[Books] Best Books and their repective Authors

[Roadtonowhere]

Hello to all motorsport fans

I was just wondering what your favourite books you have in your collection are and if there are any authors I should try and avoid as I'm trying to build up a nice collection. I've always personally liked Anthony Pritchard do any out there share this view?

[FIRE]

I like:
Le Mans 24 Hours - Brian Laban
Porsche in Motorsport - Peter Morgan
Porsche 917 - Peter Morgan
Porsche 956/962 - Peter Morgan
Jaguar at Le Mans - Paul Parker
Sauber-Mercedes C9 - Ian Bamsey
Scarlet Passion - Anthony Pritchard

More books in these old topics:
http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=35496
http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=70287

[Roadtonowhere]

Cheers for that, But what are these Black Books I keep hearing so much about? They sound interesting

[Pete Fenelon]

The Certain Sound - John Wyer
Time and Two Seats - Janos Wimpffen (his photographic collections are marvellous too).
ANYTHING by Denis Jenkinson, Doug Nye, Mike Lawrence, Chris Nixon, Graham Gauld, Gerald Donaldson (apart from his shamefully poor BAR book), Karl Ludvigsen.....
Bernard Cahier's two-volume photographic autobiography.
The "...In Camera" series.
Any of the recent David Bull bios/autobiographies - Vic Elford, John Horsman, Peter Bryant, Mike Argetsinger on Walt Hansgen...
Jabby Crombac's Chapman biography
The Paul Skilleter/Norman Dewis epic
Andrew Whyte's two volumes on Jaguar sports racers
Smokey Yunick's three-volume autobiography
Bill Boddy on Brooklands

[Pete Fenelon]

further...

Ian Briggs' Endurance Racing 1982-1991
David Hodges A-Z of Formula Racing Cars and A-Z of Grand Prix Cars
Peter Higham's [Guinness] Guide to International Motor Racing - the ultimate one-volume reference
Phil Kerr's "To Finish First"
Innes Ireland "All Arms and Elbows"
Graham Hill "Life at the Limit"
Bill Milliken's "Equations of Motion" (if you're a techie and also love aviation)
Any of the little Aston Publications' "Directory of..." - there were books on GpC, 'classic sports racers', F1 66-85 and 'historic racing cars'

A good collection of Autocourse and some John Player yearbooks!

[Pete Fenelon]

The Encyclopedia of Motor Sport - Georgano/Bochroch et al
Chevron: The Derek Bennett Story - David Gordon
Portraits of the 60s - Rainer Schlegelmilch
Rally, Rally Cars - Reinhard Klein
It Was Fun - Tony Rudd
Lotus 49, Lotus 72 - Michael Oliver
Power & Glory, Grand Prix Requiem - William Court
High Performance - Robert Post (social/technical/sporting history of drag racing 1945-1990)

[Pete Fenelon]

Originally Posted by Roadtonowhere

Cheers for that, But what are these Black Books I keep hearing so much about? They sound interesting

They're the Formula One Register's record books - basically data compiled by Paul Sheldon and Duncan Rabagliati. Rare as rocking horse droppings and incredibly informative if you like your information presented in concise form. They've done Grand Prix racing, F2/voiturettes, and some F3; there's also a British hillclimb/sprint book I think.

There are recurrent rumours that the Black Books will appear in electronic form, but nothing ever seems to happen...

Oh, which reminds me- Mike Lang's Grand Prix series is a good substitute for Autocourse for F1 race reports.

[Pete Fenelon]

Further further:

Can-Am: Pete Lyons

Any of the Brooklands Books compilations on racing: the five-volume Le Mans series, the three volumes on Can-Am, the two on the Mille Miglia, the six on the Land Speed Record, the compilations on ERA and on Lotus and Porsche sports racers, oooh and the Henry Manney compilation

[Pete Fenelon]

As for "avoid"....

Christopher Hilton writes well about history. His contemporary books are not as good.
Alan Henry, IMHO, was a first-rate writer in the 70s and 80s who's now gone right off the boil and writes turgid journalese potboilers.
I'm not sold on John Starkey's books, I can't fault the guy's enthusiasm for sports car racing but his style and presentation leave me cold.

[Pete Fenelon]

A few more musts:

- Anything by David Tremayne, particularly Racers Apart and anything he's done on the Land Speed Record.

- Adam Cooper's "Piers Courage: Last of the Gentlemen Racers"

- Dave Friedman's "The Legends of Motorsport". Very American-focussed but gorgeous b/w photography.

- TASO Mathieson's "Grand Prix Racing 1906-1914" (Authoritative and gorgeous)

- Charles Jarrot's "Ten Years of Motors and Motor Racing" - starts with the author saying racing's been ruined by commercialism. When you consider that the ten years are those around the turn of the 19th-20th century you'll see how prophetic he was

- Burt "BS" Levy's Buddy Palumbo novels starting with "The Last Open Road". Funny, nostalgic and very perceptive indeed.

[Roadtonowhere]

Thanks for the help there Pete. Will definatley have to pop into Motor Books next time I'm in London and see if I can find some of those. Already got Time and Two Seats so that should be a big help, as they said they won't be getting anymore in.

[Andy77]

Originally Posted by Pete Fenelon

As for "avoid"....

Christopher Hilton writes well about history. His contemporary books are not as good.
Alan Henry, IMHO, was a first-rate writer in the 70s and 80s who's now gone right off the boil and writes turgid journalese potboilers.
I'm not sold on John Starkey's books, I can't fault the guy's enthusiasm for sports car racing but his style and presentation leave me cold.

I quite liked Christopher Hiltons book about the 1937 and 1938 Donington GP's although it took me about 4 times to read and an Oxford dictionary on top of that but then English ain't my native language
I don't know if they have been mentioned yet but Michel Keysers The Speed Merchants and Terry O'Neills The Bahamas Speedweeks are pretty good reads too.

[ensign14]

Listen to the Fenelon. He speaks the truth.

If you are short of cash, "Cooper Cars" by Doug Nye is probably the best of the bunch, or "Power And Glory" by William Court to see what a genuine wordsmith can do with motor sport. TASO's is the best photography book, a veritable time machine.

One biography to add: "The Unfair Advantage" by Mark Donohue.

And on NASCAR, anything by Peter Golenbock (especially American Zoom) and the Greg Fielden "Forty Years" series, a blue equivalent to the Black Books, only with photos and a bit more narrative. Essential if you like stock car racing. Cheap production, but the content is gold.
Antony Bligh's books are excellent on a very abstruse area (touring cars in the 1930s, essentially).

[Pete Fenelon]

Originally Posted by ensign14

Listen to the Fenelon. He speaks the truth.

If you are short of cash, "Cooper Cars" by Doug Nye is probably the best of the bunch, or "Power And Glory" by William Court to see what a genuine wordsmith can do with motor sport. TASO's is the best photography book, a veritable time machine.

One biography to add: "The Unfair Advantage" by Mark Donohue.
...

Antony Bligh's books are excellent on a very abstruse area (touring cars in the 1930s, essentially).

Agree with the van Valkenburgh/Donohue - didn't I list it? Should've done.

Must also add David Weguelin's gargantuan history of ERA.

[Pete Fenelon]

Oh yes... Jo Ramirez' "Memoirs of a Racing Man" - might change the way you think about some people, Emmo and Ron in particular!

[Adam43]

Some great books mentioned above. Can I add Birkin's Full Throttle. Its pre-war langauge possibly inhibits, but for a man and why he races it is bob on.

[ensign14]

Segrave's Lure Of Speed is in a similar vein. "C'est le quatorze qui est en panne! Nous sommes en tete!"

My Two Lives by Rene Dreyfus. Shell out for that.

Rob Walker's for a gentleman's story.

Perry McCarthy's for the jaxie end of the grid.

Mike Hawthorn's two ghost-written ones to go before Innes Ireland's chronologically.

Eberhard Reuss' new one about the Silver Arrows arrived today, looks VERY interesting.

Basically, you have to win the lottery.

[TilkeWannabe]

My prized Grand Prix Data Book; David Holland and David Hayhoe 1950-2005 version.

[alesi95]

Originally Posted by Pete Fenelon

Oh yes... Jo Ramirez' "Memoirs of a Racing Man" - might change the way you think about some people, Emmo and Ron in particular!

Didnt really change my opinion of Mansell though.
What an arse.

[ensign14]

Yes, that was the problem, it didn't fit.

[Andy77]

Oh and if you speak German you could try out .....
.....Stefan Bellof - Eine viel zu kurze Karriere by Ferdi Kräling & Rainer Braun
.....Jägermeister Racing 1972-2000 by Eckhard Schimpf
.....Hallo Fahrerlager by Rainer Braun (and the soon to be released "Hallo Fahrerlager 2")
.....Trips - Erinnerungen an ein Idol by Jörg Thomas Födisch & Reinold Louis

[Super Hans]

Just purchased For The Record by Niki Lauda and It Beats Working by Eoin Young. Should give me something to do during the French Grand Prix.

[ensign14]

I have some paint that was applied to the wall in 1974 that I can watch dry.

[John Turner]

If it hasn't dried in 34 years, it never will.

[ensign14]

It'll still be more exciting.