Le Mans,Signed by Louis Klemantaski

For many years the 24 Hour Heures du Mans has been recognised as the world's greatest motor race, transcending in importance even the formula Grand Prix for out-and-out racing cars. It is also the longest race on the calendar, the most exhausting for those taking part, and the most gruelling test for high speed machines. Finally, it can be considered as the most colourful and photogenic of all races, with its varying weather and light conditions, from blazing sun to morning mist, from the almost invariable downpours to the chill hours of darkness; and this alone justifies the superb collection of photographs by Louis Klemantaski of which this book mainly consists. Michael Frostick, who has been responsible for the arrangement of the photographs and for the text commentary, has treated the race in a novel way. Since its inception in 1923, Le Mans has seen a remarkable variety of sports cars, from lightly-tuned family saloons to some of the most stark and outrageous machines conceived by designers. Rather than in a simple year-by-year form, he has therefore chosen to group many of the photographs under such headings as Monsters, Midgets, Americans, Curiosities, Bentleys and so on. The result is revealing and highly entertaining, and a reminder of the lengths to which manufacturers of many nations have gone to strive not only for the cash prizes, but also for the prestige that victory at Le Mans provides. The statistical tables of winners have been taken up to 1960.