ATLAS F1 - THE JOURNAL OF FORMULA ONE MOTORSPORT
The Bookworm Critique

By Mark Glendenning, Australia
Atlas F1 Columnist


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This book carries the subtitle 'The Complete History of the World's Most Famous Motor Race'. The claim to the title of 'world's most famous race' is one that would no doubt be hotly contested by a number of people, many of whom probably live somewhere in the region of Indianapolis. (Hell, there is even a band of diehards here in Australia who would argue in all seriousness that no-one is worthy of calling themselves a racing driver until they have won at Bathurst).

What cannot be argued, however, is that Le Mans is one of the few faces of motorsport that has more or less found its way into mainstream consciousness. Most people that you speak to would have some degree of awareness that Le Mans is home to a famous car race, even if they don't know the actual format of the event or what types of cars participate.

But the fact remains that in the eyes of the general public, Le Mans is one of motorsport's flagships. And it's equally significant to a lot of manufacturers and drivers too, albeit in a different sense. At any rate, the world's most famous endurance race is upon us again this coming weekend, which makes it a good time to sit back and reflect on the past editions of the event. And this book is an exceptionally pleasant way to do it.

Veteran motoring writer Brian Laban has an obvious soft spot for Le Mans, and he has channeled this enthusiasm into an account of the event's history that is as engaging as it is informative. The coffee-table format means that the battle for space between text and image invariably falls in favour of the 'picture tells a thousand words' school, but in the main the photographs are well selected and presented. Sometimes this particular format of book relies on images as padding, but 'Le Mans 24 Hours' manages to avoid this particular trap.

So while the images may get the lion's share of the page space, conciseness is at a premium. Laban recognises this, and manages to squeeze a lot of information into the available room. Occasionally something slips through the net – it's all very well to tell us that 'John Winter' was a pseudonym, for example (p. 202), but it would have been good if the author had then told us the story behind the moniker rather than just barreling on ahead.

But incidents such as this are in the minority, and in the most part the author does a superb job of condensing what is sometimes a rather involved story into a compact yet comprehensive account.

Particularly valuable is Laban's sense of context. It would have been all too easy to simply recount the happenings of each race as it unfolded, but the author dodges this and instead creates a consistent thread following the various forces that have shaped the event to the point where it has become what it is today.

Whether it was the enforced revitalisation of the circuit facilities brought about by the devastation of the second world war, or the gradual shift in emphasis that led to the current era ruled by prototypes, or even the various factors that have been instrumental in triggering changes to the circuit layout, it is all explained here.

When first released a couple of years ago, this book was at the higher-end of the mid-price range, however with a bit of hunting you should find it for considerably less than the £35 cover price. And if you can do it before this weekend then all the better, because Le Mans 2003 is almost upon us, and Laban's book is the perfect way to get in the mood. Unless you're one of the lucky souls who are actually going, in which case you should buy this as a souvenir instead.


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Volume 9, Issue 24
June 11th 2003

Atlas F1 Exclusive

Interview with Eddie Jordan
by Will Gray

Giancarlo Fisichella: Through the Visor
by Giancarlo Fisichella

Articles

Season in the Sun IV
by David Cameron

The Dream Team Rolls On
by Roger Horton

Canadian GP Preview

Canadian GP Preview
by Craig Scarborough

Canada Stats and Facts
by Marcel Schot

Columns

The F1 Trivia Quiz
by Marcel Borsboom

The Fuel Stop
by Reginald Kincaid

Bookworm Critique
by Mark Glendenning

On the Road
by Garry Martin

Elsewhere in Racing
by David Wright & Mark Alan Jones

The Weekly Grapevine
by Tom Keeble



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