Archive for Author 'John Aston', only excerpts shown, click title for full entry.

The Greatest Escape

by Martin Barratt

RAF Bomber Command’s slogan was “the bomber will always get through.” But not necessarily back. Almost 45% of their aircrews died in WWII. Almost 10,000 were captured, and many kept their stories to themselves. This is one of them.

Superbears—The Story of Hesketh Racing

by James Page

Need something to do on the weekends? Got a pile of money? Why, let’s start a racing team! It’s 1972. Their caterer had better credentials than their—unemployed—driver. The opposition laughed, but not for long.

Jim Crawford, Lessons in Courage

by Kevin Guthrie

A team boss of his once called him the bravest driver he ever knew. Also a wonderful human being. What, you never heard of the Scot who loved the Indy 500?? Here’s a book to fix that.

Driven to Crime: True Stories of Wrongdoing in Motor Racing 

by Crispian Besley

Its cartoonish cover illustration notwithstanding, the book is clever—just ponder the double entendre in the main title—and, more importantly, well researched. From perps to victims of crime, you will be surprised at the cast of characters.

Toymaker: My Journey from War to Wonder

by Tom Karen

“The man who designed the 1970s” just died, on the last day of 2022. Here he offers a celebration of creativity. From domestic appliances to transistor radios and furniture to motorcars there was hardly an area of everyday life this industrial designer did not apply himself to.

From Bond to Bentley and Back, Rambles Through a Motoring Life

by Roger Bateman

Bateman has been up close and personal with many, many more cars than the 28 he owned, for instance as a manager of The National Motor Museum at Beaulieu and at Fiennes Restoration. Has he got stories? You bet.

Jacky Ickx: His Authorised Competition History

by Jon Saltinstall

The quiet and contemplative Belgian who thought he wanted to be a gardener discovered he was a versatile and successful racer on two and then four wheels. He contested over 570 races in a decades-spanning career, and here is a suitably big book for this big life.

Road Trips, Head Trips, and Other Car-Crazed Writings

Edited by Jean Lindamood Jennings

This book might have been published back when Bill Clinton was beginning his second term in the White House but, if you’re hungry for a tasting menu of the finest car-themed journalism, this anthology will sate gourmet and gourmand alike.

UFO Drawings From The National Archives

by David Clarke 

Some say The Truth is Out There. Even if it is, so is a whole load of other stuff. Fake news is not news! This delightfully left-field book shows how the UFO phenomenon has been a rich seam mined by a diversity of Britons, ranging from the self-delusional to the unsettlingly sane.

The Age of Combustion: Notes on Automobile Design

by Stephen Bayley

As the Age of the Internal Combustion Engine winds down here comes a grand sweeping commentary in the form of essays/magazine columns by a man who has opinions.

A Race With Infamy, The Lance Macklin Story

by Jack Barlow

He was active on the pro scene for only a few years, winning no poles, points, let alone podiums. That he is not entirely forgotten by racers is due to the “infamy” the title alludes to.

North Eastern Motorsport: A Century of Memories

by Larry Carter

The North East of England has spawned many great racers over the years. Some of them, as well as the venues they raced at are already long forgotten so this book puts a necessary marker on the map. (Too bad there’s not an actual map, for the enlightenment of poor colonials.)

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