Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - An Inquiry Into Values

Robert M. Pirsig

Harper Torch

1974

560 páginas

18h 40m

ISBN-13: 9780060589462

One of the most important & influential books written in the past half-century, Robert M. Pirsig's Zen & the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is a powerfully moving & penetrating examination of how we live, a breathtaking meditation on how to live better. Here is the book that transformed a generation, an unforgettable narration of a summer motorcycle trip across America's Northwest, undertaken by a father & his young son. A story of love & fear--of growth, discovery & acceptance--that becomes a profound personal & philosophical odyssey into life's fundamental questions, this uniquely exhilarating modern classic is both touching & transcendent, resonant with the myriad confusions of existence & the small, essential triumphs that propel us forward.

Resenhas (1)

5 (Perfeito)

Great philosophic novel

In spite of the title, this book is not really about Zen Buddhism or motorcycle maintenance, it is a novel about a trip across the US, a dramatic personal experience and philosophy of values.

The story is about a man who travels across the US, riding a motorcycle, with his son and a couple of friends. As he travels, he develops ideas about technology and general attitudes towards life. He remembers facts about his own life and a mistery appears. The mistery is gradually clarified, as he develops his reflections and visits places related to his previous life.

Pirsig writes about great philosophical issues with extraordinary clarity and avoiding technical words. He does not use tiresome quotations and references, but lets us know the origin of the ideas and concepts he presents.

It is a brilliant book, that catches our attention because of the story, the mistery, the descriptios of the travel, the important ideas he explains. I have read it thoroughly various times, both in the Portuguese translations and in the English original, always with pleasure and finding new stimulus to think.