Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #19727 in Books
• Published on: 1997-06-26
• Binding: Paperback
• 448 pages

From Amazon.co.uk
In our ever-shrinking world, where popular Western culture seems to have infected every nation on the planet, it is hard to find even a small niche of unspoiled land--forget searching for pristine islands or continents. This is the situation in Alex Garland's debut novel, The Beach. Human progress has reduced Eden to a secret little beach near Thailand. In the tradition of grand adventure novels, Richard, a rootless traveller rambling around Thailand on his way somewhere else, is given a hand-drawn map by a madman who calls himself Daffy Duck. He and two French travellers set out on a journey to find this paradise.

What makes this a truly satisfying novel is the number of levels on which it operates. On the surface it's a fast-paced adventure novel; at another level it explores why we search for these utopias, be they mysterious lost continents or small island communes. Garland weaves a gripping and thought-provoking narrative that suggests we are, in fact, such products of our Western culture that we cannot help but pollute and ultimately destroy the very sanctuary we seek. --Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk Review
In our ever-shrinking world, where popular Western culture seems to have infected every nation on the planet, it is hard to find even a small niche of unspoiled land--forget searching for pristine islands or continents. This is the situation in Alex Garland's debut novel, The Beach. Human progress has reduced Eden to a secret little beach near Thailand. In the tradition of grand adventure novels, Richard, a rootless traveller rambling around Thailand on his way somewhere else, is given a hand-drawn map by a madman who calls himself Daffy Duck. He and two French travellers set out on a journey to find this paradise.

What makes this a truly satisfying novel is the number of levels on which it operates. On the surface it's a fast-paced adventure novel; at another level it explores why we search for these utopias, be they mysterious lost continents or small island communes. Garland weaves a gripping and thought-provoking narrative that suggests we are, in fact, such products of our Western culture that we cannot help but pollute and ultimately destroy the very sanctuary we seek. --Amazon.com

Synopsis
Richard is drawn into a strange conversation in a hotel. He hears of a secret island Garden of Eden hidden in the scattered islands of a Thai marine park. Next morning, he finds a map pinned to his door and the man who put it there has slashed his wrists. The challenge is irresistible and he sets off on a perilous journey in search of Shangri-La.

Customer Reviews

Excellent Read
After the movie the book is a welcome pleasure to read. The obvious comparison to the Viewtnam war and the narrative on the delicate social structure that exists at the beach add to this well written book.

fantastic
This is a book i always wanted to read and i am really glad that i got round to it. The book is exciting from the first page and i couldn't put it down. The main character Richard is fantastic. He is confident and what i would describe as heroic but he did also make me uncomfortable with some of the decisions he makes. Saying all that Richard feels real and i love the adventure he goes on. The book doesn't bore you with unnessary description and gives you enough suspence that you cant stop turning the pages. I also loved the titles for the chapters. They didn't help me follow the story but each title had a poetical ring to it. or am i reading too much in to it? It is a fantastic read and couldn't recommend it highly enough.

Fab book!
The film is ok, but the book is excellent, well worth reading and very difficult to put down. A fairly light read and great if you don't like anything too heavy going.