1967: Chris Amon, Scuderia Ferrari and a year of living dangerously
By John Julian
This is an uncommon book about an uncommon man, produced in an uncommon style. The man, of course, is Chris Amon, the young racing driver from New Zealand who earned a reputation as a hard-luck driver in F1 as victory after victory slipped through his fingers. Author Julian argues, however, that having survived when others did not, Amon is actually much luckier than many of his less fortunate contemporaries.
The book opens with the nebulous Hemingway quote about bullfighting, mountain climbing and motor racing, and compounds the cliché throughout with further observations from movie characters, but in the end the words are valid and help tell the story. The rest of the text features further commentary from racers of the day and other observers, interspersed with the author’s race-by-race accounting of the 1967 season.
The most outstanding feature of this book is its excellent use of absolutely superb photography that takes the reader back to that time when F1 was still a sport—albeit a dangerous one—that had not yet become a functioning business. All stories rise or fall on the strength of their characters, and the main one here is well worthy of our adulation.
Available for US$49.95/£35 from enthusiast bookstores or direct from publisher David Bull at: www.bullpublishing.com
