The Beach by Alex Garland

"Better the devil you know" is a cliche I now despise. Hidden in the bushes, shivering with fright, I learned that if the devil you know is the guard of a drug plantation then all other devils pale in comparison.

Maybe to have a memory you need time for reflection, however brief, just to let the memory find a place to settle.

She had that American habit of frequently using one's name. It had the strange effect of being both disarmingly familiar and unnaturally forced.

On that trip I learned something very important. Escape through travel works.

When in Rom, do as the Romans. in the travelers ten commandments, that's number one. You don't march into a Hindu temp and start saying "why are you worshipping a cow?" You look around, take on board, adjust, accept.

Isn't there a saying that the only thing more dangerous than a man with a gun is a nervous man with a gun? If there isn't, there should be.