(Photo by Randy M. Cauthron) Vicki Myron shares the process involved in putting her labor of love on the pages of "Dewey: The Small-Town Libray Cat Who Touched the World." [Order this photo]

Boba Fagena.

Sounds like a character from the Star Wars franchise.

In actuality, it's the name of the Spencer City Manager in the Polish version of "Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World."

Other Spencer residents have "owi" attached to their names in the foreign version.

Vicki Myron, the former Spencer librarian who co-wrote the book detailing her relationship with the library cat, Dewey Readmorebooks, learned that the book, which was officially published Wednesday, debuted at number 13 on the New York Bestsellers List that same evening.

"We're very excited," Myron said by car phone on her way to Saint Paul. Myron is taking part in the Midwest Booksellers Association Conference before beginning a multi-city book signing tour which will get underway Saturday at 1 p.m. in Spencer at Wal-Mart.

"I was very surprised. I thought we would debut a lot lower than that, especially since we just published yesterday," Myron said.

Myron has signing dates planned at cities all over Iowa and will also appear in Minneapolis, Minn., Omaha, Neb., and Kansas City, Mo. She said the majority of her personal appearances will be limited to the Midwest right now, but she's hoping to get out to New York eventually.

Although her personal visits may remain local, the exposure of the Dewey book, and Myron's story has reached across the national boundaries and beyond.

Articles in the Des Moines Register and USA Today have helped spread the word. People Magazine which will be released today will have a book review as will Sunday's New York Times. Over the past three days, she has done 25 radio interviews from coast-to-coast.

Myron is hopeful that the delayed CBS Sunday Morning Show segment will be broadcast this week. The piece was delayed from last week's scheduled run as a result of the financial crisis.

The book has been well received. According to Myron, Dewey's story has made the Independent Bookstores Favorites list, and has not received a negative review yet.

"It's very much a whirlwind. It's exciting and it's fun, but I'm exhausted," Myron admitted.

Myron's first opportunity to share her book with the public came during the Clay County Fair where she spent approximately 34 hours over the course of the nine days signing about 1,000 books that sold inside the Clay County Regional Events Center.

"Yes, I did have writer's cramp," Myron said with a chuckle.

So is the co-author surprised that the book she penned, along with Bret Witter, has become such a national phenomenon?

"I never knew that it would be this big. I wasn't thinking New York Bestsellers List on day one. But I always knew that Dewey and I had a story to tell, and it would be a lot bigger than a lot of people thought. There were a lot of people who said, 'Don't quit your day job. I knew it was bigger than that.

"The news just keeps getting better every day."