Jess Walter Popular Books

Jess Walter Biography & Facts

Jess Walter (born July 20, 1965) is an American author of seven novels, two collections of short stories, and a non-fiction book. He is the recipient of the Edgar Allan Poe Award, and was a finalist for the National Book Award in 2006. Career Walter has published seven novels, Over Tumbled Graves, Land of the Blind, Citizen Vince, The Zero, The Financial Lives of the Poets, Beautiful Ruins, and The Cold Millions. In 2013, he published his first collection of short stories, We Live in Water, which President Barack Obama named one of his favorite books in 2019. In 2022, he published his second collection of short stories, The Angel of Rome. His essays and short stories have also appeared in Best American Short Stories, Best American Nonrequired Reading, McSweeny's, Esquire, Harper's, Byliner, Playboy, ESPN the Magazine, Details, and other publications. His books have been published in thirty-two countries and translated into thirty-two languages. Walter's novel Beautiful Ruins was a number one New York Times best seller. It was also named Esquire's Book of the Year, NPR Fresh Air's Best Novel of 2012, a New York Times Notable Book, and a Washington Post Notable Book. Maureen Corrigan of NPR's Fresh Air called this novel a "literary miracle" and Steve Almond of The Boston Globe described it as "a novel with pathos, piercing wit, and, most important, the generous soul of a literary classic". Walter's 2009 novel The Financial Lives of the Poets was named one of the best books of the year by Time, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The Believer, NPR's Fresh Air, and several others. Walter also writes screenplays, and has written the screenplay for a possible film adaptation of The Financial Lives of the Poets. His 2006 novel The Zero was a finalist for the National Book Award. In a 2006 Washington Post book review, John McNally writes that with The Zero Walter has "written a new thriller not only with a conscience but also full of dead-on insights into our culture ... and the often surreal post-9/11 world." Citizen Vince, Walter's 2005 novel, earned him the Edgar Allan Poe Award for best novel in 2006. Walter is also a career journalist, whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Boston Globe. As a reporter he covered the Randy Weaver/Ruby Ridge case for the Spokane Spokesman-Review newspaper and authored a book about the case, Every Knee Shall Bow (revised edition titled Ruby Ridge). He also was the co-author with Christopher Darden of the 1996 bestseller In Contempt. Family Walter lives with his wife, Anne, and their children, Brooklyn, Ava and Alec, in his childhood hometown of Spokane, Washington. He is an alumnus of East Valley High School (Spokane, Washington) and Eastern Washington University. Bibliography Novels Over Tumbled Graves (2001) The Land of the Blind (2003) Citizen Vince (2005) The Zero (2006) The Financial Lives of the Poets (2009) Beautiful Ruins (2012) The Cold Millions (2020) Short story collections We Live in Water: Stories (2013) The Angel of Rome: And Other Stories (2022) Non-fiction Every Knee Shall Bow (1995) re-released as: Ruby Ridge: The Truth and Tragedy of the Randy Weaver Family (Updated & Revised ed.). New York: Harper Perennial. 2002 [1995]. ISBN 9-7800-6000-794-2. In Contempt (co-authored with Christopher Darden) (1996) Awards 2006 : Edgar Allan Poe Award for best novel Citizen Vince 2006 : National Book Award Finalist for best novel The Zero 2006 : Finalist for Washington State Book Award in Fiction for The Zero 2007 : Finalist for Washington State Book Award in Fiction for Citizen Vince 2007 : Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award for The Zero 2007 : LA Times Book Prize for The Zero 2011 : Finalist for Washington State Book Award in Fiction for The Financial Lives of the Poets 2012 : New York Times 100 Notable Books of 2012 list for Beautiful Ruins 2021: Washington State Book Award for Fiction for The Cold Millions. References External links Official Jess Walter website Fantastic Fiction - Jess Walter The Bat Segundo Show (radio interviews): 2007 (40 minutes) and 2012 (50 minutes). Discover the Jess Walter popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Jess Walter books.

Best Seller Jess Walter Books of 2024

  • The Financial Lives of the Poets synopsis, comments

    The Financial Lives of the Poets

    Jess Walter

    “Darkly funny, surprisingly tender . . . witheringly deadon.”  Los Angeles TimesNamed one of the year’s best novels by: Time  Salon.com  Los Ange...

  • A Theater for Dreamers synopsis, comments

    A Theater for Dreamers

    Polly Samson

    “Sublime and immersive . . . If you wish you could disappear to a Greek island right now, I highly recommend.” Jojo Moyes, #1 bestselling author of Me Before You“This gorgeous, gli...

  • The Books That Changed My Life synopsis, comments

    The Books That Changed My Life

    Bethanne Patrick

    One hundred of today’s most prominent literary and cultural icons talk about the books that hold a special place in their heartsthat made them who they are today.Leading authors, p...

  • Scorpionfish synopsis, comments

    Scorpionfish

    Natalie Bakopoulos

    A captivating and transporting travel novel, Scorpionfish reveals how what we leave behind may be exactly what we've been looking for all along.After the unexpected deaths of her p...

  • It All Comes Down to This synopsis, comments

    It All Comes Down to This

    Therese Anne Fowler

    A JUNE 2022 INDIE NEXT PICK"A true pageturner." Ann Napolitano, New York Times bestselling author of Hello Beautiful"A smart and lively novel." Jess Walter, #1 New York Times bests...

  • One Italian Summer synopsis, comments

    One Italian Summer

    Rebecca Serle

    INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERIn this “magical trip worth taking” (Associated Press), the New York Times bestselling author of In Five Years returns with a powerful novel about ...

  • The Weight synopsis, comments

    The Weight

    Jeff Boyd

    A powerful comingofage novel about a twentysomething Black musician living in predominantly white Portland, Oregon, playing in a rock band on the verge of success while struggling ...

  • Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore synopsis, comments

    Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore

    Matthew Sullivan

    When a bookshop patron dies by suicide, his favorite store clerk must unravel the puzzle he left behind in this "shocking, charming, thrilling" (Associated Press) and awardwinning ...

  • Small Odysseys synopsis, comments

    Small Odysseys

    Hannah Tinti & Neil Gaiman

    “Lovers of the short story, rejoice! There’s something for everyone in this anniversary collection . . . The collection makes the argument that time and again, it is stories that s...

  • Expiration Dates synopsis, comments

    Expiration Dates

    Rebecca Serle

    From the New York Times bestselling author of In Five Years and One Italian Summer comes a love story that will define a generation. Being single is like playing the lottery. There...

  • Land of the Blind synopsis, comments

    Land of the Blind

    Jess Walter

    “A mystery novel of profound depth.”  Booklist (starred review)“Walter is at his incisive best. . . . Hypnotically compelling."  Publishers WeeklyIn this fiendishly cleve...