The Long Walk: The True Story of a Trek to Freedom

Slavomir Rawicz is unjustly imprisoned by the Communist Russians early in World War II. He is confined to a cell so small that he literally cannot sit, but must sleep by collapsing with his knees against the wall and his feet steeped in his own waste. He is later transported to Siberia by train, and then marched through the cold countryside to a Soviet Gulag, witnessing the death by exposure and exhaustion of other unfortunate captives along the way. In the prison camp he is set in forced labor, kept in horrendous conditions, over-worked, and underfed.

Near the end of his rope, Rawicz and a handful of companions orchestrate a daring and desperate escape, and then proceed to run for their lives, on foot, toward freedom in India--4,000 miles away. Then the fun begins. They must conquer the frozen Siberian tundra, the Gobi desert, the Himalayan Mountains, starvation, the Soviets, and their own inner demons.

Slavomir's ordeal overshadows every other survival tale I've every read, including Admiral Scott's Polar expedition and Krakauer's Everest disaster. This is up there with the Donner Expedition in terms of grim conditions and the indomitable human spirit. Trust me. If you've got a teenager who's complaining because they think they have it rough, let 'em read this one. --Christopher Bonn Jonnes, author of Wake Up Dead.


Great Story of Endurance and Quest for Liberty   May 12, 2003
Wayne A. Smith (Wilmington, DE)
90 out of 98 found this review helpful

The story in a nutshell: A Polish Army officer is captured by the Soviets after they have joined Hitler in dismembering his country. Rawicz (the officer) is tortured in the Soviet prison system and sent to the Gulags. Faced with misery in Siberia and probable death, he and a band of others escape and undertake a two thousand-mile long journey from the snows of Siberia through Mongolia, the Gobi Desert, and across the Himalayas toward British India and freedom.

This is a great story. The author describes the mindless torture under the Soviet system in a manner that should persuade any reader of the evil of totalitarianism. The description of his train journey, hundred-mile winter hike through a Siberian winter to his gulag and life in the camp is fascinating. His will to survive amidst degradation, the elements and overwhelming odds are a testament to the human thirst for freedom and liberty.

As other reviewers have stated, there are some parts of the book that invite skepticism. His befriending by the camp commandant's wife seems as improbable as it is crucial to his ability to escape. The escapees journey across the Gobi Desert where his group went for many days without water beyond what I understood a person could tolerate. Without any climbing tools, his party went across the Himalayas to India -- a feat that seems fantastic. Also his brief description of spotting what could only be described as the elusive Yetti in the Himalayas stretches credibility (unless it does actually exist).

That being said, this story is exhilarating and I found it believable and enthralling. It is a wonderful adventure story and describes the limits of what the human spirit and mind can endure to survive in freedom. This book has been around for almost fifty years and was given wide play when first introduced. I'm going to assume the lack of anything debunking this widely told tale (or, anything that I could find) argues for the author's veracity -- certainly that frame of mind allows one to enjoy a stirring story.


The most incredible book I ever read   December 10, 1999
Ray Umashankar (Tucson, Arizona)
15 out of 15 found this review helpful

I first heard about the Long Walk in 1993 while I was recovering from a serious bicycle accident. I had shattered my left hip completely and after a total hip replacement, learned to walk again but the long term prognosis was not good. That's when I heard about Long Walk. I had to search a lot and finally located the publishers Lyons & Burford in New York. The original version was written by Ronald Downing of the London Daily Mail, who heard about Slav and contacted him to get verification about the Yeti.

The heroic tale of Slav,Kolemenos,Zaro and Smith finally reaching India has done more for me than any form of therapy. It motivated me and drove me to push myself. I have, since my accident, hiked in the Himalaya, both on the Indian and Nepalese sides, reaching elevations of 20,000 feet, trekked along the Great Wall in remote parts of China. I would like to hear from people that have corresponded with Slav. We need more heroes like Slav and Kolemenos today more than ever!

Ray Umashankar Rayu@u.arizona.edu


A testament to the human spirit   November 10, 1999
Chris Astier (bmgecko@zianet.com) (New Mexico, USA)
23 out of 26 found this review helpful

Having seen a review of this book in a literary journal I recieve, I was struck with the urge to read this testimony of hardship, loss and perserverance.

I was not disapointed when I put the book down, finished with the gripping tale of a man and his friends that can be described only with the heart, not in words. I cannot imagine the trials and tribulations of such a daring escape from the clutches of the former "Evil Empire".

Questions arise about the truth of the claims in the book, about survival, navigation and the like. To be honest, in a survival situation the mind and your will to survive and ability to live on is the most important thing a person has, and these are traits all members of the party had.

Mr. Rawicz is a testament to the human spirit, and our ability as humans to overcome and adapt, while never losing hope. His claim to having seen two Yeti are pooh-poohed by some, but I would believe it at face value. This mans integrity and spirit are beyong reproach. Let disbelievers to his story try to make a journey of 100 miles on foot with his pary's provisions and they will most certainly fail. Let a person who has the will to live make the journey, and I believe they would easily make it, with dignity intact.

It's said that you can survive three minutes without air, three hours without proper shelter, three days without water, three weeks without food, and three months without love.....

The members of this party stretched the limits of human endurance, and in the end, they had each other to help themselves along the untrodden path to freedom. The Creator was helping Mr. Rawicz along, on his terrible journey. His tale is true, and should be required reading for all children of any nation calling itself "free".


Much More Than "A Trek to Freedom"   July 19, 1997
19 out of 21 found this review helpful

This work's secondary title, "The True Story of a Trek to Freedom," is but a small clue to what lies between the covers. The chronicle of Slavomir Rawicz, a Polish cavalry officer who escaped a Soviet Siberian forced labor camp in 1941 and completed an incredible yearlong journey on foot through China, the Gobi Desert and into India is also a testament to human survival and a comforting reminder that human decency still remains in our too-often cruel world.

The book's greatest strength lies in Rawicz's ability to mentally detach himself from his experience and recount in great detail and with notable insight events ranging from the horror of his last cavalry charge against the Germans and subsequent Soviet captivity to picturesque descriptions of Mongol social customs and snowy Himalayan peaks. It is a unique blend of high drama and intrigue, anthropological commentary and how-to wilderness survival paced by a steady, no-nonsense narrative.

The overwhelming irony of this cavalryman's odyssey was that despite the presence of a raging global war fast becoming notorious for mass ethnic extermination, he received nothing but kindness and generosity from all of the native peoples he encountered on his trek. It is this alone that makes "The Long Walk" a "must read."