So Far Gone: A Novel

(Hardback)

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"As talented a natural storyteller as is working in American fiction."Washington Post

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Beautiful Ruinsand in the wild, propulsive spirit of Charles Portis True Gritcomes a hilarious and brilliantly provocative adventure through life in modern America, about a reclusive journalist forced back into the world to rescue his kidnapped grandchildren.

A few weeks after the 2016 election, at Thanksgiving with his daughters family, Rhys Kinnick snapped. After an escalating fight about politics, he hauled off and punched his conspiracy theorist son-in-law. Horrified by what he'd done, by the state of the country and by his own spiraling mental health, Rhys chucked his smartphone out a car window and fled for a cabin in the woods, off the grid and with no one aroundexcept a pack of hungry raccoons.

Now, seven years later, Kinnicks old life is about to land right back on his crumbling doorstep. Can this failed husband and father, a man with no phone, no computer, and a car that barely runs, reemerge into a broken world to track down his missing daughter and save his sweet, precocious grandchildren from the members of a dangerous militia

With the help of his caustic ex-girlfriend, a bipolar retired detective, and his only friend (who happens to be furious with him), Kinnick heads off on a madcap journey through cultural lunacy and the rubble of a life he thought hed left behind.So Far Goneis a rollicking, razor-sharp, and ultimately moving road trip through a fractured nation, from a writer who has been called a genius of the modern American moment (Philadelphia Inquirer).

Reviews

A Publishers Weekly & Washington Post "Most Anticipated" A Vogue "Best Book of the Year" "So Far Goneis a marvela taut literary thriller that is also a moving, deeply humane exploration of the way one family falls apart and puts itself back together in a moment of crisis. Jess Walter is a prodigiously talented novelist, a writer willing to confront some of the most important and divisive issues of our time without losing his nerve or his sense of humor." Tom Perrotta, New York Times bestselling author of The Leftovers "Jess Walter is beloved for being a prose wizard with a sparkling, infectious sense of humor and a huge heart. He makes readers love his characters even when they don't find themselves particularly loveable. So Far Gone speaks directly into the profoundly troubled soul of our fractured, embittered country; miraculously, it does so with gentle wryness and angry love. What a rollicking good time." Lauren Groff, New York Times bestselling author of Matrix "I loved this book, and marveled how Jess Walter managed to build such a warm, funny, loving novel out of so many horrible parts. It's an American original." Ann Patchett, New York Timesbestselling author of Tom Lake "A tumultuous road trip through a tumultuous America." Washington Post, Books to Watch for in 2025 The characters are created with loving care, the plot with reckless glee; Walter seems as fed up with various aspects of modern life as the smartphone-hating Rhys, and gives his version of the modern Northwest a distinctly Old West vibrational overlay.Walter is a beacon of wit, decency, and style. Kirkus Reviews(starred review) "Ive learned from Walters superb stories and novels to follow him wherever he takes me." Publishers Weekly

Author Bio

Jess Walter is the author of seven previous novels, including the bestsellers The Cold Millions and Beautiful Ruins, the National Book Award Finalist The Zero, and Citizen Vince, winner of the Edgar Award for best novel. His short fiction, collected in The Angel of Rome and We Live in Water, has won the O. Henry Prize, the Pushcart Prize and appeared three times in Best American Short Stories. He lives in his hometown of Spokane, Washington.