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This is an outstanding book, in three ways.

First, it is a comprehensive history of NASCAR from its earliest days, told in short essays and lots of great pictures. There are complete season statistics, point race summaries, etc. There is literally no where else one can find this sort of information.

Second, the book is entertaining. It's not easy to do the kind of in-depth scholarship that underlies this book and make it interesting. That's what the author does. It's literally a page-turner with a gripping narrative.

Third, the book is a very high-quality production. It's a large-format, coffee-table book, the pages are heavy, glossy paper, the binding is extremely sturdy, and the pictures are sharp. This is one of those books that just feels good in your hands, if that makes any sense.

In summary, this is THE book for any NASCAR fan. I'm very happy I bought it, and I think it's a tremendous bargain.

There are a few versions of this book, with season updates being the only difference.

What looks like a year-to-year picture coffee table book is actually a lot more than that. Through the pictures, the book does a remarkable job of detailing not only the best drivers of an era, but also the occasional picture of some of the regulars on the series. For example, you'll see plenty of Richard Petty photos, but you'll see some John Sears photos as well.

First off, it's a large book. The pages are a tad bit larger than a piece of regular notebook paper.

Each decade starts with about a four-page summary of that era. Then, after that you'll find about six to eight pages detailing each season of NASCAR's history, chalked full of photographs. Right below the year you'll find a time line of some of the most important dates of that season. Usually there's about 10 of those dates. Then among the photo are the detailed captions or cutlines. And these aren't your typical one-sentence captions. They are about the size of a typical paragraph with details about the photo and maybe a little history lesson about the people in the photos. That will add more detail to the timeline. At the end of every year, there's one featured story that is a page long. In 1976, the featured story is the classic Daytona 500 race. Finally, each year ends with a list of the top 50 drivers of that season, their point total, their starts, wins, top 5s, top 10s, and winnings. Then to the right of that is a photo of the points champion with a brief summary of the points race that season.

Honestly, it's amazing how much information this book can put together about a season with what - at first glance - looks like a photo book.

If you enjoy this book, I suggest you get Greg Fielden's 40 Years of Stock Car Racing book series. There were four editions in the original set. Later, he added a fifth book detailing the next four years after the first 40 seasons. These books take NASCAR history to another level that I've never seen any other book come close to approaching.

But back to this book. It's a great book. Look in bargain bins. I have two editions and I want to say I paid about $6 for the second copy I have.

Again, it looks like some sort of coffee table picture book. But it's much more than that.

I never buy NASCAR books. Ever. Generally they are cheap, poorly written and focus on one or two drivers (can you say Dale Jr? I knew you could). How much fun is that? And please tell me why I'd want to pay for that?

Well, I happened to cruise the bargain bin at the local superchain bookstore, and this happened to catch my eye. I did say I never bought the books, to be sure, but I'm pretty regular about flipping through them to see if just maybe I want it. This one's a keeper, to be sure.

This book covers everything from the early (EARLY) days of NASCAR to the 2003 season. Plenty of pictures, good sidebar features, season highlights, and in the back year-by-year (and race-by-race, I may add) stats. Awesome.

If you enjoy NASCAR, this book is for you. Period.

Go Rusty!

I got this today as a gift from my nephew in TX. I have read it with the exception the 2 pages of words only which are before each decade without putting it down. I'll read them tomorrow. It begins with a page of Before NASCAR and then goes yearly from 1947 through 2004. The page devoted to the each year has more information then some wordy books. The pictures are fabulous. I will definitely give this to my friends who like NASCAR in place of some I have given in the past.

It is well worth the money spent.

Enjoy!

My tastes run more towards Sports Car racing, and F1/Grand Prix, but every gear head needs a little Nascar info from time to time.
This one fills the bill. Year by year overview with lots of historical photos. Covers 1947-2002.
It's a door stop heavy coffee table book, that would make a great first history book for any Nascar fan. Unless you need to read everything, and know it all... this one may be your last Nascar history book.

A complete history of NASCAR from the beach to the bigtime, NASCAR Chronicle is the best single source for NASCAR information you can find. As much space is devoted to the daring drivers of NASCAR's early days as today's biggest stars. The black and white photos from the 1940s and 50s are invaluable and fascinating. And the anecdotes and stories of NASCAR's early days provide color and grit for a sport that has become overly polished. The story of each season's points race and important events is recounted, and the appendix includes a list of the winner of every race in NASCAR history. This is no glitzy personality-driven book full of headshots and drivers' favorite foods. It's a gritty, factual, behind-the-scenes look at what made NASCAR great.

A hard-core history of NASCAR, from early pre-NASCAR days through modern day racing. This book is structured by year, with complete timelines and highlights of each season, often accompanied by photographs. If you are a new NASCAR fan but lack a background in the history of the sport, then this is a "must have" book for you. Once you learn the history of this sport, you will have a greater appreciation for NASCAR and today's drivers.