"So Far Gone" is a book our library patrons will love. It's a family, drama saga without being too long and overwhelming. The writing is similar to some of our most popular check-outs, but the plot and structure are unique.

TL;DR: even an average Jess Walter book is better than most things out there, but that's what this is....average. If Fredrik Backman and Kevin Wilson had a book baby, it would be this book, about a grandfather living off the grid who is forced to care for his grandkids when his estranged daughter goes missing. The tone is a bit all over the place, but I still enjoyed it.

I love Jess Walter, but I had a hard time with this book. I did not connect with the main character at all.

I thought for sure I would love this. As a Never Trumper I figured I'd enjoy a main character that punches his MAGA loving Christian nationalist son-in-law in the face at Thanksgiving dinner only to flee, leaving everything behind, to live off grid for the next seven years.

I did giggle a few times as I obviously agree with what Walter's was selling but ultimately I was left very bored. It seemed to ramble on and on and I completely lost interest.

Maybe reading this at this time was the problem. Its tough to read a fiction book about our terrifying reality, much less enjoy it.

Maybe once this madman is in prison or burning in hell I'll give this a try again.

Thanks so much for this eread Netgalley! This is my first by Walter (I don’t read many white male authors 😬) but this definitely won’t be my last. His writing was top notch and I loved this flawed family.

Rhys Kinnick exiled himself from his family after punching his right wing conspiracy theory son in law. He’s been living as a hermit for seven years until one day his grandchildren show up on his door - their mother is missing and they need Rhys’s help. He is forced back into society and to be a guardian for these kids while facing a dangerous group from his son in law’s church.

This book is billed as hilarious and while there are funny moments, I found the overall tone to be sad/tense. This novel really shows the cracks in the USA politically right now and it was often very upsetting to me (and angering.) But there is hope on these pages and Walter did such an incredible job flushing out these characters. The structure of this book is great, spanning time and moving between the family per chapter. Each chapter is called What Happened to ___, rotating the characters and really digging deep into what they were going through individually. I really enjoyed this captivating novel!

✨Content Warnings: Graphic Violence, Death of a Parent, Religious Bigotry, Homophobia, Addiction, Animal Cruelty, Cancer, Adult/Minor Relationship, Animal Death

✨Themes: Family, Political Polarization,

✨You May Like This If You Enjoyed:
-A Man Called Ove (Fredrick Backman)
-Razorblade Tears (S.A.Cosby)

4.25 stars. This was my first reading a Jess Walter book, and I look forward to reading more from him. The book has you rooting from the first for the reclusive and very flawed main character. His choices, past and present, are often pretty questionable, but they are also relatable. Some of the plot developments seemed a bit strained at times, and not always believable, and I don't completely buy the ending, but... the story was engaging right from the start and all the way through, and that counts for a lot for me. Recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publishers for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinions.

It's easy to underestimate this book. We have an understated cover, a broken family, and an older gent as our protagonist. The story is very now, very familiar, even ordinary, which could work against it, but instead, I think, it makes the moments of suspense and heartache that much more visceral and inescapable.

Walter really captures what it is to experience unconditional love in such a quick and angry world; it's such a strange time to exist and love the ones you're with, and these characters are so recognizable, it almost makes you feel ashamed. Our POV is third-person, but Kinnick is still very present in the narration. It felt like I was growing in understanding along with him. It doesn't make everything okay, but the back-breaking effort we put towards love is always going to be the point.

This novel is receiving lots of national praise but I found it mixed. Rhys Kinnick has withdrawn from society and lives a simple and isolated life. That is until his grandchildren show up on his front step. Kinnick brings to mind The Big Lewbowski's Dude who doesn't care about too much. The first half of the novel is funny and we feel Kinnick's frustration with his failed love life and how he hates the absurdity of society. However, flashback scenes at about two-thirds into the book bog down the plot and I lost focus. Still, I may be in the minority of evaluation, but I don't see how this book is gaining so much positive press.

Out Now. Recommended!

Synopsis:
𝙎𝙤 𝙁𝙖𝙧 𝙂𝙤𝙣𝙚 is a hilarious, empathetic, and brilliantly provocative adventure through life in modern America, about a reclusive journalist forced back into the world to rescue his kidnapped grandchildren.

Rhys Kinnick has gone off the grid. At Thanksgiving a few years back, a fed-up Rhys punched his conspiracy-theorist son-in-law in the mouth, chucked his smartphone out a car window and fled for a cabin in the woods, with no one around except a pack of hungry raccoons.

Now Kinnick’s old life is about to land right back on his crumbling doorstep. Can this failed husband and father, a man with no internet 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 wild journey through cultural lunacy and the rubble of a life he thought he’d left behind.

My Thoughts:

I have not seen that many posts about 𝙎𝙤 𝙁𝙖𝙧 𝙂𝙤𝙣𝙚 by Jess Walter on my feed, but it called to me from the public library “New Books” shelf, and I’m so glad it did.

My husband said if I rated this based on the number of times I snort laughed, then it’s a winner. I agreed- it made me laugh and I fell in love with this family. I started this yesterday, and never set it down. This novel reminded me of The Road to Tender Hearts with the curmudgeonly grandfather MC being a lovable anti-hero rescuing others and himself, and also confronted many of the social and political issues addressed in Lula Dean with pitch perfect satire and humor. A great addition to your TBR if you enjoy family redemption stories.

QOTD: What’s the last book you borrowed from the library or the @libby.app ?

@harpercollins @harperbooks

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Jess Walter delivers his most ambitious and timely novel yet with this brilliant blend of dark comedy and genuine pathos. Rhys Kinnick is the perfect protagonist for our fractured times—a burned-out journalist hiding in the woods after punching his conspiracy-theorist son-in-law and abandoning modern life entirely. When his daughter and grandchildren disappear into a dangerous militia, this reluctant hermit must re-enter a world that's somehow gotten even more unhinged since he left.
Walter's genius lies in making Kinnick simultaneously sympathetic and infuriating. Here's a man who's given up on everything—his marriage, his career, society itself—yet when crisis strikes, he'll risk everything for family. The supporting cast is equally complex: his caustic ex-girlfriend, a bipolar retired detective, and his furious best friend all bring their own damage and wisdom to this unlikely rescue mission.
The novel works as both a rollicking adventure and a sharp social commentary on American divisiveness. Walter doesn't shy away from exploring how conspiracy theories and extremism tear families apart, but he handles these themes with surprising nuance and empathy. Even the militia members feel human rather than cartoonish.
The writing crackles with Walter's signature wit while maintaining genuine emotional weight. The road trip structure allows for both comedic set pieces and moments of profound insight about masculinity, failure, and redemption. This feels like Walter's "True Grit" for the social media age—a story about an unlikely hero navigating a landscape that's both absurd and genuinely dangerous.
A masterful exploration of modern American madness wrapped in an irresistible page-turner.

Jess Walter's newest well written, exciting story based in the Pacific Northwest finds a way to be topical, suspenseful, touching, and relatable. By incorporating religious conflict, political conflict, the urges to both retreat from the world and to protect family, the author crafts an involving story of family in crisis and the lengths that the protagonist goes to rescue his own.

Great book! Very entertaining, very easy and fun to read. Characters were fully formed; I felt like I was there with them and knew them all personally. Very prescient subject matter- a snapshot into the grim reality for so many, but written with compassion and an awareness that doesn’t get in the way of the story.

A very interesting and unique story. I will be recommending it to patrons. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

So Far Gone is a chaotic dive into contemporary America, where satire and reality collide in ways that are sometimes funny, sometimes disturbing, and often uncomfortably close to the truth. Jess Walter is clearly making a political statement here—and he’s not pulling any punches. The result is a story that feels deliberately provocative, with characters and situations that push the boundaries to make a larger point about where we are as a society.

The adult characters in this book? Not likeable at all. Every decision they make seems worse than the last, and their behavior ranges from baffling to outright reckless. And yet, for all the dysfunction and absurdity, I still found myself compelled to keep reading. The format is especially interesting: each long chapter follows a different character’s experience of the same unraveling situation, without rehashing the same events. It creates a layered, forward-moving narrative that adds energy to an already chaotic story and helps maintain momentum, even as the plot goes off the rails.

In the end, I’m still not entirely sure what to make of this book. It’s messy, bold, and clearly meant to provoke—and it definitely succeeds on that front. While I didn’t love it, I appreciated the risk-taking and the commentary tucked into the madness. A solid 3.25 stars from me.

An excellent book about the absurdity of our times and how conspiracy theories and religious zealots can become mainstream. While there are some humorous parts, I wouldn't necessarily call this a humorous novel. It is very real and the characters are well-developed. It is easy to see how everything that happened the way it did after Rhys's grandchildren show up at his doorstep. Loved this book!

Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rhys Kinnick has gone off the grid. can this father and grandfather go back into society to save his daughter and grandchildren from a militia from her husband? This book was so good and I loved it! Would highly recommend!

This was a quick read that posed some serious questions about family and standing up for personal ideals, or against ideals of others that pose a threat. The characters were well developed and relatable.

I absolutely loved So Far Gone by the terrific Jess Walter. The story of a former reporter turned recluse, whose grandchildren show up on his doorstep needing help (and he doesn't even recognize them!) When they are kidnapped by Christian militia, he enlists the help of a former girlfriend and a bipolar former police officer. Not to mention his daughter is missing too. Jess Walter is at the height of his amazing powers!

Rhys Kinnick is a former journalist turned curmudgeonly recluse living off the grid in a decrepit cinderblock house on the remains of his family's never-had-sheep sheep farm. One day his two grandchildren appear at his front door because their mom -- Kinnick's estranged daughter -- is missing. Chaos ensues.

I started reading the ebook version and then realized Edoardo Ballerini narrates the audiobook and switched to that immediately. I have been lightly in love with him since listening to Long Island Compromise, and I knew he would be amazing reading this. Ballerini is so good at capturing unhinged manic energy and makes everything 100x funnier with his delivery -- and he had excellent, hilarious, content to work with here. I loved this book! Cultural commentary, family drama, and RACCOONS.

I loved this book. It's a well-written page turner, full of action and emotions, complicated relationships, and conflicting ideologies. It's both current and timeless, and left me feeling motivated to do my part to make the world a better place and feeling good about it.