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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
The first time I heard of the craptastic reality show "Survivor" - I thought of the Running Man. I thought that type of TV would NEVER come to pass - and yet - here we are. "Fear Factor" anyone?
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
I've reviewed running man, the long walk a s rage separately so a combination of tye whole lot was was led me to give this 5 stars. Here, I will just be reviewing ROADWORK.
I felt from the very beginning it seemed Bart was unhinged and it appears as though he's become unhinged as an underpaid, undervalued worker bee, but as you learn more about his past and Charlie the story shifts from that of a disgruntled employee to a man who doesn't know how to process his grief, a man who didn't have time to grieve properly and therefore let it fester inside slowly realising how unfair it is that such an event would happen to him and the world kept on spinning. When he is told a new road would mean he'd be bought out of his house and forced to start over when he still hadn't fully gotten over his past, this becomes the tipping point for Bart and thus things snowball, Bart loses his wife, his job, his neighbours and when finally alone in his home with time to grieve he finds still he can't quite let go of Charlie and therefore he can never fully grieve no matter what his circumstances this then sets into motion a plan to ensure Bart goes out with a bang and that he did. Figuratively and literally...
I felt from the very beginning it seemed Bart was unhinged and it appears as though he's become unhinged as an underpaid, undervalued worker bee, but as you learn more about his past and Charlie the story shifts from that of a disgruntled employee to a man who doesn't know how to process his grief, a man who didn't have time to grieve properly and therefore let it fester inside slowly realising how unfair it is that such an event would happen to him and the world kept on spinning. When he is told a new road would mean he'd be bought out of his house and forced to start over when he still hadn't fully gotten over his past, this becomes the tipping point for Bart and thus things snowball, Bart loses his wife, his job, his neighbours and when finally alone in his home with time to grieve he finds still he can't quite let go of Charlie and therefore he can never fully grieve no matter what his circumstances this then sets into motion a plan to ensure Bart goes out with a bang and that he did. Figuratively and literally...
I am a big Stephen King fan. I have enjoyed reading his novels since I was about 11 or 12 (probably way to young, but I got a hold of one of his books and couldn't stop from there). I first read all of the Bachman Books when I was in High School, my uncle lending me his tattered copies. I immediately had to get copies of my own so I could reread them whenever I wanted. They are some of my favorite writings of King's.
This collection has 4 of Bachman novels: Rage (which King let fall out of print due to subject nature), The Long Walk, Roadwork, and The Running Man. The only original Richard Bachman book pre-King reveal that is not in this collection is Thinner. Each of these novels are fantastic in there own right. More of straight fiction than the horror that King was initially always categorized as (although over the years he has shed that perception and has just continued to write great stories regardless of genre), these novels make you look into the dark places in you own self and think about what you see of yourself in them (one of the reasons I love King's writing in general).
Out of these 4 books, The Long Walk has to be my favorite. For those that enjoy the teen dystopian death game novels that are out there today (and I read and enjoy them myself), this is a darker, grittier, and more realistic future that can give teens today chills and nightmares alike. 100 kids, a road, and only a goal of be the last one walking. So simple, but very effective. I can read this story over and over. I am almost tempted to reread right now.
A must read for any Stephen King fan and a should read for anyone that enjoys great stories.
This collection has 4 of Bachman novels: Rage (which King let fall out of print due to subject nature), The Long Walk, Roadwork, and The Running Man. The only original Richard Bachman book pre-King reveal that is not in this collection is Thinner. Each of these novels are fantastic in there own right. More of straight fiction than the horror that King was initially always categorized as (although over the years he has shed that perception and has just continued to write great stories regardless of genre), these novels make you look into the dark places in you own self and think about what you see of yourself in them (one of the reasons I love King's writing in general).
Out of these 4 books, The Long Walk has to be my favorite. For those that enjoy the teen dystopian death game novels that are out there today (and I read and enjoy them myself), this is a darker, grittier, and more realistic future that can give teens today chills and nightmares alike. 100 kids, a road, and only a goal of be the last one walking. So simple, but very effective. I can read this story over and over. I am almost tempted to reread right now.
A must read for any Stephen King fan and a should read for anyone that enjoys great stories.
I actually want to give this three and a half stars, but alas no halfsies here. This is a collection of four novellas by Stephen King under the pen name Richard Bachman. This is half great (The Long Walk and The Running Man) and half meh (Rage and Roadwork). So...3 stars might be accurate after all. All of the novellas deal with the idea of a man (sometimes boy) dealing with a moment in his life that has fallen apart. The Running Man is by far the best of these, although much different than the movie of the same name starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Post-apocalyptic America has a government that gives out free tee-vees and broadcasts horrible game shows starring real people--Swimming with Crocodiles, anyone?--usually the poor who risk death to win money. The Running Man is the worst of these shows--you run while Games Network experts hunt you down to kill you. Our main character, Ben Richards, runs for all he's worth. And he's awesome. Ultimate government revenge fantasy, seriously. The Long Walk is like an early Hunger Games prototype--boys of varying ages walk for as long as they can at a specified pace. Fall below pace 4 times and you die. Last one standing wins--prize is anything he wants. Seriously, watching these boys become men too late to make a difference is terrifying and heart wrenching. Excellent story.
Rage seems...half-thought out....like the idea was there and wasn't bad, but just wasn't fully finished at the time of writing. Roadwork disturbed me too much to call it "good"...I actually had a hard time making myself read it.
Worth the effort for King fans.
Rage seems...half-thought out....like the idea was there and wasn't bad, but just wasn't fully finished at the time of writing. Roadwork disturbed me too much to call it "good"...I actually had a hard time making myself read it.
Worth the effort for King fans.
Rage was so predictive! I'm glad it's no longer in print, but equally glad I read it first.
I picked up this book used on Amazon after reading King's recent long essay, On Guns, which is where I learned he had taken the first novel in this collection, Rage, out of circulation due to its popularity with school shooters. The collection actually includes four early King novels under his Richard Bachman pseudonym: Rage, The Long Walk, Roadwork and The Running Man. And they are all worth reading. First, they are all really well written, including the most adolescent and anti social of the group, Rage. The Long Walk and The Running Man are two of the most disturbing science fiction dystopian novels I've read, and somehow each feels disconcertingly timely. Roadwork is both achingly sad and very angry. Oh, just read them, they're good books, rippling with talent. There is sexism, quite a bit of racism, and some homophobia, which is a good deal less offensive when you consider how long ago all four books were published, and in light of the fact that King both voices and strongly questions these attitudes in each book. They are still excellent, original, readable and memorable books.
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
While this book consists of 4 distinct SK/RB books I thought I would review this book as a whole. The stories were all very different from one another but they had similar themes. Anti-authority, family trauma, lack of resources (money, time etc.), and the overall anger we all carry inside of us that finally blows up.
I didn't overly enjoy any of these novels as each one would hook me just to release me again. They were all very slow and dialogue heavy. Obviously Stephen King was trying to keep Richard Bachman's writing different from Stephen King's... but I can't help but go "these would be so much better with that good ole' SK scare factor". These just fell relatively flat without it.
My favorites from this collection was The Running Man & Rage. My least favorites being, The Long Walk & Roadwork.
I didn't overly enjoy any of these novels as each one would hook me just to release me again. They were all very slow and dialogue heavy. Obviously Stephen King was trying to keep Richard Bachman's writing different from Stephen King's... but I can't help but go "these would be so much better with that good ole' SK scare factor". These just fell relatively flat without it.
My favorites from this collection was The Running Man & Rage. My least favorites being, The Long Walk & Roadwork.