Rating: 
Summary: Hang in there...it's worth it!
Review: I listened to this on tape and have to admit, I would have struggled to get through if I tried to read it. This book raised some important issues and did it in an entertaining and thought provoking way. I enjoyed the back and forth between past and present, the references to Greek philosophy and the telling of the journey itself. I cared about Phaedrus and his son. After listening to it I did buy the book just to be able to go back over some of the parts that had so many layers. It seems people have a strong reaction to this book because when I asked the bookstore clerk where I could find Zen, another customer joined the conversation to tell me how many times he had read it. This book also caused me (and my books on tape group) to listen to Lila, his follow-up novel which continues Phaedrus' story years later. It was also one of the books the group has listened to that generated the most discussion.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book, a real introspective into life.
Review: I thought tha Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance was a terrific book that really causes the reader to take a look at their own value system. It takes you into the past and present lif of a man in search of himself and reality. The only thing that kept it from recieving the full five stars was the fact that it tended to get a little slow at times and the writing seemed a little amatuerish. Other than that it was a gem. For me it allowed for a look into who I am compared to who I used to be and who I want to become. I would be very interested in reading more or Robert Pirsig's work. I would also recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a provacative, emotional book. Even if you don't apply it to yourself, it still brings up some worthwhile questions.
Rating: 
Summary: problematical to assess
Review: This book is among the most problematical for me to assess. On the one hand, it seemed overwhelmingly "honest" to me when I first read it. On the other hand, I've read a great deal of philosophy since then, and the initial book now seems trivial by comparison. The book at least provides stimulus to a reader's thoughts, but then once the reader has grown, he may disavow the original catalyst. The book is too serious for the general reader but too lightweight for a serious student of philosophy. The narrative of the cross-country motorcycle trip is alternately compelling and lackluster. The tone and style of writing is colloquial, which may or may not agree with the reader. Overall, then, I give the book a three-star rating, mainly on account of its quality to stimulate the general reader (and it is the general reader to whom the book is addressed) into thinking about metaphysics and modern society.
Rating: 
Summary: A journey into the realms of subject-object duality.
Review: Looking over the reviews for this book, I realize that those who were forced to read this book hated it, while those who chose to read this book loved it. In reality, this book receives so many mixed reviews because it is exactly what it's criticizers say it is: long winded. But those who chose to read this book know that such as book is not meant to be read casually, and is not meant to entertain, as some might think. This book was written to be read slowly, thoughtfully, and interestedly. When read in such a manner, the reader who gave this book low ratings will understand why other readers gave it a high rating; and will agree with them. Good Reading...
Rating:
Summary: This book sits next to my Bible
Review: For anyone with a spec of spiritual yerning. A way of looking at life without filters and understanding a greater part of everything.
Rating:
Summary: Pure simplicity
Review: As another reviewer said, if you read a part of this book and don't get into it, put it down and wait for the right time. This book has so much to offer, but you need to want to listen. This is a book for one who is disillusioned with themselves and everything this ****ed up world appears to offer. It reveals your own inadequacies with such a caring hand because the author knows them in himself. Reading this book, I found someone talking about their own pain. This isn't a book aimed at healing the world. It's a book about stopping and looking at yourself and all the clasifications you make of other people and how quickly we blow off people when we really should be (and in actuality are) blowing ourselves. At the right time it's just a book that makes you realise you're not alone but you are stupid. Who can ask for more than to be reminded of that.
Rating:
Summary: It's interesting
Review: Since I don't possess an MC, this looked like a terrible waste of time, but even in the most trivial of doings, there's an entire philosophy behind. The book deals with crucial elements of the development of Western philosophy. If Western mentality today lacks desirable elements, it's extremely difficult to tell when or where or who chose a less favorable path. Mr. Pirsig suggests that the error can be traced back to the Greeks. This conclusion itself seems to relie on a misconception, because it's unlikely that there's anything like an ideel philosophy. Anyway, the book dares to adress such complex questions and gets away with it. That's an effort in itself worth 4 stars, I think. The story consists of a past and a present situation. Personally, I find the past far more interesting than the present. I admit that the story would suffer much if the present was erased, still, focus could have been even more on the past situation.
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Summary: Philosophy for the lazy
Review: Pirsig's main achievement in this book is that he managed to write an insuferably ethereal chunk of pseudo-philosophical gobbleygook in a style so pleasant and informal that he manages to convince you -- against all odds -- that:a-his head isn't really up his arse b-you are reading a book about philosophy. Neither is true. The argumentation is sketchy. His off-the-cuff claims to have gone "way beyond Hegel" reveal an uninformed pedantry bordering on the megalomanic. Worst of all, this is a book that manages to convince generation after generation of 17 year olds that they have some sort of understanding of philosophical issues. On the other hand, his prose style is brilliant, and his capacity to make a real page-turner out of topics as obtruse as the ones he picks is admirable. Fun to read, yes, but please, oh please take it with a grain of salt.
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Summary: A journey inward to explain the past, present and future.
Review: Comments on Robert Persig's, "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance". This sojourn has three levels. First, it is the story of a father and son taking a vacation, via motorcycle, on a cross country adventure. Second, it is an examination of the spriritual relationship between a parent and a child. Lastly, it is the portal to man's insanity, an examination of man's search for reason. In the first level, this is a story of a father and son, on a motorcycle, riding cross country with friends. There is no identified destination, just the daily routine of existance, driving, eating, sleeping and driving again. In the second level, the reader can examine the spiritual relaionship between the father and son. They seem to be searching for the door that will connect them to each other. Instead they are both helpless because they can see each other but are not able to connect with each other. This is demonstrated through dreams that both seem to have. Persig may be commenting on the state of being of mankind, in that it searches for something that it can't quite define, identify or reach. The last level is the portal to man's insanity. Persig creates image that the father, once labeled insane by humanity because of his search for the definition of Quality, realizes that he was not really insane, but thought at a differnet level or dimension than most people. The father addresses the issues created by nature and technology when the two roads meet. However, Persig demonstrates that many people do not, they just blindly except the conflict and fail to pursue the true meaning of it. Through Persig's examination of quality, technology, stuckness and rationality he analizes the dichotomy between the Classical and Romantic thought that is the foundation of Logic. Persig's physical journey ends before they reach their goal because he realizes they do not need to go that far. Persig suggests that he was the only obstacle towards his search for the truth. While the book neither teaches Zen or Motorcycle repair, it is Eastern in thought rather than Western in nature. This is demonstrated by the inward reflection the main character engaged in and the suggestion of a cyclical birth and death process at the very end of the book. This book is alot more than what it appears. It is entertaining, thought provoking and suggestive. While reading the book will satisfy the urge to be delightfully entertained, it will also cause the reader to think about the truths that so often are lost in the daily routine.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent. Very literally, "thought provoking".
Review: I first read this book in the early '70's, when I was reading many of the pop philosophy classics of that time and culture. It delighted me in it's simple pursuit of truth with it's arguments skillfully presented in metaphor. I felt that it stood head & shoulders above most of the sophomoric propaganda being touted at the time. I was extremely surprised to read some of the negative reviews printed here. I can only assume that these people "just didn't get it", or weren't really interested in doing any original thinking.
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