The Beach

Rating:
Summary: Join the beach club!
Review: After I read this book, it's rate XX. It's the incredible book ! I think the end is OK but sometimes I think Alex had a bad attitute about Thailand... so he should come back and learn Thai culture...

Anyway, it is pretty good

Rating:
Summary: exciting books
Review: This books is really intrested to it because The book that I have read it was given me more information about the thing I have ever know about the Thailand, just has to be becarefull about a place that we've ever even known yet.

Rating:
Summary: An entertaining read
Review: After seeing the film, which I thought was quite good, I decided to read the book. I was amazed to find that the book's main male character was actually a Londoner, rather than an American. However, the film pretty much stays true to the book albeit for a couple of sub-plots and storylines. The ending in the book is completely different and for this reason I would recommend that anyone who enjoyed the film should read it just to see what an alternative ending for the film might have been.

Rating:
Summary: Cult Classic
Review: Alex Garland's book, "The Beach," was an underground classic among the hiking and backpacking subculture long before it was made into a big-time Hollywood movie. In it, Garland takes a "Lord of the Flies" motif and combines it with the dangers of living a hedonisitc lifestyle.

Richard, the protagonist, is a 20-something searching for the ultimate adventure. Sick of the hustle and bustle of the urban world, Richard embarks on an adventure in Thailand thinking it will bring him peace, quiet, and a simpler life.

The writing is somewhat sophomoric at times, which is why this is not a five-star book. Had Garland been more eloquent and sophisticated in his writing (which he IS very capable of), this book would possibly be considered among scholars as more of a creative fictional case-study of today's modern youth culture rather than merely a "pop" read. But then again, Garland WAS only 25 years old when he wrote it -- an impressive feat!

Be sure to see the movie after you read the book, as there are several significant plot differences.