Author: Robert Pirsig

Publisher: HarperTorch; Reprint edition

Pub. in: April, 2006

ISBN: 0060589469

Pages: 560

Measurements: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches

Origin of product: USA

Order code: BA00586

Other information:  

One of the most profoundly important bestsellers of our time, from the New York Times bestselling author of Lila.

It took a long time to write a review for this book. I generally try to write them within a week of finishing. It gives me time to absorb what I read yet it remains fresh in my mind. For some reason, this took a full 2 months before I wrote this review. That doesn't mean I forgot what I read, far from it. This book is so full of valuable discussion that it would be impossible to forget much of what it talked about. After all, the content here is heavy enough to maintain a cult following 30 years after it was first published.

Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is quite a good book. I don't know how else to start this review, other than to say exactly that. It's a classic that sat on my pile of books for years and years (and years - really, it was that long) before I picked it up. That's a shame, because this is something I should have been picking up again and again throughout those years. More than likely a timeless classic, Zen stays in touch with all levels of reader despite taking on a very mixed subject matter.

A philosophical journey brushed with Buddhist undertones, this is a mysterious autobiographical adventure where Pirsig jumps head first into a slowly moving story which delves in and out of the mind of the narrator. Focusing on the issue of value, Pirsig attempts to ferret out the core of quality which drives dinner conversation across the face of the Earth. What is good? What is bad? How do we assess elements of this nature which fit into these good and bad boxes?

Truth and value, pillars of our social institutions, come under the scrutiny of Pirsig in the pages of this book. Challenging illusions we delude ourselves into believing, the text offers numerous questions and commentaries which lead the reader to question many things they may have previously taken for granted.

Blending Eastern and Western thought, Pirsig walks down a well-trodden but poorly paved road that many in the West try and fail to comprehend. That doesn't mean Pirsig understands it any better (or worse) than others who have ambled down this same path. It merely means he walks down it, and lends space to both schools of thought without wholly selling out and decrying one as superior. An impossible stance to take for almost all who try.

At times the book does bog down in slow meditative conversation. I don't think it detracts enough to make the book less than excellent. But it is something to consider when going into it. Those expecting Earth shattering revelations will need to step back and reassess what they expect from a book. Much of the text is meant to be consumed and ruminated upon. Reading 100 pages in a day is a sure way to misunderstand most of it. You would do yourself a favor by limiting the number of pages taken in any one day to less than 10. Here is a book to promote thinking. Take the time to do just that.

This book can (and should) appeal to any variety of reader. However, it will likely appeal more to those who actively want to better themselves and their lives, but not in the typical American manner of throwing a fist-full of cash at it. The idea is foreign to many in a land of cash-based happiness. Pirsig does not address this. I merely bring it up to preface who might enjoy reading this. I imagine the Conservative base will not take kindly to the book. Likewise, people beyond a certain age (is that Thirtysomething these days?) will likely be less concerned with a lot of the ideas here, believing they already have all the answers they need. I strongly assert that any person from any angle can get a lot out of this work.

This is a book I plan on reading again. I have cautiously ordered his sequel, Lila, because this book was so good. I can't expect it to be nearly as good. But it goes to show how much I enjoyed the first one. Needless to say, this is highly recommended reading. (From quoting Norm Zurawski, USA)

Target readers: General readers

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