Meet the author: Wim Oosterlinck interviews Jess Walter!

Publisher Marmer and Bookz&Booze Ghent welcome you to the book launch 'Zo ver'.

'Here' by international bestselling author Jess Walter.

Meet the author: Wim Oosterlinck interviews Jess Walter

When? Sunday, May 24, 2026 at 4:00 PM

Where? BOOKZ&BOOZE , Hoogpoort 35, 9000 Ghent

What?

During this Jess Walter interview in Ghent, Wim Oosterlinck talks to the American author about books, stories, and writing.

Radio presenter Wim Oosterlinck (Wim has been making the podcast since 2019) In *Three Books* (in which he asks book lovers about the three books everyone absolutely *must* have read), author Jess Walter is interviewed.

Tickets €7

TICKETS

Jess Walter has already written thrillers, short stories, and contemporary and historical novels. He is now adding a sharp satire on the deeply divided American society to his oeuvre with his new novel *Zo ver heen* , which Netflix will be turning into a series. Podcast maker and radio presenter Wim Oosterlinck speaks with him.

What is the book about?

Rhys Kinnick, a retired environmental journalist, has fallen out with his daughter and son-in-law, a radical Christian who spreads conspiracy theories. After an argument spirals out of control, Rhys throws away his phone and retreats to a cabin in the woods, a modern-day Walden. Seven years later, his grandchildren show up at his door: their mother is missing, and they ask for his help to find her. What follows is a road trip through Trump's America, featuring armed militiamen, radical preachers, and hippies, former police officers, and Native Americans.

That, in very brief summary, is the story of * Zo ver heen*, in which we ultimately find out whether the protagonist, after seven years “off the grid,” was too far gone to reconcile with his daughter and grandchildren. However, the larger question Jess Walter poses with this book is how far gone American society is and where salvation must come from.

Netflix

Jess Walter's books are almost never alike; he switches between genres and styles seemingly effortlessly, but we can always be sure of sharp dialogue, great empathy, and strong insight into and commentary on our society. It was also recently announced that Netflix will produce a series based on the book.

About the author

Jess Walter debuted in 2001 with *When the Grave Is Silent* . This was followed by several novels, including National Book Award finalist * The Days After* and the Edgar Allan Poe Award winners * The Donut Man* and *The Land of the Blind *. His novel *The Splendid Ruins *, number 1 on the New York Times bestseller list for weeks, sold more than 100,000 copies in the Netherlands and Belgium. In 2021, * The Tiny Millions * was published in Dutch; according to the New York Times, Washington Post , Oprah, and many others, it was one of the best books of 2020. * The Angel of Rome* was the top reading recommendation by many American magazines last summer.

(Meet the author: Wim Oosterlinck interviews Jess Walter)