THE BEACH

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by Alex Garland (1996)

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Richard finds a hand drawn map stuck to the door of his tiny room in the backpacker hostel. The map purports to show the location of The Beach, an earthly paradise available to the enlightened and rugged traveller. Suitably aroused, Richard seeks out the secret location, which is supposed to exist on an island situated off the coast of Thailand. Travelling with two companions, Etienne and Francoise, the trio make it safely to the island but initially find no signs of habitation. Unperturbed, the party then treks into the interior. Then the adventure really begins. Armed guards patrolling dope fields. A tropical paradise with a base camp and lagoon, beyond which lies a glorious sun-drenched beach. A tree carved with three names and four zeroes. An organised community living in the wild. And then the shark arrives. Fiction. 439 pages.

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DETAILS:

Title: The beach

Year: 1996

Author: Alex Garland

Pages: 439

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Book review by Keith Salter