Rating: 
Summary: Eh.........
Review: It wasn't a bad book, really, but it didn't do much for me. I found myself thinking 'Lord of the Flies' the entire time I was reading about young Richard and his exploits. If this book is in your 'Maybe Read' pile, I'd say just watch the movie with Leonardo DiCaprio. The scenery there is awesome and more relationships develop on screen than in the book. Most of the movie follows the book in lockstep. There is some crazy violence in the book that didn't make it to the big screen, however.You never know - you might like it. For me, though, it was a fairly unmemorable book.
Rating: 
Summary: Life Changing
Review: Life changing? Yeah, right. I probably wouldn't read any further into a review that started like this. Especially in regards to a Gen X novel. I'm not saying that reading it is going to make you quit your day job and go find your own paradise (would that be so bad). Read with an open mind and it could change the way you think. The story is a little far-fetched, but close enough to reality to make it possible. The plot is simple, the discovery of a paradise, physical and mental. Garland's descriptions bring the island to life. It feels almost as if it were worth the journey just to be sure it doesn't exist. Garlands views on the Westernization of the world are not hidden in any metaphors. It's evident where he stands on the matter, but the book does not get bogged down in a social commentary. The message is clear, but if you disagree, you won't find yourself frustrated. I would recommend this book to anyone with an open mind and 48 uninterrupted hours. It might just change the way you look at the world. It did for me.
Rating:
Summary: An adventure you'll never forget...
Review: Ready for some excitement and adventure? Pick up The Beach and lose yourself on a tropical island... Richard, a twentysomething backpacker who spends most of his time searching for bigger and better places to see, finds his way to Thailand for a little R&R. But something is definitely different about this trip and most of it comes in the form of his crazy hostel neighbor, Daffy, who talks incessantly and angrily about a beach. Tucked away in a remote and off-limits part of Thailand, the beach Daffy speaks of is considered a utopia, a perfect world that is unspoiled by tourists, a prize at the end of a tiring quest. Naturally Richard is curious, so he sets out with a French couple, Etienne and Francoise, and a map drawn by Daffy in search of this pristine fantasy land. The island commune in The Beach would definitely pass for a secret Woodstock hideaway. Richard's journey is like no other; a riveting and spectacular adventure. Reading this book was the next best thing to swimming in their private lagoon, spearing fish and viewing the underwater corals. Island politics and the obsessive desire to keep the island's secrecy plays a heavy role in this novel and is also a prime example of how, even in paradise, one can somehow manage to destroy it.
Dark and sinister, as well as sarcastically funny, The Beach is a fast and furious novel that transports readers to another place in the blink of an eye. Alex Garland's writing is razor-sharp and indicative of his amazing storytelling talent. The movie cannot begin to touch the depth and fascination of this unforgettable novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Great book, but Alex Garland can do better
Review: Since I too got suckered into the Koh Phangan full moon party trap by a Lonely Planet guidebook(and subsequently spent a fascinating 8 days in two Thai jails), I had to read this book. I think Aufbach's review below was the best out of the previous 377, but I'm going to give Alex Garland a bit more credit. Sure he's no Hemingway as far as travel writing goes, but I suspect that he was trying to get some points across to people who need a faster pace to get/keep their attention. Some of the characters are like cardboard cutouts used to fill out the story, and a lot of the story is very obviously borrowed from elsewhere, but I still think The Beach is a good mix of honesty and cleverness, especially for a first novel. Garland's novel does a good job of exposing the false prophet within us all as it uncovers the layers of self-indulgence and hypocrisy we westerners use to hide the fact that we're all just a bunch of philistines. It's also quite entertaining at the same time. If you're looking for the next James Joyce, don't bother with this book. If you're about to go backpacking in search of utopia, don't even get on the plane before you've read it.
Rating:
Summary: The Beach is aite to read
Review: Summary review on The Beach The main character is Richard (the protagonist) where he travels to Asia and he finds this French couple. They talk to this elderly guy and they get this map from him, and the map showed them the way to this oasis, some hidden beach. This is the main focus of the film where a civilization free from the confines of the modern world has troubles dealing with the public eye. I feel the plotline shares this dramatized civilization hiding from the public yet; their lives are still surviving through this hidden beach. I feel this sense of urgency when Richard (the Protagonist) and the entire civilization try to survive and live on this beach without being harmed by the Vietnamese rebels. Because the area surrounding them has fields of illegal weed and they cannot step foot in it or they will come and kill them. If they leak a word out to the government, the fields might be burned out, so the rebels will not make that easy illegal money by selling it to other buyers. And none of this is helped by the fact that Richard himself has given away the location of the island to some other travelers. If he does like I said there will be a lot of tension between the community and the rebels. After reading through many chapters I don't feel Richard as the main character doing anything that harms the community, but he tries very hard to fit in with the group. I feel his character in the novel gives him a lot of love and support from the other members of the close net community. This novel is recommended, because this book offers a whole new genre of young adult reading. But also check out the movie out for a different perspective. But you should read your novel first, because there are morals to the story that will amaze you to the very end.
Rating:
Summary: This book ie aite
Review: The main character is Richard (the protagonist) where he travels to Asia and he finds this French couple. They talk to this elderly guy and they get this map from him, and the map showed them the way to this oasis, some hidden beach. This is the main focus of the film where a civilization free from the confines of the modern world has troubles dealing with the public eye. I feel the plotline shares this dramatized civilization hiding from the public yet; their lives are still surviving through this hidden beach. I feel this sense of urgency when Richard (the Protagonist) and the entire civilization try to survive and live on this beach without being harmed by the Vietnamese rebels. Because the area surrounding them has fields of illegal weed and they cannot step foot in it or they will come and kill them. If they leak a word out to the government, the fields might be burned out, so the rebels will not make that easy illegal money by selling it to other buyers. And none of this is helped by the fact that Richard himself has given away the location of the island to some other travelers. If he does like I said there will be a lot of tension between the community and the rebels. After reading through many chapters I don't feel Richard as the main character doing anything that harms the community, but he tries very hard to fit in with the group. I feel his character in the novel gives him a lot of love and support from the other members of the close net community. This novel is recommended, because this book offers a whole new genre of young adult reading. But also check out the movie out for a different perspective. But you should read your novel first, because there are morals to the story that will amaze you to the very end.
Rating: 
Summary: Read with an open mind!
Review: The things that I hated about this book in the beginning pages are the exact things that make this book brilliant. For example, I disliked many of the charecters right away. I was never convinced of the beauty of the beach or the surrounding islands. I felt a general sense of hoplessness while reading the story. I found myself wondering many times whether the author wanted me to admire these people who travel all over the world without a care or feel sorry for them because their lack a real home and family. I realized that this was what the author wanted you to feel. I liked how the author showed me the fine line between paradise on earth and hell, and how easy it is to slip from one to the other with no real rules or responsibilities. The ending was perfect. When I was not reading this book, I was constantly thinking about its charecters and the message behind it. The book left me feeling awful, but a book that can actually trigger this kind of emotion is worth reading. It is supposed to make you feel uneasy. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: JUST PLAIN BAD
Review: This is without a doubt one of the most boring books I have ever read. I only kept reading it because I thought it would get interesting at some point. It never did.
Garland is not only a bad novelist, he's also a mediocre screenwriter. (Did you see "28 Days later"? he's responsible for that, too). This one is not worth the paper it is printed on.
Rating:
Summary: hours of enjoyment
Review: Today I finished listening to The Beach on tape after several days of commuting an hour each way to and from work. I hardly remember the miles I was so swept up in this well-told story. It's definitely a tape/page-turner. Made me almost look forward to going to work just so I could hear another hour!
Rating:
Summary: Oh, please.
Review: What saves this book from a one-star rating is that Mr. Garland writes reasonably well--but then again, it seems like everybody does these days. My personal guess is that this was first written in screenplay format, because it definitely reads like some Gen X'er's "woe-is-me-life-sucks, but-I-want-to-be-the-next Kevin Williamson anyway" type of screenplay. Unfortunately there's a ton of those out floating around Hollywood (and London too, I'm sure), so he quotes Conrad and starts getting called the next Graham Greene. Please. "The Beach" is a decent enough thriller, but comparisons to Greene are ludicrous. Apart from extremely banal young-adult angst, the characters are largely without motivation. None seems to have a history, and all are quite poorly drawn. (Are we just supposed to assume that life sure is bleak if you live in a house with air conditioning and have too much disposable income?) In the hands of a writer more capable of creating character--with histories, feelings, and goals--this might have, in fact, been a brilliant story. As it is, it's marginally better than Tom Clancy.
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