Gerald Donaldson 'James Hunt, the biography'

This book presents James Hunt's life as a tragic story; the brilliant and charismatic sportsman, who reaches the top step of his chosen sport but is unable to adjust to normal life; who is haunted by inner demons and only manages to find happiness at the end of his life. Although I was never really a James Hunt fan, I did enjoy this book. The story is told in a way that should appeal to a wider audience than just motor racing fans. On the negative side I did find the author's habit of over dramatizing incidents a bit trying and there are a number of factual errors. For example, as one of the books illustrations shows, Hunt's car did not bounce off a spinning car at the start of the 1977 US GP East. Nor did the spectators at the 1976 British GP throw beer bottles on the track, at least not where I was standing!

Collins Willow, 319 pages