[ExI] Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

[John K Clark]

Max wrote:

>> I quite enjoyed it

Damien wrote :

> More than I can say. I gritted my teeth and soldiered on.

I read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance back when I was a teenager,
a distant alien era where giant reptiles ruled the earth. At the time I
quite liked the book, but today even if you put a gun to my head I don't
think I could tell you much about it, except that Pirsig likes excellence.
But then, who doesn't like excellence? I haven't read the book in many years
but I suspect I would be less impressed with it now than when I was a kid.

> In those  days I tried to finish everything I'd started.

I retain that flaw to this day, by page 50 I know the book sucks but I
bought the damn thing so I feel I must finish reading the entire stupid
thing. The most horrible example is when I thought I should read the Lord of
the Rings. I started the first book and learned that Clogknee, chief of the
Bustalator people who come from across the Onrobonob river beyond the
Dyphlesator mountains on the planes of Diplet in the land of Fustalator near
the forest of Sphincter which in the elfin tongue is called Whogivesadamn
wrote: ah, he wrote something but I can't recall exactly what. It was
painful but I finished book 1. I was smart enough not to start book 2 or 3.

 John K Clark