Erin S. (nantuckerin) reviewed on 8/24/2009 + 158 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

Another favorite from Stephen King, and another paperback on my shelf that's almost too ragged to read. The Long Walk (originally published under King's pseudonym, Richard Bachman) is one of those books that gets better the more times you read it. The premise is actually pretty flat -- In the not-too-distant future, a group of 100 teenage boys is selected each year to participate in The Long Walk. Basically, the participants in this reality show death march begin walking in Maine and continue south as a group until they can walk no longer. If they drop beneath a certain speed, they're shot. If they stop for any reason (no bathroom breaks here, folks), they're shot. Blisters and head colds are a matter of life and death in this especially brutal race.

That said, there's not much action in this book. The story focuses on the relationships and friendships that emerge among the walkers, and how these individuals change along the journey. As always, King draws characters that are memorable and very real. He parcels out information about them little by little, allowing the reader to get to know them alongside the other Long Walkers. It's hard not to get emotionally involved when they fall, one by one, along the side of the road.

The ending is typical King -- is it a happy one? Does the "winner" get his "prize?" I've read the book many times and I still can't make up my mind. But I challenge you to read it and draw your own conclusion.

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