The Long Walk (novel)

The Long Walk is a novel by Stephen King published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman.

{Warning: This entry may contain crucial plot information that may hinder your enjoyment of the book. See Wikipedia contains spoilers.)

The novel describes a walking contest held annually in Maine by a somewhat despotic government running the United States of America. One hundred teenage boys (selected from a large pool of applicants) begin the contest. Each boy must maintain a four mile per hour walking pace continuously, or receive a warning (per minute). Three such warnings, and the boy is removed from the contest. A warning may be "walked off" by maintaining pace for one hour. Though the boys are provided with food and water, there are no scheduled stops. There is no finish line; the last boy remaining in the contest wins a grand prize, anything the winner wants for the rest of his life.

What makes the novel rather gruesome is that when a boy is removed from the contest, he is shot by the armed guards overseeing the event. Every year's contest has one winner and ninety-nine dead boys.

The novel delves into several themes, especially survival (mental and physical). The Hands on a Hardbody contest held annually in Texas (and the movie by the same name) explore similar ideas.