Nigel Mansell - World Champion

Nigel Mansell – World Champion. Simon & Schuster, £3.99.

Anything that contains the line “At last the scream of tortured metal filled the air” smacks of a 1970s motor racing novel for schoolboys. It was taken, however, from this tribute to the current world motor racing champion, culled by the sports staff of the Daily Express, under the leadership of Bob McKenzie.

It’s superficial in parts, over-dramatic in others and the list of runners and riders for the start of the 1992 season contains Larini, Naspetti and Lammers, not to mention the little-known Plerluigi (sic) Martini and Enrico Bortaggia. Apparently, however, there were neither Brabhams nor Fondmetals to be seen.

The cover notes claim: “Now, for the first time, the full story of Mansell’s triumph has been told.” In fact, since August 16, there have been a handful of Mansell books making similar boasts. Despite its shortcomings, this is by no means the worst of them, and its aggressively low price should make it a hit at British Rail concourses and airports everywhere.

SA