Archive for Author 'Paul Lea', only excerpts shown, click title for full entry.

27: Patrick Tambay – The Ferrari Years

by Massimo Burbi with Patrick Tambay

Cosmopolitan, debonair, often described as an old-school gentleman and one of the most genuinely charming personalities in F1, this Frenchman took over the car and race number of his deceased friend and drove himself into the history books.

Spreading My Wings

One of Britain’s Top Women Pilots Tells Her Remarkable Story from Pre-War Flying to Breaking the Sound Barrier

by Diana Barnato Walker

The subtitle tells you all you need to know. She flew 80 different types and delivered more than 260 Spitfires to the front. Her father was Bentley Boy Woolf Barnato, her partner in life Whitney Straight. A very worthy read.

The Last Train to Basel: Schlumpf, Bugatti and the French President

by Stuart Ager

The Schlumpf Affair of the 1970s involving the secret accumulation of some 500 historic cars by two wealthy industrialist brothers diverting company funds was a big deal in its day and never really, fully explained. Some files are still sealed but this account connects new dots.

Citroën SM: Accidental Death of an Icon

by Stuart Ager

How come an “icon” has a lifespan of only four years? The title implies something went wrong. Original research by a marque expert sheds new light on a complex story.

Formula 1 Champions Car by Car

Every F1 World Championship Car Since 1950

by Stuart Codling

A good driver would be great with a better car, right? Right? Well, there are many more moving parts to this question, but the driver/car combination is what this book examines. Spoiler alert: not every championship-winner driver has a championship-winning car.

Brooklands Belles: The Women Racers Who Took on The Men

by T.J. Hartwell

It took decades to break down the barriers barring women from competing in early motorsports on equal terms with men. Brooklands was the world’s first purpose built motor-racing circuit so if not here, where?

Bloody Dangerous: Fifty Missions Over Germany

The Last First-Hand Account From World War II

by Flt Lt Colin Bell, DFC

Chew on that subtitle for a moment: the last first-hand? Sure, you’ve seen a pile of war biographies already … but this author is a centenarian. And he rappelled down the side of a building at 102. Bloody dangerous all over again.

Formula 1’s Unsung Pioneers

The Story of the British Racing Partnership and How it Launched Motorsport into the Modern Era

by Ian Wagstaff

Best known for its association with Stirling Moss but for the worst reason, there are other factors noteworthy about BRP such as being the first fully sponsored F1 team.

Games Without Frontiers: Volume 1, 1966–1974

Matra – Alpine – Ligier – Simca – Renault – Alpine

by Stuart Ager

You can deduce from the cover illustration that this will be one unusual story. This book goes into a lot of behind-the-scenes material—and will require two more volumes to button it all up.

CTX 500, Last Train to Cockfosters

by David Brodie

The cover of this memoir looks harmless enough. If the author’s name means anything to you, you know it won’t be.

Grand Prix Ford: Ford, Cosworth and the DFV

by Graham Robson

Ford bankrolled the Double Four Valve. Big money, big resources, big wins. Also big friction, and not in a technical sense. This is a reprint of a 2015 title, now at a lower price. Big win.

FIAT in Motorsport Since 1899

by Anthony Bagnall

You may only think of Fiat in motorsport as a dominant force in 1970s rallying, especially when Abarth became involved with production and development, but note that other car on the cover, clearly a vintage machine.

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