David Chadwick

DAVID CHADWICK began his Zen study under Shunryu Suzuki Roshi in 1966. Ordained as a Zen priest in 1971, he later wrote Suzuki's biography, Crooked Cucumber, as well as Thank You and OK!: An American Zen Failure in Japan. With a great deal of help, Chadwick is poo-bah of Cuke Archives, preserving the legacy of Shunryu Suzuki and those whose paths crossed his—and anything else that comes to mind. See cuke.com and shunryusuzuki.com for more vital info.

"Hats off to Chadwick. . . . His writer's skill is evident in everything from skin-crawling descriptions of mukade (dreaded scorpion-like insects) to a benevolent look at takuhatsu, formal monks' begging." —Publishers Weekly

"Written down with good humor and keen observations. . . . This book is not a serious examination of Zen Buddhist practices nor a major study of East-West relations but a rollicking, anecdotal mishmash of incidents about the foibles of monks, abbots, 'housewives,' and fellow students of the author's. Read with this understanding, this book is good entertainment." —Library Journal

"Vivid, lighthearted, and unself-consciously profound." —Kirkus Reviews

"The Catch-22 of Zen." —Daniel Leighton, author of Faces of Compassion

"Asked why Zen was brought from India to China, master Zhao Zhou replied, 'The oak tree in the garden.' This is exactly what Chadwick gives us here—no grand sweeping statements about the 'real' nature of Zen or Japan—just specific experience rendered with a peculiar intensity that lingers in your memory. The writing is excellent. The artistic integrity is the very finest." —Robert Pirsig, author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

"Totally delightful—fantastic couch potato Zen. Chadwick saves you the trouble of going to Japan by making all the mistakes for you." —Jack Kornfield