GREENFIELD — Six months after television and film producer Essie Chambers’ debut novel “Swift River” was published, it has been recognized with a series of accolades, including its recent receipt of the Barnes & Noble’s Discover Prize, inclusion on the Washington Post’s list of 50 notable works of fiction from 2024 and placement on Barnes & Noble’s list of Book of the Year finalists.

“It felt unreal to be in that list,” Chambers said. “All of those authors are my heroes, so to see my book in that list was extraordinary.”

Since its release, the novel has made its way onto NPR’s Best Books list for 2024, Amazon’s list of Best Debut Fiction Books of 2024, the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize long list and the American Library Association’s Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction long list. The New Yorker recognized the novel with a year-end recommendation and “Swift River” was a finalist for the New England Books Awards.

In the last six months, Chambers, who was raised in Greenfield, has traveled to London for the novel’s United Kingdom release, appeared on the Today Show after TV personality Jenna Bush Hager selected “Swift River” as her June 2024 “Read With Jenna” pick, and has participated in public talks such as Gooseneck Winery’s Cardigan Connection speaker series in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, and a book signing at Imaginary Books in Greenfield.

“Swift River” has been released in South Africa, Australia, Ireland and the United Kingdom. In the spring, Chambers said the novel will likely be translated to German and released in Germany.

“Swift River” was named after the story’s setting — a fictitious New England town where the protagonist, 16-year-old Diamond Newbury, the town’s only Black resident, lives with her mother. The story follows Diamond’s journey through her family’s roots, traumas and history when Diamond receives a letter from a relative she’s never met.

Although the book is a work of fiction, and the characters and plot lines are invented, Chambers previously said she pulled some of Diamond’s emotions from her own experiences growing up as a person of color living in a predominantly white town.

“The book is about a young girl who is trying to find her way in the world. She doesn’t feel like she belongs and she’s trying to find a place that she belongs, but it’s also about the importance of telling our family stories. One of the byproducts of this is that I have people who reach out to me from all over the country telling me their family stories,” Chambers said. “I get to have these really beautiful, intimate conversations with people who are sharing their lives in really vulnerable ways, and I get to be vulnerable back with them. It’s this beautiful exchange and I never could have imagined that part of it — it’s just been so rewarding.”

Born in Brattleboro, Vermont, Chambers moved to Greenfield at the age of 2. She started her creative writing career as a film producer, working in senior creative executive positions at ViacomCBS (Paramount). She later worked as a producer on the documentary “Descendant,” which was released by Higher Ground and Netflix in 2022, and produced the PBS documentary “The New Public.”

After leaving her executive roles, Chambers went back to school to pursue a master’s degree from Columbia University, an experience that she said gave her the support and structure she needed to focus on developing her craft and writing a story that had been in her mind for some time.

Chambers said she will likely return to Greenfield for a book signing event when the novel’s paperback edition is released in May. Although she said she was honored by Barnes & Nobles’ recognition of her work, she maintains a deep appreciation for independent booksellers.

“It’s just been so rewarding, coming home to Greenfield. Everywhere I go, I see people who have read the book or who are cheering me on. I feel so loved and supported. … My mother is always hearing from people who’ve read the book,” Chambers said. “There are people that I went to high school with who have gone to multiple events in different cities to come see me and support me. I feel a new connection with my home, because they’re sort of remeeting me in a different way — as a different person, but the same person at the same time.”

Anthony Cammalleri can be reached at acammalleri@recorder.com or 413-930-4429.