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3.52 AVERAGE
3.52 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is actually a re-read though I might as well be a new read since I recalled only the barest details of the book as I started in. It had me using brain power I'd not touched since my college days, as a good portion is of the text is philosophical. Pirsig also makes some interesting narrator/narrative choices that I wish were given more time in the text.
An interesting memoir.
The stitching of story and philosophy makes for a very pleasant, informative, and thought provoking read. The book focuses on two main things, the search for the definition of quality and a father-son cross country motorcycle trip.
Two of the biggest things I appreciated where the idea of looking at machine components in terms of their function instead of their outward appearance and the concept of quality as inherently known but indefinable.
The stitching of story and philosophy makes for a very pleasant, informative, and thought provoking read. The book focuses on two main things, the search for the definition of quality and a father-son cross country motorcycle trip.
Two of the biggest things I appreciated where the idea of looking at machine components in terms of their function instead of their outward appearance and the concept of quality as inherently known but indefinable.
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
One of my favorite books ever. Of course you should know it's not about Zen or motorcycles, however it is a good read that will get you thinking.
I considered rating this a 2/5 instead of a 3. In a word, I was disappointed. There is some wisdom in this book, and there are certainly things to think about, but many times the book simply lost me, and I had to keep going back and re-reading. I wouldn't have minded this, but there was just no payoff, no reward for trying to wrap my brain around the ideas being presented. I thought that by the end of the book things would wrap up in a way that made some sense, but it really didn't. Not for me, anyway.
All that said, there were points that I did enjoy, which is what prompted the 3rd star.
All that said, there were points that I did enjoy, which is what prompted the 3rd star.
I have read this book again after 15 years and I still love it.
It the going after or under the skin of things to see how it works, to get a better understanding, to get a better appreciation, to value the intelligence used, to see the 'quality'.
To apply that going after the better understanding to do a 'quality' job for oneself!
To chase after the - 'quality'. What a rush! What a thrill! Addictive.
Apologies - I was talking about life rather than the book.
The book just brings it home.
It the going after or under the skin of things to see how it works, to get a better understanding, to get a better appreciation, to value the intelligence used, to see the 'quality'.
To apply that going after the better understanding to do a 'quality' job for oneself!
To chase after the - 'quality'. What a rush! What a thrill! Addictive.
Apologies - I was talking about life rather than the book.
The book just brings it home.
I couldn't finish the book lol. The main character irritated me to no end
I was totally fine when he just had internal musing and was like alright these are kinda cool ideas, not like revolutionary or anything but sure.
but every time there was physical dialogue between him and other characters. And they were all like "omg, you are so much smarter than me, idk what you're even talking about" I couldn't handle it it just just skipped through.
I think it's the only book where I could read all the italics internal monologues and skipped the dialogue, usually it's the other way around
I was totally fine when he just had internal musing and was like alright these are kinda cool ideas, not like revolutionary or anything but sure.
but every time there was physical dialogue between him and other characters. And they were all like "omg, you are so much smarter than me, idk what you're even talking about" I couldn't handle it it just just skipped through.
I think it's the only book where I could read all the italics internal monologues and skipped the dialogue, usually it's the other way around
i think it might be a tone thing. Like I am injecting a tone of certainty and arrogance, which may not be there.
I read a lot of reviews of "Surely youre joking mr feynman" (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35167685-surely-you-re-joking-mr-feynman) that have a similar reaction to what I'm having to Pirsig's book. But I don't get that at all from Feynman, i just think he's telling interesting anecdotes that teach useful lessons. So maybe the reverse happened to me here
I also had this issue with unlikeable protagonists in Catcher in the Rye. I can't tell if the main character is supposed to be unlikeable or not.
The quality discussions were one of the more interesting parts of the books for me, i might go check them out again now that I kinda got where he was going with it all.
I was totally fine when he just had internal musing and was like alright these are kinda cool ideas, not like revolutionary or anything but sure.
but every time there was physical dialogue between him and other characters. And they were all like "omg, you are so much smarter than me, idk what you're even talking about" I couldn't handle it it just just skipped through.
I think it's the only book where I could read all the italics internal monologues and skipped the dialogue, usually it's the other way around
I was totally fine when he just had internal musing and was like alright these are kinda cool ideas, not like revolutionary or anything but sure.
but every time there was physical dialogue between him and other characters. And they were all like "omg, you are so much smarter than me, idk what you're even talking about" I couldn't handle it it just just skipped through.
I think it's the only book where I could read all the italics internal monologues and skipped the dialogue, usually it's the other way around
i think it might be a tone thing. Like I am injecting a tone of certainty and arrogance, which may not be there.
I read a lot of reviews of "Surely youre joking mr feynman" (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35167685-surely-you-re-joking-mr-feynman) that have a similar reaction to what I'm having to Pirsig's book. But I don't get that at all from Feynman, i just think he's telling interesting anecdotes that teach useful lessons. So maybe the reverse happened to me here
I also had this issue with unlikeable protagonists in Catcher in the Rye. I can't tell if the main character is supposed to be unlikeable or not.
The quality discussions were one of the more interesting parts of the books for me, i might go check them out again now that I kinda got where he was going with it all.
Upon re-reading, I realize that Pirsig is a little full of himself, and that riding and working on my motorcycle did not give me a greater appreciation for the book. It did give me a greater appreciation for my shaft-driven, alternator-less, fuel-injected motorcycle, though. If I wrote this it would be "Zen and the Art of German Engineering and the Minimal Maintenance and Unflappable Reliability That You Can Expect."
The book is a look into his own psyche, and his own demons. After a while, I was saying "I get it, you've got a burden you're carrying with you, stop thinking up metaphors to explain it and get to it already."
A solid 3 stars still, 15 years after I first read it, but not more than that.
The book is a look into his own psyche, and his own demons. After a while, I was saying "I get it, you've got a burden you're carrying with you, stop thinking up metaphors to explain it and get to it already."
A solid 3 stars still, 15 years after I first read it, but not more than that.