A review by ponsopilled
The Long Walk by Stephen King, Richard Bachman

dark funny sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

there are three things teenage boys find scary: death, religion, and bisexuality
written by a struggling transmasc


i see a lot of people saying the book is way too long, i digress. it is way too short for what its trying to achieve. too many plotholes, like why do they want to die so bad? why does abraham keep cringing at the mentions of god? but i guess none of that matters bc garraty and mcvries stole the show. i reread the book because i heard there was a movie in the works (they say that every year, hopefully this time its legit and hopefully they wont all be white boys amen)

to be honest, when i read this the first time as a teenage boy, i thought “wow so cute!” oh boy was i wrong. somehow maturing made this book way way way way more sad and full of agony. i cant stop crying at baker’s death, why did he have to die? fuck ray garraty, save my boy art baker

also shoutout to the sorta minor, sorta main characters! if nobody got me i know scramm, abraham, and parker got me!

“No!” Garraty screamed again. “Me! Me! Shoot me!” But instead, they gave him his third warning. McVries opened his eyes and smiled again. The next instant, he was gone.”
my genuine reaction: stephen king you will cough in three days


pros:
- characters r kinda cool
- abraham’s essay

cons:
- gary barkovitch

Expand filter menu Content Warnings