The Long Walk

[Pucker]

Among the best of the early work, I think. Unrelentingly grim. What I've never been able to decide was whether what Stebbins told Garraty in the final chapter was true or not, or whether it was more of his games with the Walkers. The story haunts me. The bravado of the young men, how in some ways it reminds me of Lord of the Flies... The relentlessness.

This is actually one of my favorite aspects of the story. It's easy to think that Stebbins was having Garraty on. He was very confident throughout The Walk and might have been playing mind games, but the way we see most of the Walkers (even, ultimately, Barkovitch) drawn closer together as the true horror of what they're involved in confronts them, it's entirely possible that Stebbins was actually coming clean. We don't know, and that makes the story more -- not less -- compelling. We don't really know most of the motivations of the Walkers. Why do they want to kill themselves? We don't know if The Walk is a straight game or if the dice are loaded. Does anybody ever really win? We don't really know to any comforting degree what becomes of Garraty.

[kittykiller]

I dont remember alot of it since I was like nine when i had it red to me but the part that stick out it that dreded wachine that folowed them and if the stoped or slowed down then #$&*^ you know. but will have to read agin some time to recap.

[michal]

I thought it was a very special story. It didn't seem so at the time when I read it for the first time, but it was very memorable for me and I still think about it from time to time. To me it is a very lonely book, about obsession and growing up and I guess different people can read a lot of different things into that long walk taht at the ends turns out to be more important than the destination.

[BeverleyMarsh]

Yeah, I always thought it would make such a good movie. I can't belive it's never been made.

[CCAL]

I remember reading this a long time ago and was really impressed with it. Later on I came across it again and read it a second time. Almost immediately read it a third time just to really digest the story. Just think, if you could survive the journey, you could have anything you wanted for the rest of your life-anything! What a concept to grasp! None doubted it was true (did they??) I dont recall any doubters. The conversation of the walkers was very interesting after the walk really got going. The girls distracting the walkers and causing some to get warnings called on them was an aspect I hadnt considered but it was certainly logical once SK put it there in the book. one of those ah-ha-ofcourse moments that might have happened in real life...

[krs72]

Whenever I'm takin' the dog for a walk, I'll sometimes think of The Long Walk and get lost in thought about the story. One time the leash got caught in my dogs legs and I stopped to untangle him, just them a car backfired and I thought it was a gunshot, when I looked around there was a guy in a Army uniform standing there. Man, talk about imagination!

[Evil Queen]

When I'm jogging on my treadmill, I think about this story....because I try to get up to 4.0 mph, & I'm totally running at that speed. So I think, how could those boys keep up that pace for long??...or anyone for that matter?? Of course, I'm a slow jogger, so it could just be me.....This was a great story, the ending kind of left me wondering though......

[fljoe0]

Yeah, I always thought it would make such a good movie. I can't belive it's never been made.

It would have to be a smaller budget independent film because if it was a Hollywood film with a decent budget, the happy ending people would be called in to make an ending for it and Garraty would have to drive off into the sunset with his girlfriend. This story would probably work well without a big budget because it wouldn't need much in the way of elaborate sets or special effects.