
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. His latest book, Tassajara Stories: A Sort of Memoir/Oral History of the First Zen Buddhist Monastery in the West—The First Year, 1967, is being published by Monkfish in late September, 2025.
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.