Against the wishes of his mother, sixteen-year-old Ray Garraty is about to compete in the annual grueling match of stamina and wits known as the Long Walk. One hundred boys must keep a steady pace of four miles per hour without ever stopping…with the winner being awarded “The Prize”–anything he wants for the rest of his life. But, as part of this national tournament that sweeps through a dystopian America year after year, there are some harsh rules that Garraty and ninety-nine others must adhere to in order to beat out the rest. There is no finish line–the winner is the last man standing. Contestants cannot receive any outside aid whatsoever. Slow down under the speed limit and you’re given a warning. Three warnings and you’re out of the game–permanently…

I purchased a copy of this book for my own reading.

I’m still finding Stephen King novels I’ve yet to read, and having watched the film of this not too long ago, I thought now was the perfect time to give this one a go. While being a new King, it’s the first (that I’m aware of) published under the Bachman name, and given my recent run of horrors, it seemed a good option to add into that.

This one is not a straight horror in the way you’d expect from Stephen King; it leans more into psychological horror with stark dystopian overtones. One hundred 16-year-old boys come together to participate in The Long Walk. The winner gets a prize – they can ask for anything they want. All they have to do is walk day and night, no stopping for comfort breaks, to eat, or to sleep. Just walk. That, and be the last boy walking. That doesn’t seem so bad.

But should they drop below a mandated minimum speed, they will receive a warning, which can drop off their record after an hour. But collect three and commit a fourth infraction, and they will “collect their ticket” – a swift bullet from any number of the soldiers policing the event. The boys walk together, forming cliques and pockets of friendship on the road in an effort to survive as long as they can. In some ways it’s a coming of age novel about the necessity of growing up and making friendships because it’s their best chance of survival. But at its heart, The Long Walk is a gritty dystopian novels that looks deep into the psychological trauma of the participants. A fantastic novel, far darker than the film.

My rating: