By the 1930s, the government-sponsored cars of Nazi Germany were dominating the track. At the behest of the French government, an unlikely group emerged as a possible challenger. Our Book Garage series showcases what every enthusiast should add to their library. 

Faster by Neal Bascomb chronicles one of the most inspiring, death-defying upsets of all time: a symbolic blow against the Nazis during history?s darkest hour.

authorNeal Bascomb Publisher  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt isbn 978-1328489876 where to get itAmazon

A pre-publication copy of Faster arrived in the mail recently. I only had a vague idea of what it would be about, but when I noticed the cover had a couple of pre-war cars, my interest was piqued. Often called “the golden age of auto racing,” that era has always fascinated me.
Bascomb Shoots Straight

If not done right, car books can become bland, coffee table affairs that simply collect dust. Faster is most definitely not one of those, but honestly, it took me a while to figure out where Bascomb was going with his book. I was merrily reading along, enjoying myself, when I realized I wasn’t really thinking about fact checking what Bascomb was writing. It all more or less jived with what I know about pre-war racing, which, honestly, is a lot.

I?ve read a ton of books on the period, everything from Chris Nixon’s definitive Racing the Silver Arrows to Count Giov...