The Beach - Alex Garland Reviews

The Beach written by Alex Garland. Amazing film about a young backpacker named Richard travelling in Thailand, he meets some doped up odd ball in a shabby hostel and this odd ball reveals to him about this secret island just off Thailand and tells Richard about the magic of this place he called "the beach" Richard goes to bed ...  Read the complete review

The Beach does exactly what all good fiction should do- transports you to a whole 'nother place with just a few well placed words. It follows Richard, a british backpacker in Thailand, who feels simultaniously under and overwhelmed by the whole experience. Through Richard's first person view it is easy to feel that you are ...  Read the complete review

This is my favourite book. It is the perfect book to take on holiday with you. I simply got drawn into it, reading it 'on the beach' in Greece, in the sun. I finished the book in 2 days, which is unheard of for me, i couldn't put it down, and was disappointed when I'd finished, only because i didn't want to stop reading! I think the ...  Read the complete review

'The Khao San Road, Bangkok - first stop on the backpacker trail. The Beach is a legend among young travellers in Asia: white sands circling a lagoon hidden from the sea, coral gardens and freshwater falls surrounded by jungle. In this earthly paradise, it is rumoured, a select community lives in blissful innocence. For Richard, haunted by the ...  Read the complete review

At first I only saw the film of the same title that was based on this book, based being the operative word, as key characters from the book are taken out for the film, which is a shame, but unlike other reviewers I enjoyed the film for what it was, some great shots and a great soundtrack, the token love story is also a guilty pleasure of ...  Read the complete review

Well I really loved this book, as everyone else who has reviewed it here, I read it in just a couple of days and felt compelled to write a review about it even though it is probably a bit passé in review land! The story revolves around a traveller in his twenties who on reaching Thailand gets swept along in an adventure to find the ...  Read the complete review

What can I say. The honored users before me have described the plot, researched the story, wrote their qualified opinions and covered all the issues. I will only say personal things. In 1999, I was in a Zagreb book shop and my friend, my kind 'inviting party', bought this book for me. However, as far as I recollect it, I chose it ...  Read the complete review

I think the mere fact that Alex Galand's debut novel had a film with an all-star cast and a top-band soundtrack based on it shows that it's a top book. Now if you thought the film was a little on the crap side, do not despair, as in many cases, the book is far better. I read the book before I watched the film and I am so glad I did, ...  Read the complete review

I mistook this book when I read it for 'On The Beach' when I read it. That book had been recommended to me and when walking through WHSmith's one day I saw this book and though oh that was recommended to me, so I bought it. Well this is THE BEACH not ON THE BEACH and they are both very different stories. I love ...  Read the complete review

The Beach by Alex Garland tells the story of a young traveller's quest to find paradise on earth. The story begins with Richard (the traveller's) arrival in Thailand, where he encounters a strange man who gives him a map and is later discovered dead in his hotel room - apparently suicide. Along with 2 new French friends, also ...  Read the complete review

I was lent this book by my English teacher at A-level, as I was bugging her for soemthing other than set texts to read. In the end I bought my own copy and have now read it about 5 times!! It was fairly new out at the time, so there wern't many people who could tell me about it. But I thought "what the heck, I'll give it a go." ...  Read the complete review

Upon first glance, it is every adventure-seeking, back-packers dream, which can be lived out from the comfort of their own armchairs. On reading it at a deeper level, 'The Beach' is a novel which explores the possibility of absolute paradise and human behavior within a community. The story of a traveller stumbling across a ...  Read the complete review

After several recommendations I got lent this book a few months ago however with all the other books I was reading or that continued on from other books I had read earlier I only got around to starting this book yesterday, for once I actually read fast and managed to finish it in just 1 day. Recently I've read nothing but fantasy and ...  Read the complete review

I managed to miss the film version of "The Beach". It just didn't appeal. I also avoided the book for ages until a friend persuaded me to give it a go. Having done so I think I was right to miss the film. The Beach is a complex book and from all reports the film failed to do it justice. The basic concept behind the story is ...  Read the complete review

I decided to give this book a try after watching the film, and I can now assure you that the book is a thousand times better, so if the prospect of watching Leonardo DiCaprio try to act for two hours put you off going to see the film, don’t let that stop you from reading the book! It's an adventure story set in Southeast Asia, ...  Read the complete review

The Beach is the story of Richard, a young backpacker who, on his first night in Bangkok encounters a mysterious chararcter in his neighbouring room who slits his wrists leaving Richard a map to 'The Beach', an idyllic paradise, undiscovered by the masses of casual tourists he despises. The beach is said to be a populated by a ...  Read the complete review

Wow, this book is a totally amazing, must-read book. I know that most people have seen the movie, but I recommend you read the book first. I actually have not seen the movie, but one day I had a sudden urge to read it - I believe it was after seeing the "Pure Shores" (by All Saints) video on MTV. Well, where do I ...  Read the complete review

Three words to describe the beach, insightful, entertaining and inspired. The story is a chronicle of one man's journey to find a nirvana, a real paradise on earth that remains totally unspoilt by mankind and which he can enjoy. The story begins a Richard arrives in the Far East, he is a seasoned traveller and whilst staying t a hotel he is ...  Read the complete review

Soldiers came out of the jungle, stepping from the warm darkness into the pool of illumination outside the headman's bamboo house. Our guide whispered they were a drug lords troops. We had seen nearby plots of marijuana and fields of opium poppies. They wore dark green military uniform and carried guns and machetes. Two Australian nurses ...  Read the complete review

Can you read this book and enjoy it? Yes. Can you finish it without the feeling that you've been duped into following a B-movie plot with C-movie characters just because of a few well-placed cultural references? I found it very difficult. Now that the film's out, it'll always have a frame of reference outside itself, but the ...  Read the complete review