OFF THE SHELF
Recommended Films, Fine Reads and Dot-coms
WHAT ARE WE READING + WATCHING?
American Auto Racing: The Milestones and Personalities of a Century of Speed Matt Anderson, The Henry Ford’s curator of transportation, recommends a read of J.A. Martin and Thomas F. Saal’s book tracing American auto racing through the 20th century. You can read American Auto Racing from cover to cover, but the handbook-like format makes it more rewarding when taken a chapter or two at a time. The book’s many topics are split into 87 short chapters, each generally two or three pages long. All of the key races, faces and places are here, from the first Vanderbilt Cup competition in 1904 and Harry Miller’s design dominance at the Indianapolis 500 in the 1920s to breaking the sound barrier at Bonneville in 1997. This is not the sort of book that’ll quickly tell you who won NASCAR’s Cup Series championship in 1988, but if you want a concise overview of Bill Elliott’s career and his impact on stock car racing, it’s inside. In other words, American Auto Racing is a perfect primer for those wanting to study up before our new permanent exhibition, Driven to Win: Racing in America, opens this year in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation.
DID YOU KNOW? /
Driven to Win: Racing in America is set to open in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in 2020. See story on Page 48.
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JANUARY-MAY 2020
SHOP
American Auto Racing: The Milestones and Personalities of a Century of Speed is available for purchase in The Henry Ford gift shops and online at thf.org/shopc
“American Auto Racing is a great little handbook for anyone wanting an introduction to U.S. racing — a great complement to our new racing exhibition.” — Matt Anderson, curator of transportation, The Henry Ford