70-year-old pensioner self-published his first novel. "Theo of Golden" became a bestseller
The success story of Allen Levi, a 70-year-old former lawyer and judge from Georgia, seems like an exception to all the rules of the modern book market. His debut novel "Theo of Golden," which started as a modest self-publishing project, has turned into a literary phenomenon with over 2.5 million copies sold in three years. What makes it so special, reports The Wall Street Journal.
Allen Levi. Photo: allenlevi.com
Allen Levi was not a professional writer before the novel's release. During his life, he worked as a lawyer and a judge, and also pursued music, performing as a songwriter. The novel "Theo of Golden" became his debut work of fiction.
This almost 400-page book tells the story of an elderly man who arrives in a fictional town in the southern USA and spends a lot of time on a park bench. One day, the man notices portraits hanging in a local cafe, and an idea is born in him to buy these portraits and return them to those depicted in them. The book focuses heavily on observation, conversations between people, kindness, and personal encounters instead of online communication.
In the summer of 2022, Levi asked his niece, Aron Richey, to help him publish the manuscript. Having no experience in the book industry, she began studying self-publishing platforms, book distribution systems, and websites of well-known writers to understand how to promote the novel. She also completely revamped Levi's personal website.
On October 11, 2023, the book was released through Amazon's self-publishing service. Richey understood that the average print run for most self-published books is around 250 copies, so she set a more modest but realistic goal for herself — to sell significantly more.
Allen Levi with his niece Aron. Photo: allenlevi / Instagram
She asked her uncle to compile a list of people he had met over decades of work and sent them emails asking them to tell friends, book clubs, libraries, churches (which are important centers of local communities in America), and local bookstores about the book.
One of the fans offered to buy and give away 99 copies for free. After this, Richey contacted book clubs and offered them free books to read. Around 70 clubs responded.
She also personally responded to every reader who wrote through Levi's website, hoping that these people would leave reviews on Goodreads or Amazon and recommend the book to others.
By the end of 2023, they had sold about three thousand copies. Over the next year, daily sales grew from approximately 20 to 100 books, and the total circulation reached 25 thousand by the end of 2024.
But neither Richey nor Levi were prepared for what happened next. Instead of a post-holiday lull, sales of "Theo of Golden" sharply soared in the first half of 2025, reaching 125,000 copies. The novel gradually gained an audience through the most elusive promotion mechanism — "word of mouth."
In May, representatives from Simon & Schuster offered to acquire the audiobook rights, but Levi and Richey refused. At that point, they did not want to hand over control of a project whose success had been an unexpected surprise for them.
Soon, the book caught the attention of literary agent Suzanne Gluck from WME (William Morris Endeavor), who represents dozens of renowned authors. A friend, a retired editor who had read the book in her book club, told her about the novel. The agent was so impressed that she wrote to Levi "blindly" through his website. At that time, "Theo of Golden" had already sold over 100,000 copies and ranked 38th in Amazon's overall rating.
When a letter from Suzanne Gluck with the subject "A Fan Letter from WME" arrived via the author's website feedback form in July, Richey and Levi realized they needed a literary agent. After this, Gluck organized an auction among publishers. According to American media, the size of the offered advances reached seven-figure sums. As a result, Atria — one of Simon & Schuster's imprints — acquired the rights.
The new edition was released on October 3, 2025, before the Christmas sales season. In December, an audiobook appeared, narrated by actor David Morse, known for the films "The Green Mile" and "The Rock." After this, print runs began to grow even faster.
According to Katherine Nintzel, editorial director at Atria publishing house, "Theo" was unlike anything the company had seen on the book market. In her opinion, the book convinces the reader that even a simple conversation with a neighbor can change something, and that is its main message.
As Nintzel notes, in 23 years of working in publishing, she had never seen anything like it. The closest example she considers is the international bestseller by Swedish writer Fredrik Backman, "A Man Called Ove," which Atria also published. Rights to "Theo of Golden" have already been sold in 42 countries.
After the novel's reissue by a major publisher, well-known American journalists and book reviewers began writing and talking about it. American TV host Katie Couric also selected the book for her book club. As part of this project, she discusses a new book monthly and interviews its author. "Theo of Golden" was the February selection. According to the TV host, she learned about the book from friends who recommended including it in the project.
According to the publisher, 32 months after its initial publication, "Theo of Golden" still sells approximately 100,000 copies per week across all formats. Nearly three years after its release, the book also remains among the top five most popular books on Amazon.
In the USA, many authors achieve such sales only after participating in projects by Oprah Winfrey, who is considered one of the most influential popularizers of books in the country. In Levi's case, an interview for her podcast was recorded in the spring, but will only be released later this summer.
Currently, Allen Levi lives on his estate in Georgia and is working on a sequel to the story that proved a heartfelt tale of human kindness can still be sought after by millions.