The Long Walk by Richard Bachman (Stephen King) ★★★★★

Hey readers! On my journey to read Stephen King’s books in order of publication I read Rage (1977) and then read all of the Bachman books one after the other. Today, I’m here with a book review for my favourite Bachman book, The Long Walk.

About The Book 📚

Title: The Long Walk

Author: Richard Bachman (Stephen King)

Publication Date: first published in 1979

Publisher: Signet

Suggested Reader Age: Adult

Genre: Horror, Suspense

“On the first day of May, one hundred teenage boys meet for an event known throughout the country as “The Long Walk.” If you break the rules, you get three warnings. If you exceed your limit, what happens is absolutely terrifying.”

About The Author

“At the beginning of Stephen King’s career, the general view among publishers was that an author was limited to one book per year, since publishing more would be unacceptable to the public. King therefore wanted to write under another name, in order to increase his publication without over-saturating the market for the King “brand”. He convinced his publisher, Signet Books, to print these novels under a pseudonym.” https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5858.Richard_Bachman

My Review

“An old blue Ford pulled into the guarded parking lot that morning, looking like a small, tired dog after a hard run.”

› Sixteen-year-old Ray Garraty joins the long walk, a deadly marathon where 100 boys walk for hundreds of miles without stopping. They must walk at a pace of at least 4 miles/hour. They get a warning if they slow down or stop. The warning disappears after an hour, but if they accumulate three warnings then they are killed. There can only be one winner. Oh! Did I mention the killing of these teenage boys is a form of public entertainment?

“Some of these guys will go on walking long after the laws of biochemistry and handicapping have gone by the boards. There was a guy last year that crawled for two miles at four miles an hour after both of his feet cramped up at the same time, you remember reading about that? Look at Olson, he’s worn out but he keeps going. That goddam Barkovitch is running on high-octane hate and he just keeps going and he’s as fresh as a daisy. I don’t think I can do that. I’m not tired -not really tired- yet. But I will be.” The scar stood out on the side of his haggard face as he looked ahead into the darkness “And I think… when I get tired enough… I think I’ll just sit down”
― Stephen King, The Long Walk

› The Long Walk is a very physical, raw story. A page-turner despite the incredibly simple plot and lack of description for the setting and world. The character development is outstanding. You’ll find yourself cheering for a guy to finish his bowel movement before his three warnings.

“They walked through the rainy dark like gaunt ghosts, and Garraty didn’t like to look at them. They were the walking dead.”
― Stephen King, The Long Walk

› I’m shocked there hasn’t been an adaptation made. I found some info online that there were rumours of a movie, but no update that I could find. I’m sure Collins must have been somewhat inspired by this story to write The Hunger Games.

› I use the CAWPILE method to rate books.
0-3 Really bad
4-6 Mediocre
7-9 Really good
10 Outstanding

› Characters: 9

› Atmosphere: 4

› Writing Style: 10

› Plot: 10

› Intrigue: 10

› Logic: 10

› Enjoyment: 10

Average 9

1.1-2.2 = ★
2.3-4.5 = ★★
4.6-6.9 = ★★★
7-8.9 = ★★★★
9-10 = ★★★★★

My Rating ★★★★★

› Final Thoughts
• I will never forget this story. The Long Walk is one of the best books I’ve read by King. Be warned, it is depressing, desperate and gut-wrenching.