, came out in November. Since then, regional readers have turned to the page-turner.

"We're actually on our third printing, so we've sold more than 2,500 and maybe a little less than 3,000," Sheila Swett, 54, of Swanzey said in an interview with The Sentinel.

Most of those sales have come in the Monadnock Region, though there have been orders from as far away as New Zealand.

"A lot of people who like the story, they might send it to friends or relatives who used to live around here, or maybe they might know somebody who they feel is a bit of a hermit and might appreciate the story," Swett said.

The first printing of 1,500 books sold out in about five weeks, with stock running out around Christmas last year.
A second printing of 1,000 came out in February and sold out a few months later.
The third printing of 750 was released a couple of months ago and is still in stores.

"We kept waiting for it to slow down, but it seems to be keeping its momentum," Swett said.

Indeed, employees at a pair of Keene bookstores say the book has been an overwhelming hit for a local publication.

"Last year, we sold 255 copies. And then so far this year, we've sold 270," said Robin D. Matthews, a salesman at The Toadstool Bookshop, giving sales figures for the Keene location. "In the beginning, we had lots of requests for it.

"There are some (local books) that might just sell half a dozen copies. We've got one in the educational department that hasn't sold yet for a couple years. It's all over the map, but this Perley book is especially a standout."

At the Borders bookstore, manager Sara C. Adams said she did not have specific sales figures but described "Perley" as "one of our best sellers."

"I can tell you without even looking that it's our number one local title," Adams said. "We sell several copies a week. We've sold a couple hundred since it's been in the store with us. There's no other local title we can count on to sell as consistently.

"It's a fascinating story, even if you're not aware of the local history, so it's a real easy sell for us," she said. "We sell it to people who are visiting the area looking for a good memento, or people who know the family or the property involved."

Which is a lot more than what Swett had initially intended.

"When I first planned the book, it was just going to be something for my family," Swett said. "As I dug up more and more information and found that it was quite a fascinating story, then I started thinking that maybe it could become a little more."

Swett believes people can relate to the story of her grandfather, that people might identify with his minimalist existence due to "the economy being the way it is and people not trusting the government."

"People start looking for something better," she says. "They look at Perley, and in their minds it just sounds like an ideal kind of situation."

Swett has done book signings, talks with organizations, visits with book clubs and even hikes to Perley's haunts. Those hikes, organized by local groups, each have drawn more than 100 people, Swett said.

Yet a successful debut as an author won't mean a second book, Swett says.

"A lot of people ask me what's the next thing I'm going to write," she said. "I think this is kind of a one-shot thing I felt had to be done. I did it, and that'll be it."