A narration of a summer motorcycle trip undertaken by a father and his son, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance becomes a personal and philosophical odyssey into fundamental questions on how to live. The narrator's relationship with his son leads to a powerful self-reckoning; the craft of motorcycle maintenance leads to an austerely beautiful process for reconciling science, religion, and humanism. Resonant with the confusions of existence, this classic is a touching and transcendent book of life.</p>

This new edition contains an interview with Pirsig and letters and documents detailing how this extraordinary book came to be.</p>This P.S. edition features an extra 16 pages of insights into the book, including author interviews, recommended reading, and more.

罗伯特•M.波西格(Robert M. Pirsig),1928年生于美国明尼苏达州双子城。15岁进入明尼苏达大学主修化学,后又学习哲学,之后在该校攻读传播学硕士；他曾到印度伯纳雷斯印度大学学习东方哲学,并担任修辞学教授。在追求真理的过程中,因为西方倡导的二元对立与二分法带来的分裂而困扰不已,因而一直试图寻找支离破碎的文化的整合之道,这些问题长久折磨着他并让他焦虑又烦躁。1961年他被诊断为偏执型精神分裂症和临床忧郁症,被多次送进医院。1963年起接受了多达28次的休克疗法,在此期间妻子与他离婚。后来他终于不再执着于自己的理论并且出院,转而开始潜心写作来表达自己的想法。1968年他与长子克里斯一起骑着摩托车从双子城出发,在中西部旷野、洛矶山区和西海岸从事心灵探险。他希望从狭窄而受限的自我解脱,于是才开始这场横跨美国大陆的万里长旅,一路经过复杂经验与反省思考,终于恢复了自我的完整。

本书出版后波西格一直过着隐居避世的生活,并与第二任妻子完成了横渡大西洋的轮渡之旅。