Car novel from the day

The other thread speaking of Henry gregor Felson had me wondering about other car related books I read in highschool. I remember a story about a kid who built a car that was painted pink with copper wheels at the behest of his girl. I liked the story but I can't remember the tiltle nor the author.

 

That was one of Felsen's books, I think Hot Rod.

 

I remember a series of books called The Black Tiger. A young driver with his Scotish mechanic. The Black Tiger was the car they modified for what ever type of racing the book was about. Loved'em when I was a kid but... Geeez the 5th grade was a long time ago.

 

I remember that story..I didn't like the story ending.. Title I can't think of for sure but HOTROD! does come to mind...There might have been two or three other books by same author in a couple year span, mid sixtys or so..

 

I remember reading that book at my high school library. The kid had a buddy they called "My son Ralph". Had to borrow his car to run some kind of race as I recall. Don't know why that has stuck with me all these years...

 

I have ALL the "Black Tiger" books if you want to read 'em again.

I collected them for my son several years ago. You can still find them on e*%y once in awhile. Authors name was Patrick O'Connor.

 

It's one of the Felsen books, but not one of the two I have. Does it have Custom in the title?

 

The book was Felson's "Street Rod".

 

This one?

 

Yep............it figures with a pink car and copper wheels.
Just kidding.
Larry T

BTW Hot Rod was the one with Bud Crayne in it.

 

My son Ralph was in Hot Rod but Hot Rod wasn't Felsen's book with the pink and copper rod. That was Street Rod.

Never heard of the Black Tiger series, sounds interesting.


Edit: Dang I type too slow.

 

Yep. Picked up a copy from ebay just a couple of weeks ago. The Felsen books are as good as I remember them from junior high.

 

Some may find this interesting... my copy of Hot Rod is a text book with a boring looking cover and no artwork. Printed on the cover is "A Bantam Book expressly prepared for school use and distributed exclusively by Amsco School Publications". "AMSCO LITERATURE SERIES" In plain block letters it has the title and auther as well.

 

Here are some of the ones I have...

 

The "Pink Coupe " was the felson book, Street Rod . I have it along with the book, Boy Gets Car, a story of a young man in middle America who works at a Egg plant candleing eggs . he buys a car, a 1940 Ford sedan not realizing what a monsterous undertaking it really can be on a limited budget . scrubba

 

Haha, that's cool. Never see that today, or it would be a book about the effects of STDs

Here's a cover of one of the BT series:

 

cool, i have a copy of that book,(street rod) but i havent read it in years, might blow the dust off of it now!

 

Yep, I read all of those, and I remember completely those stories.....they really stuck in my psyche...

 

Wow thanks! I had no idea what the authors name was. I'll have to keep an eye out now!

 

Wow, I'd almost forgotten those books! I read boy gets car several times. There were some other car books you haven't mentioned. There was one about a guy in California,he played in a band and surfed. all I remember...
another was called Crash Club. It's about a rich bad boy moves to town. He had a black 58 Impala with f.i.
Man, that's over 40 years ago...

 

Crash Club, Hot Rod -- yep, read (and still remember) them.

"Bucket of Thunderbolts" ring any bells?

I started a thread like this some time ago, lot of good replies

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=164820&highlight=crash+club

 

i remember one of the books the kid was in the army and hot rodded the generals jeep. he had souped up the motor, added padding to the seat and armer to the floor. was that hot rod or street rod?

 

I don't remember that in either book, but there was a short story in one of my grade school reading textbooks about a soldier changing engines in generals jeep. Seems like it was Korean Conflict Era. Any one remember who wrote it?
Larry T

 

Boy Gets Car was later under the title "Road Rocket". My copy is a Road Rocket one.

 

I've heard of this short story but have never found it to read it. Want to because I've always loved Jeeps. One of my favorite jr high books was "The Year of the Jeep". Kid finds a Jeep in a barn and gets it running story. I managed to find a hard back copy of that one a few years back. I read it every so often still. This book is probably why I have a 46 Willys CJ2A now.

 

Street Rod by H.G. Felsen. The character was Ricky Madison, his arch enemy was Link Aller and his partner/mentor was Merle Connor. From the Yucaipa Junior High Library, 1962.

 

I seem to recall another author of hot rod car books. Not as prolific as Gregor Felsen, but the books were enjoyable. I just can't remember the names of any of his stories, or even HIS name.

As an early airplane aficionado, I also devoured all the Dave Dawson books (WWII exploits of a pilot and his sidekick Freddy Farmer). Still have my Dave Dawson with the Fying Tigers book - but of course - as my third affinity is art - it is completel 'doodled' up on any blank pages.

dj

 

William Campbell Gault also wrote some books of the same genre. One I remember was "Dirt Track Summer". Pretty well written actually, I believe he also wrote mysteries.

 

The coupe wasn't simply pink like Pepto-Bismol it was the color of the inside of a seashell. Who remembers a book about a young guy with a BSA 441 Victor bike that he called "Tar Baby"?

 

My high school used Hot Rod as a text in the summer remedial reading program before freshman year, the logic was to give the kids something that was fun and interesting to read instead of a chore. It worked. After I read Hot Rod, I went through all of HGR's books, and found books like The Red Car by Don Stafford, and others.

Burt Levy is a current author who writes about sports car racing in the fifties, he has a series of books, there are some characters who are in several books, they are written for adults and are a good read, imho.