1982: The Inside Story of an Astonishing Grand Prix Season

by Christopher Hilton

A multitude of factors conspired to make the 1982 season exceptionally turbulent and trying. Political wrangling, a driver’s strike at the first race, fatal crashes, a rather unexpected champion and more, more, more. The book is ten years old but remains a shining beacon.

Tiltrotor Aircraft: An Illustrated History

by Alexander Lüdeke

In recent years, one particular tiltrotor has been in the news a lot, usually because something went wrong. Often spectacularly wrong. Why is it so hard to go up and then forward? Well, this book explains it.

Alfonso XIII y El Automóvil

by Emilio Polo García

Kings have cars—and this one even has one named after him, the Hispano-Suiza Alfonso XIII roadster. This book has about as many illustrations as pages so even if you don’t speak Spanish you’ll get something out of it.

Harnessing Horsepower: The Pat Moss Carlsson Story

by Stuart Turner

The reference to horsepower in the title is more apt than the uninitiated might think because this most successful female auto rally driver of all time was also so accomplished a horsewoman that she was called on to be a member of the British Show-Jumping team.

Classic Racing Engines

by Karl Ludvigsen

A reprint of an important book makes it available to new readers. Not an easy read but the science/art of building a competitive race motor is enormously complicated so this book does help to appreciate the intricacies.

Jaguar E-Type Six-Cylinder Originality Guide

by Thomas F. Haddock & Michael C. Mueller

You cannot keep or make an E-Type original without this book. There are many things this book is not—and doesn’t want to be—but it is a precision tool for a specialized job. Pretty enough to sit on your coffee table, it really does not belong there but in your workspace.

Illustrated Dictionary of Automobile Body Styles

by Lennart W. Haajanen

Modern-day automotive body styles are more or less standardized but in the days of the coachbuilt car, designs—and the accompanying terminology—were bountiful. This book explains their history, often going back to the horse-drawn carriage.

Ian Walker Racing: The Man and His Cars

by Julian Balme

From amateur rally driver to team owner who supplied rides in which world championships were won, Walker was a force to be reckoned with in the 1950s and ‘60s. This fine bio is the first, and the world would be just fine if it remained the only one.

The Amazing Life of John Cooper Fitch

by Art Evans

“Amazing” doesn’t even begin to exhaust the fullness of the man whose obit described him as “bathed in golden sunlight.” Pilot, racer, sailor, inventor, family man, holder of a speed record—for driving backward.

Maxwell Motor and the Making of the Chrysler Corporation

by Anthony J. Yanik

The list of Maxwell innovations is long, not just in terms of technology but also policy such as marketing specifically to women or hiring a gender-balanced sales force. Once a leading US carmaker, the original firm is long defunct but survives today in the form of Fiat Chrysler.

Collector’s Choice Music Catalogue, August 2017

by Joe Van Horn

Speedreaders is often unique in the material we review—and proud of it. Here is a music catalogue that may periodically come to your house. But we sometimes do more than a mere review; this essay is both informational and illuminating.