Rating: 
Summary: An Instant Trip to Paradise
Review: I'd hate to see a potential reader pass up the opportunity to read this book for fear that it lacks in content or speed. This is an excellent title, and Mr. Garland does a superb job of transporting his reader to Thailand, in all its richness and beauty. From the thug-like drug lords to the American "tourists", this tapestry is intricately woven and the story is marvelously told. The only "Gen-X" reference I found is that of all-important GameBoy which the "Beachers" hold as their last tie to the the Western World. As a matter of fact, there is far more reference and comparison to the Vietnam and Korean wars than to the Generation X lifestyle. I often found myself "assimilating" as Richard would call it, and forgetting about the world around me. This is definitely a book in which a person could get lost. An excellent read, and if you have any doubts...try it anyway!
Rating: 
Summary: I beg to differ.
Review: All this talk about gen x'ers experiencing life second-hand, sampling what little is left from the emptied plates of bygone boomers, does not excuse (nor make a case for) characters drawn so thin as to defy the description "sketchy" or, for that matter, any description at all. What can one say about characters (lots of them) who remain utterly undistinguished but for name and gender? That they are absolutely uniform in their shallow banality? And that the cringe factor when they speak is utterly unmatched in the literature of my experience, past or present? Or, perhaps, this was Mr. Garland's intention? To portray vapidity by the avoidance of awareness? Is the imitative fallacy no longer referred to at least once in each young writer's education? Should a story about boredom(esp. a groundbreaking experimental post-post-modern one) then be boring? Does a sly hatred of his characters and an ironic awareness on the part of the author of just how excrutiatingly measly they are, indeed, it all is...these days ...does this pass for art? Maybe. Everyone seems to think so.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome!!
Review: This is definatly my favorite book! It was like an amazing miniseries on television, I couldn't wait to see the next part! I couldn't put down this book and I reccomend it to all!
Rating:
Summary: Gripping--couldn't put this book down.
Review: I was a little hesitant to pick this book up since I don't normally like what passes for literature these days. But this book was great. The story and the characters were compelling, and Garland did an excellent job of portraying his generation without sentimentality or arrogance. I do have to say that I am horrified to learn that Leonardo Dicaprio will be playing Richard in the movie version. He doesn't fit the description at all, and he won't be able to pull it off. Also, Tilda Swinton is a great actress, but she doesn't exactly fit the physical description of Sal (who was described as having flabby arms and large breasts.) I'm not expecting much from the movie.
Rating: 
Summary: Garland Wrote in the Sun Too Long without a Hat
Review: What a great premise...and what great promise. English hippie drifter and young French couple go to a remote paradise off the coast of Thailand. And then things start to go bad. The problem with The Beach is that it's like a day at a remote tropical beach. It's promising, it's pretty, it's otherworldly, but almost nothing happens. The threat of a violent run-in with Thai gangsters who grow marijuana on the island is briefly realized at the end of the book but Garland could have done much more with this interesting subplot. The characters are a mostly colorless lot. The men and women in The Beach all seem to sleep in the same room on one of the most remote islands in the world yet no sexual activity takes place. This is clearly no paradise by the dashboard lights.
Rating:
Summary: An unconventionally brilliant book
Review: This book took me by surprise. I have heard it compared to "The Lord of the Flies", which I find to be jejune and rather contrived. "The Beach", on the other hand, failed to live up to my low expectations. When I heard it called the first great Generation X novel, I moaned at my having bought it. Everything about it, from its structure to its characters, is completely relaxed, and yet it contains an ever growing sense of dread. Garland continuously sidesteps the obvious path, at sometimes opting for mellow resolutions and at others choosing brutality and gore. I was pleased that life on the beach did not turn into a contrived battle between good and evil. I do acknowledge that this novel is not for everyone. It has the voice of a travelogue, speaking with a detatched, critical eye. Many readers will fail to connect with Richard, the narrator, having been raised on more delineated character-types like those found in "The Lord of the Flies". He is ambiguous and genuine, and hopefully Leonardo DiCaprio will do him justice in the film version. "The Beach" is a risky novel that pays off in the end. Try it! Do it for Mr. Duck.
Rating:
Summary: Pubescent Vietnam & Travel Fantasy With No Kick
Review: OK, I believed the hype. I purchased the book & read it. It's just what you'd kind of expect when a bunch of people find an isolated beach the want to keep to themselves - big deal. You have a bit of jealousy, danger, arguments, dope, insanity & violence thrown in, in a lame attempt to spice up a not too extraordinary scenario. I have to admit I was expecting something a lot cleverer here. It had the right ingredients to be something special, but the author ain't no gourmet chef - he's not a cook at all. Cheap spice can't bring this dish to life. The author really never tires of letting us know how obsessed he is with Vietnam movies and the whole VC zeitgeist. Then there's the all to frequent "nods" to his pubescent obsessions - Tin Tin comics, Airfix model planes, computer games like Tetris. Methinks the author omitted (deliberately) to mention such things as Jazz Mags (i.e. porno magazines), as all this book really is a paramasturbatory fantasy about Vietnam....Face it dude, you're not a Vietnam Vet & you never will be unless you can travel back in time - even then I don't think you'd have the guts... If you want to read a book of real adventure, magic & travel I suggest "On The Road" by Jack Kerouac. That book left me in a dreamy haze, full of wonders. This book just leaves you in ridiculous maze, full of conundrums. Leonardo Di Caprio is starring in the film version - What more can I say?
Rating:
Summary: riveting and disturbing
Review: Very disturbing account of what happens when earthly possessions are stripped away. When all we have are our basic instincts and the nightmare of dealing with your consequences. One of the smartest books along with "A secret History" by Donna Tartt. A definite must read. This book will stay with you long after you've finished. Hopefully Hollywood won't botch the film. I definitely recommend it to anyone who is fascinated with human nature.
Rating:
Summary: A beach paradise without love or sex? No thanks.
Review: An overpraised book that owes much to Lord of the Flies, which is better written, more concise, and more profound, even after 40 years. Garland throws all his energy into setting up a few good violent scenes (especially the climax), but character isn't his strong point. Also, the beach community that Garland invents is hardly appealing, even at first glance. None of these fun-loving tourists has much fun; they don't even seem to like one another. All they do is smoke dope, play soccer occassionally, and fish. Richard, the main character, doesn't have one romantic interlude throughout the book (a 6-month span). Doesn't anybody have sex in this community? The American pop-culture references, which weigh down each paragraph of the book, in the end become vapid, repetitious, and tiresome. Same with the trippy dream sequences. The book just doesn't have much substance. Maybe the movie will be better.
Rating:
Summary: Great premise, laughable book
Review: The idea of this story is so appealing--and the blurbs on the cover so good- I was surprised at how lame it is! The character is such a jerk that by the end, when he gets squeamish about killing someone, it's a laugh-out-loud joke. And the carnage at the end is so over the top (does NOT compare to the stunning Lord of the Flies)that I found myself annoyed. For having wasted a perfectly good evening reading such silliness.
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