WOW! THIS makes an invigorating change from all of those books on European sports car racing. The book cites LA as the melting pot of lateral-thinking speed freaks and Scalzo's lively, anecdote-packed text does an excellent job of backing up that hypothesis. We hear about great innovators, rule-stretchers and showmen from Indy car master Harry Miller to playboy sports and F1 car creator Lance Reventlow, the driving force behind the beautiful Scarabs. The cars and characters are well illustrated with 170 images throughout this 192-page hardback. It takes a little retuning of your brain to avoid Scalzo's slangy writing style becoming wearing, but it's worth the effort. Once you're in, you'll feel like part of a bar-room discussion between all of these fascinating LA characters. reviewed by Classic Cars June