Just finished up this one. I've read that most people have The Long Walk as their favorite Bachman book, and I completely understand why now. It's definitely my favorite as well. It's crazy to believe that he wrote this thing when he was so young, it's amazing. Far ahead of its time. I love that it can technically be classified as one of those YA novels like Hunger Games or the hundreds of others, but this came out decades before the market became oversaturated with them. And, unlike all of those, this one is actually scary and horribly unsettling.
I think a strong point of this story is that it doesn't go into any explanation of the world that it takes place in. No background story for the intro as to the alternate dystopian reality the book takes place in, no explanation as what exactly The Long Walk is or what it's for. You can draw your own conclusions. I loved each and every one of the boys in this book, even Barkovitch, that murdering bastard. The futility of it all is just tragic.
I was sucked into this story by page one and never wanted it to end, since you know it can only end in despair. This is definitely one of my new favorites.
I think a strong point of this story is that it doesn't go into any explanation of the world that it takes place in. No background story for the intro as to the alternate dystopian reality the book takes place in, no explanation as what exactly The Long Walk is or what it's for. You can draw your own conclusions. I loved each and every one of the boys in this book, even Barkovitch, that murdering bastard. The futility of it all is just tragic.
I was sucked into this story by page one and never wanted it to end, since you know it can only end in despair. This is definitely one of my new favorites.