Wilton Writer’s New Book Brings Local History to Life

Local Author Publishes New Novella Set in Connecticut’s Landscape
Wilton resident and writer Adele Evershed is celebrating the release of her latest book, A History of Hand Thrown Walls (Unsolicited Press), which was published on September 23rd. The novella-in-flash brings Connecticut’s history and imagination vividly to life.
The book blends a series of interconnected flash fiction pieces, each one standing alone as a complete story, while together they form a larger tapestry deeply rooted in the state’s landscape. At the heart of the work are the hand-built stone walls scattered across Connecticut—timeless markers of history, memory, and place.
Although fiction, the book is grounded in extensive research. Several stories draw inspiration from real Connecticut history. For instance, “The Ovals” references the Emmett-Gregg House, also known as the Wakeman-Sturges House, located on Steeley Road in Wilton. The privately owned property once belonged to abolitionist William Wakeman, who acted as a conductor on the Underground Railroad. The site is recognized by the state as historic, and a tunnel there is believed to have sheltered escaped slaves.
Evershed experiments with form, incorporating letters, pamphlets, poems, and traditional flash fiction. The collection spans centuries, beginning with stories set in pre-colonial times, moving through pivotal historical moments, and even looking ahead to a dystopian future. A History of Hand Thrown Walls was recognized on the literary stage, making the shortlist for The Reflex Novella Award, where it was selected as one of the top eight out of 145 submissions.
“I wanted to create something that reflected both the endurance and the fragility of human stories,” Evershed says. “The walls became a natural anchor, a way of connecting past, present, and imagined futures.”
Originally from Wales, Evershed has made her home on the American East Coast, where she has become an active voice in the local literary community. Her writing has been featured in journals including Poetry Wales, Modern Haiku, The Ekphrastic Review, Atrium, and Literary Mama. She is also the author of two poetry collections, Turbulence in Small Spaces and The Brink of Silence, with a third, In the Belly of the Wail, forthcoming from Querencia Press. In addition to A History of Hand Thrown Walls, she has published two earlier novellas-in-flash (Wannabe and Schooled) as well as a short story collection, Suffer/Rage.

• A History of Hand Thrown Walls* is available now from Unsolicited Press, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.

Evershed is active on social media, where readers can follow her work and updates: X (@AdLibby1), Instagram (@ad_libby), and BlueSky (@adlibby.bsky.social).