The Long Walk
Jan 2016 · Simon and Schuster
4.5star
475 reviewsreport
Ebook
400
Pages
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About this ebook
*SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE COMING SEPTEMBER 12, 2025*
In this #1 national bestseller, master storyteller Stephen King, writing as Richard Bachman, tells the tale of the contestants of a grueling walking competition where there can only be one winner—the one that survives.
In a dystopian near-future, America has fallen on hard times. 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 day and night, without ever stopping. The winner gets “The Prize”—anything he wants for the rest of his life. But the rules of the Long Walk are harsh and the stakes could not be higher. 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—forever.
In this #1 national bestseller, master storyteller Stephen King, writing as Richard Bachman, tells the tale of the contestants of a grueling walking competition where there can only be one winner—the one that survives.
In a dystopian near-future, America has fallen on hard times. 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 day and night, without ever stopping. The winner gets “The Prize”—anything he wants for the rest of his life. But the rules of the Long Walk are harsh and the stakes could not be higher. 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—forever.
Ratings and reviews
4.5
475 reviews
JAM
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March 20, 2025
I have a copy of The Bachman Books, which contains the novella The Long Walk. I have always preferred King's "non-horror" stuff to his horrors, but that has more to do with my personal preference than his storytelling ability. Since the first time I read it over 20 years ago, The Long Walk has been my favorite work by King. It is not fast-paced, but it never slips below 5 mph (ha).
Theresa Briney
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March 24, 2024
Do not waste money on this book unless you like chapter after chapter of roads and roadsides being described. Nothing happens of importance in 95% of this unbearable read. In summary: boys walk a long time on endlessly described pavement. They physically get tired, then everyone dies. The end
Jennifer Atwell
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May 17, 2025
I read this when it was released, and I loved it. I like reading Stephen King but sometimes the supernatural weirdness in his stories gets to be too much, but this wasn't that. I was excited to see they're turning it into a movie! I hope they don't screw it up!
About the author
Stephen King is the author of more than sixty books, all of them worldwide bestsellers. His recent work includes Never Flinch, the short story collection You Like It Darker (a New York Times Book Review top ten horror book of 2024), Holly (a New York Times Notable Book of 2023), Fairy Tale, Billy Summers, If It Bleeds, The Institute, Elevation, The Outsider, Sleeping Beauties (cowritten with his son Owen King), and the Bill Hodges trilogy: End of Watch, Finders Keepers, and Mr. Mercedes (an Edgar Award winner for Best Novel and a television series streaming on Peacock). His novel 11/22/63 was named a top ten book of 2011 by The New York Times Book Review and won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Mystery/Thriller. His epic works The Dark Tower, It, Pet Sematary, Doctor Sleep, and Firestarter are the basis for major motion pictures, with It now the highest-grossing horror film of all time. He is the recipient of the 2020 Audio Publishers Association Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2018 PEN America Literary Service Award, the 2014 National Medal of Arts, and the 2003 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. He lives in Bangor, Maine, with his wife, novelist Tabitha King.
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