Kenneth Sheldon will read from his new book “Deep Water – Murder, Scandal, and Intrigue in a New England Town,” discuss the process of its writing, answer questions and sign copies of the book on July 9 at 10 a.m. at Jaffrey Civic Center, 40 Main St. in Jaffrey.
Additional readings will be July 30 at 10 a.m. at the Monadnock Center for History and Culture, 19 Grove St. in Peterborough, and Aug. 4 at 7 p.m. at the Hancock Town Library, 25 Main St.
In the waning days of World War I, William K. Dean was murdered, his body hog-tied and dumped in a rainwater cistern on his farm in Jaffrey. Suspicion quickly fell on Dean’s wife, who was in the early stages of dementia. Her friends pointed instead to a former tenant of Dean’s, whom many suspected of being a German spy. Others believed that Dean’s best friend, a politically powerful banker and judge, was involved.
“Deep Water,” which will be released June 15 by Down East Books, is based on Sheldon’s research into the Dean murder, which included thousands of pages of FBI documents, grand jury testimony, newspaper accounts, private correspondence and the archives of the Jaffrey Historical Society.
“I began writing ‘Deep Water’ because I thought William Dean deserved justice, even at this late date,” Sheldon stated. “The truth needed to be told, to whatever extent I could uncover it.”
Sheldon was formerly the West Coast bureau chief for Byte Magazine. His writing has appeared in publications ranging from Acoustic Guitar to New Hampshire Magazine and Yankee Magazine, where he has been a regular columnist. He is the author of several books, including “Welcome to Frost Heaves,” a collection of Yankee humor written under his pen name Fred Marple.
All events are free and open to the public. For information, go to the author’s website at kensheldon.com or send email to ken@kensheldon.com.