Twenty-six-year-old cavalry officer Slavomir Rawicz was captured by the Red Army in 1939 during the German-Soviet partition of Poland and sent to the Siberian Gulag. In the spring of 1941, he escaped with six of his fellow prisoners, including one American. Thus began their astonishing trek to freedom.
With no map or compass but only an ax head, a homemade knife, and a week's supply of food, the compatriots spent a year making their way on foot to British India, through four thousand miles of the most forbidding terrain on earth. They braved the Himalayas, the desolate Siberian tundra, icy rivers, and the great Gobi Desert, always a hair's breadth from death. Finally arriving, Rawicz reenlisted in the Polish army to fight the Germans.
Cavalry officer Slavomir Rawicz was captured by the Red Army in 1939 during the German-Soviet partition of Poland and was sent to the Siberian Gulag along with other captive Poles, Finns, Ukranians, Czechs, Greeks, and even a few English, French, and American unfortunates who had been caught up in the fighting. A year later, he and six comrades from various countries escaped from a labor camp in Yakutsk and made their way, on foot, thousands of miles south to British India, where Rawicz reenlisted in the Polish army and fought against the Germans. The Long Walk recounts that adventure, which is surely one of the most curious treks in history.

Customer Reviews:

Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0

All's Well That Ends Well---It's the Getting There That's Trouble:

An amazing almost unbelievable story of arrest, mock trial, imprisonment in Siberia, escape and a trek to freedom covering thousands of miles.
Had this book been written in this day and time, people (media types) would have investigated it, found reasons to discredit it and claim it to be false. The story, frankly, does sound unbelievable, treking 20 to 30 miles a day in ankle deep snow and through the shifting sands of the Gobi Desert, but far be it from me to discredit the human spirit, and,... more info

Really Good:

I got this book from my school's library last year thinking it would be interesting, seeing as it had a general WWII theme (i love war literature), but I was surprised. This book is unequaled. It shows you an entirely new perspective of human potential.
Really, you'll be taken aback.

Brilliant Book - Perhaps best I've ever read.:

This is quite simply one of the best books I've ever read. Brilliantly written with a sharp eye toward emotion and detail. A gripping and touching tale. I laughed, I cried....
I've seen the stuff about it not being true and I just don't believe it. The evidence against it is flimsy, but more to the point is that if it is a fabrication then the author - or the author's landlord whom he dictated it to - missed his calling as a writer. He surely would have made a fortune if he'd written 20 more like it.... more info

Superb Read:

My sister recommended this book to me. As a University History instructor, I was fascinated by the story. It was difficult to put the work down - the story is riveting and action packed. I recommend the book to history lovers, action lovers and those who love true stories

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