Zen and the Art of Motorcycle

Maintenance was like a first child. Maybe that will always be the best-loved

one. But this second child is the bright one. I think a lot of people will

argue with some of the ideas in Lila. There may be controversy. But if people

are still reading these two books a hundred years from now, I predict Lila will

be the one they consider the more important.

Robert M. Pirsig

Phædrus, our narrator, takes a present-tense cross-country motorcycle trip with his son during which the maintenance of the motorcycle becomes an illustration of how we can unify the cold, rational realm of technology with the warm, imaginative realm of artistry. As in Zen, the trick is to become one with the activity, to engage in it fully, to see and appreciate all details — be it hiking in the woods, penning an essay, or tightening the chain on a motorcycle.