This is a book that can be divided into two distinct parts. Or perhaps more accurately, one-third and two-thirds. I had a great affection for both The Long Walk and The Running Man. However, Roadwork left me feeling a bit underwhelmed. It's fortunate that it was placed in the middle.

If it had been the final story in this collection, I might have simply given up on it. But, as the saying goes, two out of three isn't bad.

The Long Walk presents a scenario where teenage boys are engaged in precisely what the title implies: walking. And walking. And more walking. The last one remaining - still walking - wins everything he could ever desire. But to reach that goal, he must outlast the other 99 participants. Some are just faceless individuals, while others become friends. He has to witness them being shot when they exhaust their three warnings. It offers a sometimes terrifying and heart-rending perspective on the extremes to which human endurance can be pushed.

Roadwork is about a man whose entire life is on the verge of being shattered as a road is set to be constructed right through the middle of it. Literally. His home and workplace are scheduled to be demolished, yet he takes no action to relocate either. I can somewhat understand his reasoning, considering the memories associated with these places. However, new memories can always be created. The story dragged a bit, and there seemed to be very little progress or forward movement. There were some interesting elements, but overall, I didn't really enjoy reading it.

The Running Man, once again, lives up to its title. A man is put on the run, and he (or his family) will receive money for every hour that he manages to evade capture. This is a clever and suspenseful tale, and you can't help but cheer for Ben Richards, given the almost inevitable situations he finds himself in and the tenacity he demonstrates while on the run.

These books were all penned by Stephen King under a pseudonym. However, apparently, people suspected from the outset that it was him, and I can see why. Although the subject matters lean more towards the sci-fi genre compared to the average King book, they still have that distinct King feel. Of course, little details like the format and the Maine-connection would likely have tipped off King fans of that era.

The Long Walk

Journeying once more through King's dominion in publication order, it becomes blatantly evident from the very beginning. Despite writing under a pseudonym, it's undeniably him. Set in Maine, his penchant for describing breasts as 'token nubs' in just the first chapter alone is a dead giveaway! The premise is truly fascinating and feels ahead of its time with the reality show concept. One hundred boys partake in the challenge, with a literal three strikes and you're out (shot) for falling below an average speed. There are finally plans for a movie adaptation. Re-reading it now, it's astonishingly similar to many popular YA novels today, like The Hunger Games and Maze Runner. I firmly believe this is my favorite among the three in this collection.

Roadwork

Viewed through the lens of both the era it was written and the subject matter of the energy crisis, this Bachman book seems like an intriguing time capsule. It's a bit on the long side, and the main protagonist isn't particularly likeable. However, seeing his perspective still manages to make it interesting. He's reeling against the construction of a new highway that will, in turn, lead to the demolition of his house and place of work - places that hold a wealth of sentimental memories for him. By King's standards, it's a rather weak novel. I simply can't envision this title being published as his second novel instead of Salem's Lot, as was originally planned.

The Running Man

Having these titles collected together reveals an angry side to the writing. Just like The Long Walk, this is a dystopian reality show where the premise is all about striving to stay alive for as long as possible. I appreciate how fast-paced it is. The longer Ben Richards stays alive, the more he earns. Coupled with the short chapters counting down to something climactic. The conclusion definitely hits differently nowadays, but I can understand why Ben would resort to that. It's a curious story, one where the countdown conflicts with the struggle to survive. This story is probably better regarded as it already has a movie adaptation.

The Running Man and The Long Walk were truly the stars of this remarkable book.

These two works had me completely engrossed from start to finish. I would毫不犹豫地 rate both of them at a solid 4 stars.

Next up is Rage. I read it earlier this year, and unfortunately, it's a little difficult to recall precisely how much I adored it.

Nonetheless, I do remember that it left an impression on me.

Finally, there's Roadwork. I believe I rated it as a 3.

While it may not have reached the same heights as the others, it still had its own unique charm and merits.

Overall, this book is a must-read for any fan of the genre.

It offers a diverse range of stories that are sure to captivate and entertain.

This book is a remarkable collection that encompasses the first four novels that Stephen King penned under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. These novels are "Rage", "The Long Walk", "Roadwork", and "The Running Man".

They were crafted during the 1970s and 1980s, and they have an uncanny ability to transport readers back to the cultural milieu of that era.

If Stephen King holds a special place among your favorite writers and you have a desire to gain a deeper understanding of his body of work, then delving into this collection is an excellent choice.

King truly stands alone in his literary prowess, and while there may be no one who can fully match him, the closest comparison I can draw is to "Along Came a Spider" by James Patterson.

This collection offers a unique perspective on King's early writing and is a must-read for any die-hard fan or anyone interested in exploring the evolution of a literary giant.

**The Bachman Books: A Review**

Stephen King's "The Bachman Books" is a collection that offers a unique look into his early works. Between 1977 and 1984, King published five novels under the pseudonym Richard Bachman. These included "Rage" (1977), "The Long Walk" (1979), "Roadwork" (1981), "The Running Man" (1982), and "Thinner" (1984). King reveals in his introduction, "Why I was Bachman," that there were two reasons he was eventually linked to the Bachman name. Firstly, the first four books, all paperback originals, were dedicated to people associated with his life. Secondly, his name appeared on the copyright forms of one book.

I was fortunate to find this rare edition at a used book bazaar. The reason it's rare is that when the first novel in this collection, "Rage," which tells the story of a school shooting written by King while he was still a student, was found in one of the perpetrators of a US school shooting, King decided to let it go out of print. It was still included in UK editions of the Bachman books until the end of the 90's. By 2007, a new edition was in circulation without "Rage," and with only the remaining three books ("The Long Walk," "Roadwork," "The Running Man").

Reading this collection took me 22 days due to various reasons. December is a busy month with Christmas activities like decorating, cooking, family gatherings, and board games, which took precedence over reading. Additionally, this was a collection of four books in one, with a dense font and spacing to keep the book a convenient size. I read "Rage," "The Long Walk," and "The Running Man" in 4 days each, but "Roadwork" was incredibly slow, boring, and meandering, taking me at least 10 days to read a 208-page story. However, it was still far better than "Fifty Shades of Grey."

Among the four novels, "The Long Walk" was my favorite. In a future America, one hundred teenagers participate in an exhausting marathon. They are not allowed to stop and must maintain an average speed of 6.5 kilometers per hour. After three warnings for not following the rules, the offender is eliminated with a bullet in the head. The winner of the Long Walk gets whatever they want for the rest of their life. This bleak, futuristic story is a mirror of modern America, where World War II has been extended until the 1950s and power has fallen into the hands of the military. The Long Walk is considered a top sporting event, attracting fanatical athletes and ordinary spectators who bet billions of dollars. The teens have to walk non-stop for 3 - 4 days, meeting their physical needs while walking. It's a difficult book to read as it gives emotional punches in the stomach, making you bond with the characters while knowing only one will survive.

"The Bachman Books" was also the last thing I read in 2019. In the following days, I will start reviewing the books I read this year. By the end of October, I'm confident I'll catch up with my reviews and write them as soon as I finish a book, rather than every other day like now. Overall, this collection offers a diverse range of stories, each with its own unique charm and impact.

As good now as when I read it thirty years ago? Yes... and no.

King has truly developed as a writer in a massive way over an extended period of time. When looking back at these stories now, they do seem to have a certain youthful charm. They feel a little less refined compared to his later works.

However, that doesn't mean they lack value. In fact, they are raw and full of passion. They showcase the early stages of King's talent and his ability to capture the essence of a story.

Despite their relative youthfulness, these stories are still of high quality. And King, as always, proves to be a master storyteller. His ability to engage the reader and draw them into the world of his stories is truly remarkable.

Even after all these years, these early works of King still have the power to entertain and captivate readers. They are a testament to his enduring talent and his place in the world of literature.

This is primarily a review of Roadwork and The Running Man, since I read Rage and The Long Walk years ago.

But in brief:

Rage is a juvenile novel in every sense. It reads as if it was penned by someone no older than the characters within it. While King ostensibly withdrew it from print due to the subject matter, I suspect the real reason was that he knew it simply wasn't very good.

The Long Walk is my favorite Bachman book. It's short, tense, and has an unusually ambiguous ending for King.

Roadwork: We all know Stephen King is a hippie, a peace-lover, and a really laid-back guy. Well, something tells me Richard Bachman, King's once and future pseudonym, is a very uptight dude who always votes Republican. In Roadwork, the boogeyman haunting our bitter, comfortably middle-class, disenfranchised-by-choice protagonist is nothing less than progress itself. Progress in the form of a new highway set to run through both our hero's home and workplace, destroying them in the process. But he refuses to surrender to progress. Instead of accepting the generous buy-out, he insists on taking a stand in the most absurd fashion possible. The book is one long temper tantrum of self-destruction, and it's utterly fascinating as an artifact of King's past. More than anything else I've read by him, Roadwork is his stab at 70s mainstream fiction. He's tapping into a certain frustrated part of the era's zeitgeist, and although we know it must be at least partially tongue in cheek, he seems to play it straight. I'll be honest; I enjoyed Roadwork. I know it's far from the most beloved King book (hell, it's near the bottom for a lot of Constant Readers), but I found it to be pulpy fun and an intriguing anthropological artifact. King always says Bachman was his attempt to see if it was his name or his talent that was selling books, but that's a false premise because the books he published under the Bachman moniker are all completely different genres than anything he had, at that point, published under his own name. Comparing his bestselling horror novels to something like Roadwork is apples to oranges. So I'll say this: while Roadwork is unfairly maligned within King's bibliography, I'm glad it's a one-off, and I'm glad the hippie King won out over this square Bachman.

The Running Man: At the start of The Running Man, I groaned to myself, "oh god, a sci-fi dystopia." But thankfully, once the protagonist/anti-hero leaves the network building where he signs up for a high stakes, life or death reality TV series, it reads more like a crime novel. Specifically, I suspect it's very influenced by The Getaway by King's hero Jim Thompson. It's full of claustrophobic hide and seek, bloody chase scenes, and desperate, high stakes showdowns. The Running Man is fast-paced and mean in the patented Bachman manner, as well as presenting us with a main character who becomes a sort of folk-hero, railing against an oppressive, dehumanizing regime. It's an interesting companion to The Long Walk, which has a superficially similar premise (move or die) with a very different outcome. The two of them also represent the best of the Bachman books. And without spoiling it, I'll say the ending is an (unintentionally) hilarious way to end a collection that starts with the offensive subject matter of Rage.

I read four stories: "Razernij", "De marathon", "Werk in uitvoering", and "Vlucht naar de top". I had already read the third one, "Werk in uitvoering", in a separate edition, so I skipped it this time. I thought "Razernij" and "De marathon" were good. They were real stories that made you want to keep reading to find out how they ended. But to be honest, I didn't think "Vlucht naar de top" was good either. Probably because it was written in 1982 and took place in the future - in 2021... and it therefore came across as rather unbelievable, and I couldn't empathize with the story. Moreover, futuristic stories are not my thing, with their high technology and a (somehow) practically unlivable earth.

So I gave it three stars because I still liked two of the stories.

Stephen King, or should I say Richard Bachman, is truly a master of short stories.

I first delved into this collection many years ago, and to this day, it remains etched in my memory.

The stories within are a captivating blend of mystery, horror, and the human psyche.

Each narrative draws you in with its unique premise and keeps you on the edge of your seat until the very end.

The way King/Bachman crafts his characters is remarkable, making them feel so real and relatable.

You can't help but become invested in their fates.

The collection as a whole is a testament to his talent and creativity.

If you haven't had the pleasure of reading this collection, I highly recommend it.

It's a must-read for any fan of short stories or the horror/mystery genre.

You won't be disappointed.

This is an outstanding collection of early Bachman stories penned by Stephen King. The stories included are Rage, The Long Walk, The Running Man, and Roadwork. I have carefully reviewed each of them separately. Some of these stories I have liked more than the others. However, in my professional capacity and with my expert opinion, it is truly difficult to make a wrong choice when it comes to King's works. His talent and creativity shine through in every story. Whether it's the intense emotions in Rage, the suspenseful atmosphere of The Long Walk, the thrilling plot of The Running Man, or the thought-provoking nature of Roadwork, King has managed to captivate readers with his unique storytelling skills. This collection is a must-read for any fan of King or anyone who enjoys high-quality literature.

King is the King.

He holds a position of great power and authority.

Kings have been an important part of history in many cultures and civilizations.

They are often seen as the leaders who make decisions that affect the lives of their people.

A king's rule can bring prosperity and stability, or it can lead to conflict and unrest.

Some kings are remembered for their wisdom and justice, while others are known for their cruelty and tyranny.

Despite the differences in their reigns, one thing remains the same: the king is the king.

His position is one that is respected and feared, and his actions can have a lasting impact on the course of history.

Whether he is loved or hated, the king will always be a figure of great significance in the annals of time.

Some of King's most outstanding stories are included in this collection. Notably, Rage, which was penned years before Columbine, offers a disturbing look into the human psyche.

Then there's The Long Walk, which is similar to The Hunger Games but lacks the love triangle and optimism. It presents a harsh and unforgiving world where the only goal is survival.

And let's not forget The Running Man. This story is much darker and far superior to the movie that was (very, very loosely) based on it. The movie failed to capture the true essence and depth of King's original work.

These stories are all typically grim King tales, but they stand out for their lack of the supernatural flavor that characterizes most of his other works. Instead, they focus on the raw and often ugly aspects of human nature, making them both captivating and thought-provoking.