The Beach (novel) The Beach (novel) The Beach is a 1996 novel by English author Alex Garland. Set in Thailand, it is the story of a young backpacker's search for a legendary, idyllic and isolated beach untouched by tourism, and his time there in its small, international community of backpackers. In 2000, it was adapted into a film directed by Danny Boyle and starring Leonardo DiCaprio. In 2003, the novel was listed on the BBC's survey The Big Read. In a cheap hotel on the Khao San Road in Bangkok, Richard, a young American backpacker, meets a mentally disturbed Scotsman going by the
The Beach (novel) Étienne corners him thereafter and soon discovers that he, along with the rest of his clique, has become frightened of Richard "doing things" for Sal. Richard convinces Étienne, Françoise, Jed and a paranoid Keaty to leave the beach for good, and euthanizes the dying Christo. Now fully aware of what Sal is willing to do to protect the beach, they decide to spike the food for the party and escape on the raft that the doomed backpackers used. Night falls, and the party begins. Prior to dinner, Keaty and Richard spike the stew Unhygienix cooked with fermented coconut milk and