I have a minor collection of automotive and transportation books, including a few rare gems such as 1969's Automobile Revue (a once-coveted European publication), and The Encyclopedia of American Automobiles, printed back in 1968. Perhaps the rarest is an official Porsche photo book from 1960, produced when I was enjoying a brief career as a VW/Porsche pr assistant and given by the company as a gift to a lucky few. My problem is a lack of shelf space, which limits the opportunity to expand the Powell "library." Nevertheless I'm always attracted to the used (but pristine) books available from McLellan's.

Every so often Robert McLellan describes some of the latest offerings in his Automotive Chronicles newsletter, which I'm always happy to pass on to Classical Drives visitors. The firestone publication shown here was likely a promotional piece, published back in 1933 when gum-dipped tires were an example of the latest technology. You may not wish to ride on such tires today but discovering how and why they were developed can provide a pleasant couple of hours on a rainy autumn evening. You can get more background on this book by clicking here, and at the same time peruse the rest of this week's fascinating catalog.